Monday Morning Watch Ponderings: Traveling With Either A Quartz Breitling Or A Mechanical Oris
What watch do you take with you on your summer vacation? I know which one I will be wearing for two weeks straight. It’s going to be my Oris × Momotaro Divers Sixty-Five Special Edition on a tropic strap from the Fratello collection. But when I saw the powerful-looking black and white Breitling Endurance Pro at Fratello HQ, a question popped up in my mind: should I match my watch to my holiday destination? And if given a choice between two watches, would I take a quartz Breitling or a mechanical Oris on holiday? I’m going to answer those questions for myself, and I’m also curious to know what your answers would be.
The mind of a watch fan works in mysterious ways. We all have our quirks. Be honest; you do too. We have our little dogmas when it comes to brands, complications, bracelets, color combinations, and so on. And we ask ourselves questions that no one outside the watch world cares about. After seeing the ultra-bold and powerful black and white Breitling Endurance Pro at Fratello HQ while wearing my Oris × Momotaro Divers Sixty-Five Special Edition on a tropic strap, I started thinking about watches and holiday destinations. As I looked at these quartz and mechanical watches, which seem like total opposites but also have quite a bit in common, an introspective question slowly took form.
Should I take the quartz Breitling or the mechanical Oris on holiday?
Both watches have a rubber strap. Both watches are water resistant to 100 meters. And both watches are designed to cope with an “active lifestyle,” as watch brands like to call it. But when taking pictures of both watches with our in-house photographer Morgan, I said to him that the mechanical Oris felt like Biarritz, while the quartz Breitling felt like Saint-Tropez. He thought about it for a couple of seconds, and then he agreed with a loud laugh.
Maybe it’s the bronze outer bezel of the 40 × 13mm Oris Sixty-Five × Momotaro (discontinued now and €2,000 when it came out in 2020) that makes this watch more “Biarritz” than “Saint-Tropez.” Or it could be the beige indexes that match so extraordinarily well with the tropic strap from the Fratello Shop. By the way, I picked this Oris as my GADA watch. “I’m thinking of taking this watch on my summer vacation, so the denim strap can develop some nice patina from the salt water and the sunshine,” I wrote in the article. But I won’t. I chickened out. I don’t want to destroy my denim strap. In my search for a replacement, I came across this beige tropic, and I have to say that the result created a completely new watch — a watch befitting Biarritz.
Taking the mechanical Oris to Biarritz
The retro Divers Sixty-Five with the soft beige tones more prominently showing has a vibe that I link to the historic grandeur of Biarritz, a town on the Atlantic coast in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in the French Basque Country. Biarritz was described in 1843 by famous French author Victor Hugo as a “charming and beautiful place.” Hugo, being an influencer avant la lettre, saw French Empress Eugénie follow in his footsteps. The wife of Napoleon III built a palace on the beach, now the Hôtel du Palais, and many royals from all over Europe came to visit her in Biarritz. It’s the bronze bezel and the gold-colored hands of the Oris that connect to that period in time.
The soft, shimmering light green dial of the Divers Sixty-Five has a geographical link, reminding me of the color of the Bay of Biscay. Then, the insides of the watch — the Oris caliber 733, a Sellita SW200-1 base movement — link to Biarritz in current times. The town is now a hotspot for surfers. These are cool people who stay close to nature, connect with it, read the surf, and then ride it. They’re people who live conscious and sustainable lives. For this crowd, a mechanical watch makes way more sense than a quartz watch that runs on a disposable battery.
Taking the quartz Breitling to Saint-Tropez
The Oris × Momotaro Divers Sixty-Five is nothing like the Breitling Endurance Pro. Yes, they are both sturdy watches, but the materials and technology used to create them, as well as the vibe of both timepieces, are completely different. And in the same way, Saint-Tropez is nothing like Biarritz. As the Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur Tourism Board says, “Nestled in the heart of Provence, Saint-Tropez’s colorful little port, charming historic quarter, sandy beaches and shaded creeks never fail to charm.” That’s true, but it’s also a hot spot for celebs, shiny super yachts, and bling cars, jewelry, and watches. The town on the Côte d’Azur attracts an extravagant crowd. This is a place for kings and queens of real estate, not the original royals that live in castles.
On the terraces around the marina and aboard a carbon fiber yacht in Saint-Tropez is where the Breitling Endurance Pro shines. It’s the ultralight Breitlight case — 3.3 times lighter than titanium and 5.8 times lighter than stainless steel — that makes the 44 × 12.5mm watch blend in. And it’s the same lightweight case that makes the large watch so very wearable. The Endurance Pro weighs a little bit more than 66 grams, but the stark contrast of the white rubber strap with the black case and dial makes a heavy impact. The monochromatic look is technical but also sporty, and it certainly stands out — something that is crucial in a see-and-be-seen town like Saint-Tropez.
Matching power watch and powerboat
The €3,350 Breitling Endurance Pro (X82310A71B1S1) is a high-tech, non-magnetic, thermally stable, and hypoallergenic timepiece. It’s also a very accurate chronometer thanks to Breitling’s caliber 82, the COSC-certified SuperQuartz movement inside the highly scratch-resistant case. The Endurance Pro does have that powerboat feel. It’s modern, reliable, fun, and carefree. The rubber strap looks way more modern than the tropic strap on the Oris. As I said, there are a lot of basic similarities between the two watches, but the execution is totally different. The Oris wouldn’t turn a single head in Saint-Tropez. The Breitling, however, with its white strap and black case that make your tan seem even more golden, will turn heads, even if you’re in a Richard Mille kind of crowd.
Taking your watch to a non-vacation destination
Sadly, the fun question of what watch to take with you on your travels can also be a way less positive one. Should one wear a Rolex Submariner to London, New York, or Barcelona, for instance? Walking the streets of Amsterdam with a hyper-recognizable Patek Philippe Nautilus is something I strongly advise both locals and tourists not to do — it’s not just people with a deeply rooted passion for fine watchmaking who can recognize that watch from a distance. But let’s end on a positive note. Before you travel, take the culture, local taste, purpose of your visit, and also safety into consideration.
Having done all that, the Oris × Momotaro Divers Sixty-Five Special Edition on a tropic strap from the Fratello Shop is just right for where I’m going and what I’m going to do. But if I ever get to travel to Saint-Tropez, I’m going to look for that Breitling in the safe. Please let me know what watch(es) you’re bringing to which holiday destination and why in the comments below.
