It’s the year 2025, and Longines is raising a toast to a truly grand milestone! This year marks 100 years – a whole century – since the brand first introduced their groundbreaking dual-timezone wristwatch, known as the “Zulu Time,” back in 1925.
Longines has, in fact, been a trusted companion for travellers navigating the world’s time zones since the late 19th century. Their expertise was beautifully showcased with their “Turkish Watches,” a collection of pocket watches that ingeniously displayed dual time zones. These were specially commissioned by the Ottoman Empire in 1908, allowing for the simultaneous reading of both Turkish and Western time.
Fast forward to 1925, and the original “Zulu Time” watch made its debut. Its dial proudly featured the colourful maritime flag representing the letter “Z,” a nod to the time at the zero meridian in Greenwich, London – what we now call Universal Time (UTC +0). In the world of professional aviation, UTC is simply known as “Zulu Time.” The beauty of its 4-digit time format (think 1030Z for 10:30 AM UTC) is that it eliminates any confusion about AM or PM, and to this day, “Zulu Time” remains a critical standard, ensuring crystal-clear communication for pilots and navigators during radio contact.
Now, as we hit 2025, Longines is unveiling a magnificent tribute: The Longines Spirit Zulu Time 1925. This timepiece celebrates the centennial of that original 1925 “Zulu Time” wristwatch. It comes with a sleek 39-mm stainless steel case and a rather smart bidirectional rotating bezel. And here’s a first for the Spirit Zulu Time collection: the bezel is adorned with an exquisite 18K rose-gold cap! The bezel insert itself is circular-brushed with 24-hour graduations, allowing its wearers to track a third time zone with ease, and the meticulously engraved numbers and indexes add a real touch of depth and refinement as well.
The choice of rose gold (which contains copper) isn’t just about aesthetics; it’s a beautiful homage to the copper strip marking the Prime (or “zero”) Meridian at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich. The matt black dial provides a striking contrast with the rose-gold-coloured hands and indexes, ensuring exceptional legibility, and both the hands and hour markers are treated with Super-LumiNova® for optimal readability in any lighting. You’ll also spot five elegant stars positioned above the 6 o’clock marker, alongside a discreet date window. And, subtly engraved in a tone-on-tone finish, are the years “1925 – 2025,” marking this special centennial.
But the innovations don’t stop there. For the first time in the Longines Spirit Zulu Time collection, this centennial timepiece features a transparent case back. This offers a glimpse of the rose-gold-coloured PVD rotor, which boasts a special engraving of a planisphere with the Prime Meridian running through its centre – another first for the collection!
To truly mark this momentous release, Longines launches a campaign that delves into a question that resonates with anyone who’s been separated by distance: “What time is it there?” This heartfelt campaign stars Longines’ Ambassador of Elegance, Henry Cavill, and beautifully depicts the emotional connection between two people who are separated by distance, yet linked by time. Cavill, who travels through all sorts of destinations and airports, definitely makes the perfect face for this campaign. The campaign beautifully shows how the Spirit Zulu Time watch is more than just a device for telling time; it actually becomes a meaningful link between people who care about each other, allowing them to stay connected and in sync even when they’re far apart. For today’s global traveller, this watch helps turn time into a shared language with the most important people in their lives, making it easier to juggle international careers and personal moments across different time zones. Simply glancing at their wrist can make them feel closer.
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