Watches and Wonders closes in Geneva with new records

Watches and Wonders Geneva 2026 closed on Monday with record numbers. According to data provided by the organisation of the world's most important event dedicated to haute horlogerie, from 14 to 20 April, there were around 60,000 unique visitors to the fair, up 9% on the 2025 edition, which itself had been a record-breaker.

Both the number of tickets sold, 25 thousand, for the three days open to the public (from 18 to 20 April) and the number of media representatives, quantified at 1,750, increased by 9%. There were 6 thousand dealers present at the exhibition, while around 10 thousand people took part in the event's various side activities in the city, also thanks to the collaboration with the Montreux Jazz Festival, whose programme was sold out every night, attracting a total audience of over 5 thousand people.

Impressive is the figure of 900 million users (+29% over 2025) reached by the event worldwide with the hashtag #watchesandwonders2026. Very positive numbers, therefore, that photograph a sector that is keen to react to the turbulence faced by the luxury world in recent years and a growing interest in the watch object. As Cyrille Vigneron, President of Watches and Wonders Geneva Foundation, explains: "The success of our event shows how watchmaking can be both exclusive and open, inviting and non-trivial.

The 66 exhibiting brands, including a large number of the most important players in the sector, presented novelties that, in general, emphasised their heritage and savoir faire. Like the Oyster Perpetual 41 with its steel case, yellow gold bezel and crown, slate dial with the inscription "100 years" at 6 o'clock: one of the models made by Rolex for the 100th anniversary of the Oyster, its first water-resistant watch. Patek Philippe also celebrated a significant milestone, that of the 50th anniversary of its Nautilus, with four declinations, all limited editions, one of which is a table clock. Cartier continues to focus on its great classics as demonstrated by the re-editions in the Cartier Privé Les Opus collection of Crash Skeleton, Tank Normale and Tortue Chronograph Monopusher, all with platinum cases and burgundy inserts. Other highlights were Panerai's Luminor 8 Giorni PAM 01733, with a vintage-style burnished steel case; Bulgari's Octo Finissimo 37, which marked the entry of four proposals in this line with a case measuring 37 mm in diameter; Vacheron Constantin's Overseas Automatic Ultra-thin with an automatic movement only 2.4 mm thick; and the restyling of the Monaco Chronograph that Tag Heuer presented in three versions with the crown at 9 o'clock like the original; the surprising Coco Game themed collection by Chanel consisting of wristwatch models, pendants, rings and even a chessboard in which queens, with Mademoiselle's features, mark the time; the striking Midnight Jour Nuit Phase de Lune by Van Cleef and Arpels which displays the day/night indication, moon phases and has a mechanism that reveals the moon on demand.

After the closure of Watches and Wonders, a number of brands moved to Milan for Design Week, which started last Tuesday and will last until Sunday. Among these brands is Audemars Piguet, which in Geneva had presented the Atelier des Établisseurs project, intended for the production of unique models that emphasise the spirit of craftsmanship, while in Milan, in its Milanese AP House in Via Bagutta 2, it organised the Crafting Time: When Design Shapes Movement exhibition (open until 3 May) with a private collection of rare historical models. Jaeger-LeCoultre, which launched the Master Control Chronometre line at Watches and Wonders, has instead set up The Perpetual Timekeeper exhibition at Villa Mozart (at Via Mozart 9 until 26 April) with a series of Atmos clocks, including the latest created with designer Marc Newson, and many other pieces from its history. These two events can be accessed by registering on the brands' websites.