Great museum with hundreds of horological items that can easily constitute a 2+ hour visit. For the…read moreprice, it is a must-see for any collector. Do note that the vast majority of exhibition text is in French and that the English text is scant (only for major exhibits and introductions to new periods or significant historical events). We did not use audio guides or join an official group tour.
Though the exhibits progress from the 1600s to the early 2000s and are genuinely COOL, there is a lack of cohesion or progression and on top of that you're making awkward, jagged turns to follow the ascending numerical order of the exhibits. The space feels completely maxed out. The vast majority of visitors seem to have a truly difficult time following any preset order after turning the first corner of the two most dense floors.
Though anyone could enjoy a short visit, it is disappointing that some of the absolute basics of watches that the average person would want to know about (how does a manual wind actually work, what is an automatic movement, what is meant by "complication," what is quartz, tell us more about the pocket watch to wristwatch thing, why are holy trinity watches so expensive, etc) are simply not addressed.
The production quality of the video that is screened in the auditorium is DECENT but it ends abruptly almost as if the bureaucrat in charge of its funding just stepped in one day and said to the producer "okay--done!" Compared to the rest of the media put out by Patek, it's not a good reflection of the brand.
