Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie

A journey through time

The tourist information offices and the towns of Watch Valley invite you to take a journey back in time along the “Watchmaking Route”. Between Geneva and Basel, in this extraordinary region with its different facets discover the birthplace of the most exclusive watches in the world. This is where the measuring of time has become an art. After this unique pilgrimage, time will no longer be the same for you.

In watchmaker country what counts is: Take your time. Here we fondly embrace time and time has its allocated place. The local watchmakers work with the greatest accuracy: they know how to master time and thus define the rhythm of the world. Amble through time on the Watchmaking Route and allow yourself to be enchanted by its uniqueness. Small historical towns and lakes surrounded by vineyards amidst luscious green valleys nod to every single minute. Savour each second and explore the traditions, sights and specialties of this incomparable region. Allow yourself to be charmed, it is so easy to put daily stress behind you here, and to set out in search of things past. Enjoy the happiness of the moment to its full extent … Watch Valley, where time becomes an experience.

Little did puritanical Calvin realize when he prohibited the wearing of jewellery in Geneva in the sixteenth century that he would bring to life a craft that was to have great significance. From this time on jewellers and goldsmiths devoted themselves to watchmaking. This new handicraft quickly spread through the whole of the Jura range, where local watchmakers developed unprecedented skills in the field of precision work. In the course of time the residents of Watch Valley revealed themselves to be masters of precision. The stops on the Watchmaking Route illustrate the delightful story of Swiss watchmaking: the early tools used by craftsmen, the creations of the international art of watchmaking, the machines which made industrial manufacture possible, and a large variety of unique pieces document the fascination of Watch Valley, Land of Precision.