TimeZone Collector's Tour 2007

"The Watch Connoisseur"

Switzerland, June 9 - 16, 2007

Please visit the sign-up page for complete details.   

Planned Itinerary

SATURDAY   JUNE 9  --  ALOFT      

Depart from your selected airport for Geneva.

SUNDAY   JUNE 10  -- ARRIVE GENEVA        

Everyone arrives in Geneva during the morning. Here we are met, assisted through Customs and transferred by private motor coach to the Hotel Tiffany. The balance of the day is left at leisure to relax and get accustomed to the local time.  You may wish to return to your rooms, pull the curtains and take a nap; go downtown for a stroll or visit; have a beer on the terrace; or just do nothing. Our traditional Welcome Dinner with unlimited wine or beer will be served at the hotel's restaurant - meet your TimeZone hosts and other tour participants. A perfect way to start our tour!

MONDAY   JUNE 11    --   TRANSFER TO THE VALLEE-DE-JOUX     

Following breakfast at the hotel, we board a private motor coach for the short and scenic trip to the Vallee-de-Joux. You emerge in an era where watchmakers still make complex mechanical watches by hand in the attics of their homes. Known in the world of high-grade watches simply as "The Vallee," this is the shrine of complications the highest form of watchmaking. Upon arrival we will split into two groups. One group will visit independent watchmaker extraordinaire Philippe Dufour, widely recognized as being among the leading watchmakers working today.  Philippe is known for his Grande and Petite Sonnerie with minute-repetition, the dual escapement Duality, and the more recent Simplicity. A visit with Philippe is always an adventure not to be missed! The other group will visit the recently refurbished workshops of the Blancpain Manufacture, home of the all new in-house 13R0 movement and other horological wonders such as the 1735 which houses a perpetual calendar, split-seconds chronograph, tourbillon, minute repeater and moon phase display into a single timepiece!

Following lunch, the groups reverse their visits. During the visits, our luggage will be delivered to the finest hotel in Le Brassus, the Hotel des Horlogers, where everyone is pre-registered. 

TUESDAY   JUNE 12    --    VALLEE-DE-JOUX 

Following breakfast, we split into two groups once again. One group will visit Jaeger LeCoultre, perhaps the most complete watch fabrication facility in the world. This is home of the Reverso, the Master series and recently the Gyrotourbillon, a multi-axis tourbillon. With a reputation for innovation, Jaeger LeCoultre stands as a monument to the watch-making tradition. In addition JLC prides itself in making every component of the watches that bear their name, and they even make the tools used to create their horological masterpieces.

The other group will visit Audemars Piguet in Le Brassus. Suspended in time, Audemars Piguet is the world's oldest manufacture still in the hands of the founding families.  It is impossible to think about fine watchmaking without mentioning the AP name.  Masters of 12 grand complications, all incorporated into their fine watches, the recently expanded factory of AP is modern but they are always aware of their heritage. Here we also visit the working museum housing circa 200 watches manufactured by AP during their 130-year life. Audemars Piguet is without doubt a leading creator of beautiful and complicated mechanical timepieces.

Following a delightful luncheon hosted by AP and JLC, the groups will reverse their visits.

WEDNESDAY   JUNE 13   --  VALLEE-DE-JOUX / GENEVA 

Wednesday we depart from the Vallee and set off for Fleurier, home of the Chopard manufacture. Chopard has steadily gained the respect of serious collectors over the past several years with the development of their L.U.C. (Louis-Ulysse Chopard) series of movements. Chopard's Fleurier manufacture is a complete fabrication facility. Movement components are created from metal stock, and movements are assembled and checked. Ingots of steel and gold are machined into watch cases. This visit offers a rare opportunity to see almost every aspect of fine watchmaking under one roof.

Following our tour at Chopard, we continue on our journey back to Geneva and the Hotel Tiffany.

THURSDAY  JUNE 14   --   GENEVA  

Thursday brings a full day visit at the spectacular Vacheron Constantin international headquarters and manufacture in Plan-les-Ouates, on the outskirts of Geneva. This new Vacheron Manufacture is truly state of the art and for the first time ever, encompasses all manufacturing and managerial departments. Guided by management staff, we will receive an in-depth tour of the facilities, including the complications  for which Vacheron is so famous. See where the Haute Horlogerie stars of Malte series, the classical Patrimony collection, the updated Overseas and other creations are born and the incredible effort and pride the Vacheron Constantin team puts into these true objects d'art. Our tour will also include a visit to the Vacheron museum, where we will see many amazing timepieces created during Vacheron's storied history.

Thursday evening we're planning a special treat: a private event with leading independent watchmakers. Stay tuned for further details!  

FRIDAY JUNE 15  --  GENEVA

On Friday we visit the headquarters of Patek Philippe in Geneva, truly a unique and impressive establishment. Gain an insider's view of one of watchmaking's legendary companies. A member of the company's management will guide us through the principal stages of watch production. See first-hand the very ateliers where the grand complications, such as tourbillon, minute repeater, equation-of-time, perpetual calendar, etc. are fabricated for each timepiece.

Following lunch, we will have a private visit at the Patek Philippe Museum, considered by many the finest horological museum in the world. The museum is home to approximately 2,000 exceptional timepieces, automata, miniature portraits on enamel, and rare exhibits which trace a fantastic journey through 500 years of European horology. Among the prized exhibits you will see the world's most complicated portable timepiece, the Patek- Philippe Caliber 89 with 1,728 parts and 33 functions, the Packard and the Graves watches, Breguet's Sympathique clock and its watch, as well as timepieces belonging to eminent celebrities- Queen Victoria, Richard Wagner, Leo Tolstoy, Marie Curie and Albert Einstein. The Patek-Philippe Museum rightfully deserves its place as one of the world's finest collection of horologic artifacts.

SATURDAY   JUNE 16   --   DEPART GENEVA (OR NOT)          

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