This year, we wanted to give ourselves one thing above all: time.
The first friends came together on Thursday evening at our Lounge in Maastricht, where our dear friend and fellow collector Luc generously hosted dinner and drinks. Old friends arrived, new introductions were made, glasses were filled and the Gathering simply began.
Friday took us somewhere completely different.

One of the Netherlands' most beautiful historic château settings became our home for the evening. We started with drinks in the limestone caves before moving to the château's Michelin-starred restaurant for a long dinner with multiple courses and exceptional wines.
Everything was at the highest level, yet the atmosphere remained completely relaxed. No dress code, no ceremony. Just a group of collectors around the table, talking, laughing and getting to know each other.
Looking back, that evening was essential to what happened next. By the time we left, introductions had become conversations and everyone had settled into the weekend.
We also handed out the jackets created especially for the 2026 Gathering — simply a memento for the people who shared those days. Seeing almost everybody wearing theirs the following morning made us smile.
And then we put them all on a bus.

We didn't tell anyone exactly where we were going.
Our destination was another Michelin-starred restaurant, completely hidden away in nature. Contemporary and beautiful, but wonderfully informal. Fields, countryside and cows in the distance.
It felt less like arriving at a prestigious restaurant and more like spending a long afternoon in the garden of a friend — albeit one with an exceptionally good kitchen.
And we had almost five hours ahead of us.
No rush. No next appointment.
Some people took a glass of wine and enjoyed the surroundings.
Others lasted about five minutes before opening their watch rolls.
And then things got slightly crazy.

Vintage Rolex sports watches and military Submariners appeared alongside extraordinary Patek Philippe complications, Daytonas, Audemars Piguet, Vacheron Constantin, Breguet and plenty of watches that made us stop and look twice.
This is still the part I love.
A watch gets handed across the table. Someone notices something. Another example appears from a roll and suddenly several watches are lying side by side. You pick them up, compare details and hear the stories from the collectors who brought them.
You don't just see the watches.
You experience them.
And because we had time, nobody needed to see everything immediately. You could walk away, have lunch, talk to somebody, drink a glass of wine and come back an hour later.
Often that second look is when things become really interesting.

Five vintage Rolex Milgauss examples together. Seeing one is already unusual; seeing five allows you to compare different executions and details with the actual watches in your hands. And they looked pretty damn good together too.

Two New Old Stock Rolex Submariner ref. 5510 Big Crowns. Beyond their rarity, watches preserved like this become reference points - an opportunity to study original case geometry, side profiles and those beautiful bevelled lugs as they were intended in the 1950s.

The Patek Philippe selection alone could have occupied us for most of the afternoon: a 5004 split-seconds perpetual calendar, several 3970s, different generations of the 3940, vintage chronographs including references 130 and 533, Calatravas, World Timers and a magnificent minute repeater.

And yet, surrounded by all those grand complications, one of the watches I kept returning to was something much quieter.
A small vintage Patek. Not the biggest. Not the loudest. Certainly not the obvious watch to pick from everything lying around us.
But somehow it got me.
And perhaps that is collecting in a nutshell. The watch that catches your eye doesn't necessarily have to be the rarest or most valuable one on the table.

Later that afternoon, I remember looking around and thinking:
Yes. This is it.
The initial excitement around the watches had settled. They were still everywhere, but conversations had become longer. People moved away from the tables, sat outside with a glass of wine and simply enjoyed being together.
At one point I noticed two collectors sitting with their backs towards tables containing some truly extraordinary watches.
They were talking and looking at the cows in the fields.
I loved that.

For a moment it really did feel as if we were simply spending a long afternoon with friends in someone's garden.
Most of us live busy lives, and some had travelled halfway around the world to be there. But for those few hours nobody seemed to be in a hurry.
The watches had brought us together.
The people did the rest.
And perhaps that is also why we ask everyone not to post live on social media during the Gathering. Not because we don't want these moments to be shared — obviously we do — but because we want to experience them first.
Pick up the watch. Listen to its story. Talk to the person sitting next to you.
The pictures can wait.

By Sunday, watch rolls were closed, suitcases packed and everyone began their journeys home.

Looking back, what stays with me most is not only the extraordinary watches, places or food, but the atmosphere we created together. The conversations, the friendships and the simple pleasure of sharing this passion.

A heartfelt thank you to everyone who travelled from near and far to be part of it.

And a special thank you to Berend, who carried an enormous part of the organisation this year; to my fellow organisers Steven and Danny; to Patricia and the entire Bulang & Sons team for all their work and passion behind the scenes; and to our dear friend and fellow collector Luc, for his generosity and support.

We can create the setting.
The people make the Gathering.

Until we meet again.

Bernhard Bulang
*Co-organiser, The Vintage Watch Hunting Club Gathering*

Photography: Alice Primowees
Film: Scott Lens