Introducing: Shinola Traveler

The weather is starting to warm up here in the northern hemisphere, and that means thoughts turn to getting outside. After the last two years, you may even be thinking it’s time to get on the road – or in the air – and explore some new locales. If so, the just-announced Shinola Traveler seems aptly named for your journey.

Surprisingly, for a watch aimed at travel, the Shinola Traveler does not feature a GMT or world-timer capability. We asked about that, and the response was that Shinola was focusing on a more casual form of travel (aka, the road trip), whereas a GMT points to something a bit more technical. Also worth noting, it sounds like this is the start of a product line, and we should see some more models coming down the line.

Obviously, by the dial layout and the pushers flanking the crown, the Shinola Traveler is a quartz chronograph. As with their other chronographs, the subdials are shifted slightly above the center line of the dial, almost like it was supposed to be a triple layout, but instead we’ve got the two. It’s a look I still can’t quite get used to, but it is consistent across their chronographs.

The dials of the Shinola Traveler have a texture that is reminiscent of vellum, and come in colors that draw inspiration from Michigan’s sand dunes. I’m pleased to say – as so many brands get this so very, very wrong – that Shinola has gotten the date wheels color matched to three of the four dials (one black dial has a white date disc).

If you pick up on of the 42mm Shinola Travelers, you’ll have a choice of either a leather strap or a canvas one. To us, the black dial on cavas looks sharp, and we feel the sunny orange dial on the brown leather will be a rather popular one as well. Pricing for the line ranges from $850 – $895, and you should find them at your local Shinola store, and of course online. shinola.com