On this page: Learn how to set a journey’s time zone — either a fixed time zone or one taken from each profile — to control when time-based activities such as time conditions, date conditions, and custom waits run.
You can define a time zone in the properties of your journey.
To access journey properties, select the pencil icon in the top-right of the screen.
This time zone will be used for every activity of the journey containing a time element such as:
You can select a fixed time zone or choose to use the time zone defined in the user profile.
Define a fixed time zone fixed-timezone
The time zone can be fixed. Clear the pre-defined time zone and pick one from the drop-down list. If you use a fixed time zone, it will be the same for all individuals entering the journey.
To do so, in the Journey Properties pane, select a time zone.
Use profile time zone timezone-from-profiles
If the entry event of the journey has a namespace, meaning that the journey can reach the Real-time Customer Profile service of Adobe Experience Platform, you may want to use the time zone defined at the profile level. To do so, in Properties, check Use Profile time zone in waits and conditions. This option is not checked by default.
If a time zone has been defined for a profile, it is retrieved and used by the journey. If it hasn’t, the time zone used is the one defined in the time zone field.
Use time zones in expressions timezone-in-expressions
The start and end dates of a journey cannot be linked to a specific time zone. They are automatically associated to the instance’s time zone.
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- TL;DR: This page explains how to configure time zone settings in Adobe Journey Optimizer journey properties, choosing between a fixed time zone applied to all profiles or a per-profile time zone sourced from the Real-time Customer Profile.
Intents:
- Set a fixed time zone on a journey so that all profiles follow the same time reference for conditions and waits
- Enable per-profile time zone so that Wait and Condition activities use each individual’s stored time zone preference
- Understand which journey activities are affected by the journey time zone setting
- Identify the profile field group that stores the individual time zone value
Glossary:
- Fixed time zone: A single time zone selected in Journey Properties that applies uniformly to every profile entering the journey (product-specific)
- Profile time zone: The per-individual time zone stored in the
timeZonefield of the Preference Details field group, used when the “Use Profile time zone in waits and conditions” option is enabled (product-specific) - Preference Details field group: The XDM field group that contains the
timeZoneattribute used for profile-level time zone resolution
Guardrails:
- The “Use Profile time zone in waits and conditions” option is only available when the journey’s entry event has a namespace (i.e., the journey can reach the Real-time Customer Profile service)
- The option is not checked by default; the fixed time zone is used unless explicitly enabled
- If the option is enabled but no time zone is defined on the profile, the journey falls back to the fixed time zone defined in journey properties
- Journey start and end dates cannot be linked to a specific time zone; they are automatically associated with the instance’s time zone
Terminology:
- Canonical name: Time zone management — Acronym: none — variants: timezone configuration, journey time zone
- Synonyms: “fixed time zone” = “same for all individuals”; “profile time zone” = “Use Profile time zone in waits and conditions”
- Do not confuse: “journey time zone” (applies to activities) ≠ “instance time zone” (applies to journey start/end dates, set automatically)
FAQ:
- Q: Where do I set the time zone for a journey? — In the Journey Properties pane, accessible via the pencil icon in the top-right of the journey canvas.
- Q: Which activities use the journey time zone? — Time conditions, date conditions, and custom wait activities.
- Q: How do I make each profile follow their own local time zone? — In Journey Properties, enable the “Use Profile time zone in waits and conditions” option. This requires the journey to have a namespace so it can reach the Real-time Customer Profile service.
- Q: What happens if a profile has no time zone defined and the profile time zone option is enabled? — The journey falls back to the fixed time zone defined in the time zone field in Journey Properties.
- Q: Which profile field stores the individual’s time zone? — The
timeZonefield within the Preference Details field group in the profile schema. - Q: Can I set the journey’s start and end dates to a specific time zone? — No. Journey start and end dates are automatically associated with the instance’s time zone and cannot be linked to a custom time zone.