This story originally appeared in the May/June 2018 issue of Elite Traveler.
This year marks the 25th anniversary of Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak Offshore model, and the watchmaker is celebrating in a big way. In addition to reissuing the original from 1993 (with a modern, in-house movement), there are two major new watches in the iconic case. First, there’s a grande complication with a minute repeater, perpetual calendar and split-seconds chronograph in a sleek ceramic case. The four subdials stand out on the skeletonized self-winding movement, allowing you to watch the minute repeater in action.
In the new Offshore tourbillon chronograph, Audemars Piguet opened up the movement to give it a futuristic 3D feel. Sandblasted titanium bridges with chamfered satin-brushed edges appear to drop directly from the bezel, allowing you to dive into the movement and admire the finishings. The tourbillon peeks out from one of these bridges at 9 o’clock, and the 30-minute chronograph counter is at 3 o’clock.
Royal Oak Offshore Grande Complication, $760,000, Tourbillon Chronograph, $326,000, available at Audemars Piguet in New York, +1 888 214 6858, audemarspiguet.com
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