info confusion

[jfish63]

I have been looking at posts and web sites for a couple of months. I don't feel any closer to making a good decision. This weekend we are wet testing at 3 different dealers. My wife is short and just wants to soak, I am 5'11" and want the therapy. We are looking for almost open seating. We are looking at a hot spring vanguard, a Caldera aspire (wet floor model w/full term warranty), and a couple Beachcomber models. Any thoughts?

[Bonibelle]

Do you have a Marquis dealer near you?  You didn't say how much you are willing to spend, but we have a Marquis Epic and it is roomy, the therapy is fantastic and it is versitile enough that you and your wife would fit comfortably. It could even accomodate several friends.
Very often my husband sits on one side of the tub and just soaks with no jet action while I use the other side for therapy. It works well for us.  If you don't feel that you are ready to make a decision based on what you have seen, maybe you need to look at some other brands.
Good luck,  
Boni

[jfish63]

We don't have a Marquis dealer near us. The closest one is about an hour and a half.  We have looked at Coleman480(to deep for my wife). When a 177 comes in they will call us. We weren't thrilled with the sundance optima. The master spa and down east spas are pretty much eiminated. 8k is pretty much my upper limit for the right spa I could go more.

[Guzz]

When you are wet testing the Vanguard, check out the Tiger River Caspian also by Watkins. It's roughly the same size and has some of the same features. It should also be a little more affordable if you are on a budget.

[thearm]

I wet tested the beachcomber and was impressed with it. Ended up buying a Emerald 699 Classic instead but the Beachcomber was my second choice. Any of the ones you mentioned are good solid tubs. You have the right idea by wet testing and make your decision from there.

[jfish63]

The hotspring dealer has some tiger river spas to test also. I'll give it a soak. My budget 8K I would go higher for the exact right tub.

[Bill_Stevenson]

That you are wet testing indicates that you have gleaned something very important from one of these forums.  That is an excellent start.  Given your respective physical sizes, I would think the Caldera line merits special consideration because of the raised bump in the floor of their spas.  This helps a lot for staying anchored in the seat.  I am about 6 feet tall, my wife slightly under 5 feet, and she has difficulty staying seated in our HotSpring, whereas she had much less trouble with our previous Caldera.  Other brands such as Jacuzzi have raise domes too, but short legs have trouble reaching them.  Caldera has the hot setup for short people.

If you happen to be looking at any spas with lounge seats, don't be disappointed that your wife finds them unuseable as she will find them almost drowning her and almost impossible for her to stay anchored in.  

Another thing you might want to do before going for the wet tests is get a submersible cushion for your wife to sit on during her soaks.  These are inexpensive (~$10) and available from Linens & Things; Bed, Bath & Beyond and similar stores as well as at many spa stores.  

Regards,

Bill

[tanstaafl2]

Do you have a Vita dealer nearby? I considered the Cabaret before I ended up getting the Reflections Granada that I now have because I wanted a little more open seating. It had some nice therapy seats but also had a couple of seats where you could just soak and you have a fair amount of control of the jets between the seats. The therapy chair was nice and fit me well at 5'12" (   ). It even had jets that massaged the bottom AND top of your feet at the same time in a part that overhangs the feet in the therapy chair (Top part of the picture, top jets aren't visible). Hadn't seen that before. Probably closer to 9K, at least in my area but I liked it. I think they are well made spas but they aren't one of the bigger names and don't get discussed a lot here.

[jfish63]

that was one of my choices but the only dealer in my area stopped selling them 2 years ago. He said service calls were the main reason.

[tanstaafl2]

that was one of my choices but the only dealer in my area stopped selling them 2 years ago. He said service calls were the main reason.

Sounds like a good reason to take it off your list then. So far no trouble with my Granada, made by the same company as Vita, but I have only had it about 5-6 months. Hopefully, knock on prefabricated pseudo wood, it will stay problem free!

[jfish63]

In the end I think we all hope we make the right decision. I don't think there is one right answer.

[marks]

I have a Beachcomber 580 and the whole family really enjoys it.  The tub is very roomy, comfortable and easy to maintain.  My tub was around $8,500 delivered taxed included. This included everything except outside garden light and sound system.  Sounds like all of the tubs you are looking at will do the job.

[Vanguard]

Your situation sounds a bit like mine.  I'm 5'10" with a wife that is 5'1".  We tried the Aspire and Vanguard as well.  We went with the Vanguard.  The biggest problem I had with the Aspire is that the arm rests cut into the side of my legs.  It was uncomfortable for me.  I liked the openness of the Vanguard.  

Doing the wet test is the smart thing.  I would have had an Aspire if I hadn't tested.  When I did, I realized I wouldn't be happy with it.

[rick_in_cleveland]

Don't automatically take Marquis off the table.  My dealer is a little over an hour away and have no problems with service.  

[jfish63]

Unfortunately the Marquis dealer is in a higher cost area. The model I was looking at was over 10k.