Advice for visiting Geneva?

[joa]

Originally Posted by spacetime conundrum

Since the odds of new watches being available for first-time visitors is low, does anyone have recommendations for pre-owned watch shops? I know that there's a Bucherer in Old Town, but I'd like to see others, too.

you could go to Ponti Collection (cf. google), nice [very] small second hand dealer with fairly competitive prices. bought a watch from them two years ago and i could take a look at some extravagant pieces (AP RO concept, etc).

back then their old store was right at the city center next to rolex & co.. it's per appointment only..

due to all the tax/customs hassle, i am not sure how practical it is for you to do a transaction but maybe they have something special in stock...

[Ichiran]

Went Geneva last week. Weather was warm (31-32°C) in the day. Visited the Salon and Museum and was impressed by the SA's knowledge and service during my visit. Tried on the 5178G, 5531G, 5303R and 5316/50P and I love all of them.

The Museum has 4 floors of spectacular exhibits. It was quite crowded during my visit. A visit to the Museum is highly recommended.

Last photo was aglio olio at a very affordable restaurant - Pasta People which I enjoyed a lot.

Special mention to Brezelkornig - I ate a lot of pretzels in Geneva :)

[watchtabs]

Originally Posted by spacetime conundrum

Henrimontgomery, how sketchy is Old Town during the day? I anticipate spending most of our time there? Any advice beyond the general "be aware of your surroundings" message applicable to life in most big cities?

I've walked through old town geneva pitch dark and feel safer than anywhere in the US walking around at night.

When in old town also visit "La Cantinella" amazing little italian hole in the wall.

I would add that cocktails at the Four Seasons bar were very good. Yes not cheap. But, very good. They were just renovating their bar earlier this year when I was there in Feb. Will be visiting next Feb again after skiing in Klosters.

[brandrea]

Originally Posted by Ichiran

Went Geneva last week. Weather was warm (31-32°C) in the day. Visited the Salon and Museum and was impressed by the SA's knowledge and service during my visit. Tried on the 5178G, 5531G, 5303R and 5316/50P and I love all of them.

The Museum has 4 floors of spectacular exhibits. It was quite crowded during my visit. A visit to the Museum is highly recommended.

Last photo was aglio olio at a very affordable restaurant - Pasta People which I enjoyed a lot.

Special mention to Brezelkornig - I ate a lot of pretzels in Geneva :)

Looks fantastic indeed

[Ichiran]

Originally Posted by brandrea

Looks fantastic indeed

It's a pity I am not allowed to take pictures of those MR at the Salon. These watches are worth the trip to Geneva.

[brandrea]

Originally Posted by Ichiran

It's a pity I am not allowed to take pictures of those MR at the Salon. These watches are worth the trip to Geneva.

We are headed to Switzerland for Christmas, but our travels don't take us to Geneva unfortunately

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[dauster]

Originally Posted by Ichiran

Went Geneva last week. Weather was warm (31-32°C) in the day. Visited the Salon and Museum and was impressed by the SA's knowledge and service during my visit. Tried on the 5178G, 5531G, 5303R and 5316/50P and I love all of them.

The Museum has 4 floors of spectacular exhibits. It was quite crowded during my visit. A visit to the Museum is highly recommended.

Last photo was aglio olio at a very affordable restaurant - Pasta People which I enjoyed a lot.

Special mention to Brezelkornig - I ate a lot of pretzels in Geneva :)

Nice post thanks for sharing. How did you like the openworked 5303R - thanks to patekfreak on IG I am liking it more and more. Especially the backside and side engravings are stunning


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[Ichiran]

Originally Posted by dauster

Nice post thanks for sharing. How did you like the openworked 5303R - thanks to patekfreak on IG I am liking it more and more. Especially the backside and side engravings are stunning

I like it but 42mm is too big for my wrist, hence I didn't spend too much time handling it. That said, I was very impressed by the finishing behind - there are 9 inward angles and the concave hole that held the screw on the main plate was so deep and beautifully polished (one independent watchmaker told me a concave hole is very difficult to polish). This is also the first time I see the 'octopus' wheel and the entire octopus was immaculately polished (the 5316 has the octopus too). All the engravings add sophistication to the aesthetics of the watch in my view.

I was also informed by the SA that there is transparent UV-protection coating on the sapphire disc that prevents sunlight from degrading the lubricants of the movement. This is a lovely touch.

I will definitely consider this watch if I have bigger wrist.

[dauster]

Originally Posted by Ichiran

I like it but 42mm is too big for my wrist, hence I didn't spend too much time handling it. That said, I was very impressed by the finishing behind - there are 9 inward angles and the hole that held the screw on the main plate was so deep and beautifully polished. This is also the first time I see the 'octopus' wheel and the entire octopus was immaculately polished (the 5316 has the octopus too). All the engravings add sophistication to the aesthetics of the watch in my view.

I was also informed by the SA that there is transparent UV-protection coating on the sapphire disc that prevents sunlight from degrading the lubricants of the movement. This is a lovely touch.

I will definitely consider this watch if I have bigger wrist.

Interesting thanks for the details. I was not aware it’s this big - will definitely try it on if back in Geneva - in all my excitement I forgot to try the 5740 and this one that was on my list last year.

I have never heard of the octopus wheel what’s that ?


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[Ichiran]

Originally Posted by dauster

I have never heard of the octopus wheel what’s that ?

I managed to find an image from SJX. The octopus is the 5-curvy-spokes gold wheel in this picture.

[l_chissle]

Originally Posted by Ichiran

I managed to find an image from SJX. The octopus is the 5-curvy-spokes gold wheel in this picture.

Pentopus ;)

[Moondoggy]

All these museums combined with a pi*sing contest tells me it’s not for me.

[In-N-Out]

The first thing to do when arriving in Geneva is to book a train and get out of there. Zurich is where you want to be. Le Brassus is perfect for a visit to the AP museum and do a masterclass. It absolutely helps out with your profile when getting AP allocations.

Bern, Lausanne, Lucerne, Mantreux, and Basel are good places to visit if you have time

[Rushne]

Originally Posted by In-N-Out

The first thing to do when arriving in Geneva is to book a train and get out of there. Zurich is where you want to be. Le Brassus is perfect for a visit to the AP museum and do a masterclass. It absolutely helps out with your profile when getting AP allocations.

Bern, Lausanne, Lucerne, Mantreux, and Basel are good places to visit if you have time

I agree with this 500%
Having been to Zurich before Geneva, I was extremely disappointed with Geneva. It didn't help that there were quite a few sketchy individuals around this one restaurant we were at. Pretty sure they were dealing but thankfully they left us alone, but did not feel at ease the whole trip to be honest.

[dauster]

Originally Posted by spacetime conundrum

Any advice for someone visiting Geneva for the first time? The Patek museum is obviously on the list. I'd like to spend time at a lot of boutiques (Patek, AP, VC, Lange, etc.). No idea whether non-locals have a realistic opportunity to purchase, though -- or whether shelves were cleared out by the Watches & Wonders crowd. And any other tips are welcome. (Apologies if there's a better sub-forum for this topic.)

When I was there last year they were all exceptionally nice - went to patek, vacheron, and FP Journe but nothing for sale. Vacheron specifically brought out a triple calendrier but could not sell it to me because I did not have a swiss ID.

Absolute day and night experience compared to most ADs. They actually had a lot of knowledge seemed to genuinely care about the cusomer. Patek was on another level in terms of service and knowldge spent 1.5-2 hours chatting and trying on watches.

I regret not checking out more independents such as Urwerk and Akrivia even though I peaked into their windows walking by in old town geneva.

[dauster]

Originally Posted by Ichiran

I managed to find an image from SJX. The octopus is the 5-curvy-spokes gold wheel in this picture.

got it thank you, I do remember reading about it actually now that i see the picture, below is the article - it's re the advacned research series and the silinvar development.

https://www.watchesandculture.org/fo...ippe-pulsomax/

[Donjo]

Will be in Geneva in a few weeks. Hoping to bring home a Ladies Patek Twenty-4 7300/1200R-010. Any advice where to look?

[Donjo]

The Geneva store was a big disappointment. We were the only ones in the store and basically ignored. Asked to look at a few pieces and the lady would not even take them out of the display. Museum tour was worth it.

[byow]

Originally Posted by Donjo

The Geneva store was a big disappointment. We were the only ones in the store and basically ignored. Asked to look at a few pieces and the lady would not even take them out of the display. Museum tour was worth it.

When exactly did you visit the Salons, and what was the name of that person?

[kastor77]

Still in Geneva this week. Managed to find time to visit the Patek Salon, in which the experience is absolutely great. All the models are available to try and the PP people are very knowledgeable and professional. Bucherer is always a must when in Geneva with vast selection of different brands.


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[Donjo]

We visited yesterday, 3 Nov. 2023 around 11am. There was a male guard and a single female salesperson. She literally couldn't be bothered to get anything out of the case, said she had no minute repeaters in the facility, and said to ask your AD to arrange a tour of the salon. She said we had no business there since northing was for sale, so in essence, we were wasting her time.

I was very suprised to read this after all the laudatory comments from those who have been in years passed.

[kastor77]

I am also surprised as I had a very different experience last Wednesday (1 Nov). In my case both the person at the entrance and the person that took me through the models I was interested in were very polite and professional.


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[Donjo]

Originally Posted by kastor77

I am also surprised as I had a very different experience last Wednesday (1 Nov). In my case both the person at the entrance and the person that took me through the models I was interested in were very polite and professional.


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According to Museum personnel, there are about three good salespeople, we unfortunately ended up with the one who hates her job, or so it seems.

[kastor77]

Originally Posted by Donjo

According to Museum personnel, there are about three good salespeople, we unfortunately ended up with the one who hates her job, or so it seems.

This is very unlucky but mainly not nice for such a high-end brand like PP…


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[byow]

Originally Posted by Donjo

We visited yesterday, 3 Nov. 2023 around 11am. There was a male guard and a single female salesperson. She literally couldn't be bothered to get anything out of the case, said she had no minute repeaters in the facility, and said to ask your AD to arrange a tour of the salon. She said we had no business there since northing was for sale, so in essence, we were wasting her time.

I was very suprised to read this after all the laudatory comments from those who have been in years passed.

I am very surprised to read this and sorry for you.

[sampelligrino]

Originally Posted by In-N-Out

The first thing to do when arriving in Geneva is to book a train and get out of there. Zurich is where you want to be. Le Brassus is perfect for a visit to the AP museum and do a masterclass. It absolutely helps out with your profile when getting AP allocations.

Bern, Lausanne, Lucerne, Mantreux, and Basel are good places to visit if you have time

Have to say I agree with this as well, when in Switzerland I only allocate 1-2 days max in Geneva specifically for the Patek Museum and salon. Otherwise I've enjoyed my time walking/eating/doing tourist things far more in Lucerne and Zurich personally...

[westoque]

Went to the Patek Salon in Geneva last May and was taken care of by Patrick who was an amazing muse for the brand. I came in not only asking for watches but just to visit the salon itself and admire it's beauty inside and out. Patrick was able to let me try some pieces, starting with a 5712/1A, 5235/50R then going to grand complications 5316/50P and 5208R. I mentioned that I heard the topmost floor has amazing views and if it would be possible to tour the building and he gladly toured me around, starting from the 1st and 2nd floors, then the topmost floor which was indeed amazing while also telling me about the history of the place.

He also told me about places to go get chocolates from, like Auer that had those very delicious and coveted almond covered chocolates.

My salon visit ended with Patrick giving me a hardcover coffee table book of the Patek catalogue and 2 free tickets to go to the Patek museum.

Highly recommended visit!



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