Brand Specific Forums > Hot Spring Spas

Grandee purchase. Good deal?

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CCC:
So I went back to the local Bullfrog/Marquis dealer and talked to the owner. I sympathize with her plight as they are a small store that can't really floor a lot of inventory. They got some incentives in the Bullfrogs, it seems, and thus they only have one small Marquis on the floor. I still want to look at them, but I don't want to waste a salesman's time in Portland just to come back and buy it from somebody else. Perhaps I should be a little more ruthless but I've been in sales before and know what it's like. I don't think I care for the Bullfrog even though I haven't wet tested it. It still smells kind of musty. Perhaps that's just from the walls soaking up moisture, but the Hot Springs store didn't stink.

A question about leg/foot jets. Looking at the Grandee I reserved, it doesn't seem to have much going on for the legs. I have a lot of calf problems and achilles tendonitis. How much do people appreciate dedicated leg/foot jets?

I know, I should wet test. The vibe I'm getting is that the vast majority of people buy without doing that and the attitude is kind of "well, okay, if you really want to come in and try one, you weirdo, we'll figure something out". I know, it's my money and I shouldn't care. But there isn't a Grandee in the Portland area that is filled, only a Vanguard, and they aren't going to fill one. As BullfrogSpaGuy said, they feel different. The moto massage looks cool, but I've read a lot of mixed reviews about it.

Also, thank you Markee for the phone conversation and info about Marquis.

Jacuzzi Jim:
 Just an FYI it's not the spa's fault that it stinks..  But that would also tell me something about the dealer not taking care of things.   It's like showrooms I have been in where there is dead bugs in a spa and has not been wiped down in awhile.

MarKee:
No problem, let me know if you want to make the trek over here and we can have an Epic, Euphoria, or any other model filled up for you to try out.

CCC:
I wet tested a couple of hot tubs last weekend, but neither that were on my list. I tried a Hot Springs Vanguard and a Marquis Wish. I really liked them both. The Hot Springs ambiance was first class. They just feel like quality. I really like that. I liked the Moto-Massage. It was at a different store than where I had put the deposit down, but the people there were friendly and knowledgable. It seems to me that the Grandee would be the Vanguard only bigger and better.

The Marquis was also very nice. It had a jet in the footwell that was f**ing amazing! Nothing to compare to on the Hot Springs. They didn't have an Epic that I could wet test, which is the one I would probably be interested in. It didn't quite have the solid feel of the Hot Springs as far as fit and finish and just overall ambiance IMO. Not knocking it, but I think the Hot Springs Highlife just looks like a higher end product. One thing that the Marquis guy said is "look at the equipment bay, see how it's laid out? Why don't they open theirs?" Well, I admit, the Marquis has a nice clean area where their panel is open, but that says nothing about what everything else looks like. I am a high voltage substation electrician. I work on electrical equipment for a living. I know crappy layout and cheap design. I googled videos of Hot Springs repairs and they aren't a ghetto tub. Everything looks easy to get to to me. I wasn't going to be a sheep and go ask the Hot Springs guy to open the panel for me. I have a smart phone and I'm sure they've heard that challenge a million times.

It's obviously a Celebrity Death Match type of rivalry between those two brands here. I've been in sales for many years in my past life. So one has to take a giant tablet of salt and do their own thinking in the end.

I'm trying to convince my wife to shed her modesty and wet test with me. I don't think she'll go for it but we shall see. I don't think I can go wrong either way but I think if I had to make up my mind right now I would get the Grandee. I like the controls, and the space is amazing. I am 6'4 with a long torso, and I don't think that the Marquis is going to give me as deep of a soak as the Grandee after measuring them both. I also like the open lay out which makes transitioning from seat to seat more seamless. I wish I had more experience hot-tubbing so I could know what features were more important to me. The Hot Springs seemed quieter, but that could have to do with the acoustics of the showrooms. That fact that the dealers are over an hour away and I am in my busy time at work makes this a logistical challenge to shop.

I am stoked to get this, whatever I decide in the end. Isn't it wonderful to have such dillemas?

Chief Kyle:
Both are great brands...As far as wet testing see if they'll let you test after the store closes (not hours after they close, but when they close😀)  We went on a Saturday, When they opened for business it was nice and quiet...at least the day we went.  If you can, try the Epic.

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