Need advice on buying new hot tub

[dugtoni]

Hello all. I’m going to be purchasing my first hot tub soon. We are a family of 3 so looking for something fairly small but can seat up to 5 for when we have guests. I am very interested in getting a nordic spa. They seem to be reliable and a good value. The 3 I am deciding between are:

Crown 2: $6,900

Impulse DP: $6,400

Retreat SE: $7,780

Retreat MS: $7,330

This includes uv/ozone and upgraded insulation and delivery . Do these sound like reasonable prices? Is the Crown 2 worth the extra $500 over the Impulse DP? The extra jets aren’t too big of a deal to me. Not sure if having a bigger pump makes it worth it. Same question regarding Retreat SE vs MS. The Retreat would be my choice for a square tub. Undecided on round vs square so if anyone has an opinion one way or another I’d love to hear why. Thanks!

[A.O.]

I know nothing about those particular models so I'm going to respond more generically..
First, where do you live.. do you need the extra insulation??
Second , go bigger more than smaller.. you never know when you might have a party or something and not playing footsie with everyone is a good thing ...usually anyway. Its just me and the wife here anymore and we sprung for a larger tub this time and love it!

[dugtoni]

Hey thanks for the reply! I’m in northern Vermont, so definitely a very chilly climate. I appreciate the insight on size. We are sizing so that we have plenty of space for my wife and I and son. There will be some extra room if guests come over, but overall I’m try to keep operating costs lower since we rarely entertain.

[cranbiz]

Square tubs utilize space better then round tubs. Round tubs usually allow a more open seating arrangement. Larger motors usually give better therapeutic flow.

Bigger footprint is better than smaller footprint if you have the space.

Dry test all of them at a minimum. Wet test the finalists if possible. What looks good might be tight fitting dry and might be totally unusable when wet.