The Best Affordable Rolex Explorer Alternative Just Got Better

This mid-century explorer’s watch is now more desirable than ever.

Published June 26, 2024

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Stop me if you’ve heard this one before.

It’s the 1950s and the technological boom of the post-war era has led to a new age of exploration. One intrepid explorer has set a new benchmark by being the first conquer one of nature’s greatest feats, and part of his kit is an experimental tool watch built to withstand the harshest environments on Earth.

Your mind probably went to Sir Edmund Hillary’s summit of Mount Everest with Tenzing Norgay in 1953, and the famous Rolex Explorer prototype that accompanied them.

But I was actually describing Nivada Grenchen and its own purpose-built 1950s adventure watch, the Antarctic. The 34mm watch became the first wristwatch worn in the southernmost continent in 1956 when it was issued to Admiral Richard E. Byrd during Operation Deep Freeze I, the United States’ mission to set up a permanent base on the continent.

The reborn Nivada brand has been making modern Antarctic watches for a few years now, offering buyers a budget alternative to the Rolex Explorer that is not an homage and that has similar historical significance behind it.

Today, the brand’s Antarctic offerings have improved further, as Nivada is now offering both the Super Antarctic and Antarctic Spider — both previously only available in a 38mm size — in a new, more period-correct 35mm case.

Nivada Grenchen Super Antarctic 35

$1,050 at Nivada Grenchen

Revived at 35

The new Super Antarctic and Antarctic Spider have the same general design as their larger brethren, just in a more compact case.

The Super Antarctic is available exclusively with a black dial — like the Explorer — and comes with the option or white or beige lume for its applied triangle and baton indices and Rolex-adjacent handset.

The Spider, meanwhile, features a silver sunburst or matte black dial with a printed “spidered” pattern emanating from its center out to the applied silver indices. It also features a cyclops date window at 3 o’clock.

Both watches have 35mm stainless steel cases with sapphire crystals, screw-down crowns, 50m water resistance and Landeron 21 manual-wind movements beating away inside. The casebacks feature a gold-tone medallion showing a penguin, a cute throwback to the brand’s original mid-century Antarctic watches.

nivada watch caseback showing a penguin — The period-correct penguin on the caseback is a fun touch.

The Best Rolex Explorer Alternative

Nivada already made the standard Antarctic in 35mm, but with its flashy silver applied Arabic numeral indices, it felt too dressy to properly compete with the Explorer.

The new 35mm version of the Super Anatarctic especially, however, matches up quite well with Rolex’s 36mm Explorer in terms of both its visual design and historical significance.

rolex explorer 40mm — The Rolex Explorer, seen here in the larger 40mm size, is nearly ten times the price of the Super Antarctic.

The Rolex, of course, is more robust (it has 100m water resistance), much higher quality (it’s a luxury watch) and has a far superior movement and bracelet, among other things.

But for a starting price of just $850 on a leather strap (a bracelet will cost you a couple hundred extra), it’s hard to argue against the Super Antarctic 35 if you don’t have $7,250 to spend on the Rolex (or more if you’re shopping secondhand, which you’ll probably have to do).

Nivada Grenchen Super Antarctic 35

A smaller version of Nivada’s modern-day reissue of the 1950s watch that was worn on Antarctic expeditions, this 35mm tool watch in stainless steel is a great budget alternative to Rolex’s iconic Explorer.