neckbackshoulders

Bob81, thank you also. I doubt we're gonna go the Costco/Sam's Club route... I've read too many postings on the hot tub boards about quality/operational issues. I do really appreciate your thoughts on Coleman Backyards and we'll definitely check them out for Hot Springs and Limelight. There's a Rec Warehouse near us but based on a couple of comments we will be staying far, far away.

1) It is always recommended that you wet test a spa to be sure if it fits you well. 2) IMO, if it has a lounge it's twice as important to wet test because they take up space and do not fit everyone despite how well it may be designed. 3) A double lounger? Wow, I would NEVER buy a double lounge spa without testing it because you would have major buyer's remorse IF you found out in your own back yard that one or both of you don't fit/like teh lounges and they'll take up half the space in teh spa (personally it doesn't make sense to me to even have two lounges in one spa but that's just me). Find out in the showroom how well the double lounger works if your plan to go that route BTW, if you're serious about Catalina ask them to produce a copy of their warranty (good chance they won't have one handy) and if they don't produce one ask about it being prorated vs the warranties of top spa makers like Caldera, D1, Hot Spring, Jacuzzi, Marquis and Sundance which are readily available and I believe visible on each of their websites (but not on Catalina's) Great points, Spatech... I will add we won't buy ANYTHING without wet-testing. We dry-tested that model at the Fair and it seems to fit us well - but I know water and bubbles make a big difference. I'm short; husband is tall... we also want some non-bucket seating and the design of this particular model seemed to fit all needs. Also, Aries is the name of the Mfr./Dealer; Catalina is the name of the Aries Spa model. Great advice on the warranty.... this is exactly the kind of input we're hoping for. Thank you!

1) It is always recommended that you wet test a spa to be sure if it fits you well. 2) IMO, if it has a lounge it's twice as important to wet test because they take up space and do not fit everyone despite how well it may be designed. 3) A double lounger? Wow, I would NEVER buy a double lounge spa without testing it because you would have major buyer's remorse IF you found out in your own back yard that one or both of you don't fit/like teh lounges and they'll take up half the space in teh spa (personally it doesn't make sense to me to even have two lounges in one spa but that's just me). Find out in the showroom how well the double lounger works if your plan to go that route BTW, if you're serious about Catalina ask them to produce a copy of their warranty (good chance they won't have one handy) and if they don't produce one ask about it being prorated vs the warranties of top spa makers like Caldera, D1, Hot Spring, Jacuzzi, Marquis and Sundance which are readily available and I believe visible on each of their websites (but not on Catalina's) Great points, Spatech... I will add we won't buy ANYTHING without wet-testing. We dry-tested that model at the Fair and it seems to fit us well - but I know water and bubbles make a big difference. I'm short; husband is tall... we also want some non-bucket seating and the design of this particular model seemed to fit all needs. Also, Aries is the name of the Mfr./Dealer; Catalina is the name of the Aries Spa model. Great advice on the warranty.... this is exactly the kind of input we're hoping for. Thank you!

Wow! You must have read my report from the Great State Fair of Texas back in 2005... I am honored and only wish the pictures were still up! I am heading to the fair next Thursday to check out the fried food, the exhibits, and listen to the fantabulously imaginative sales pitches from this year's hot tub peddlers....thinking about giving out an award to the most over-the-top one. I wish I were closer to Dallas, too, so I wouldn't have to drive so far. I grew up in Duncanville, but don't even recognize the place anymore. My opinion of Aries has not changed based on a couple of local folks who have come in recently looking for parts and service on their spas. I would still advise against purchasing any spa at the fair: If it is a legitimate, local dealer, you can probably finagle a better deal at the store. If it is one of the spa goober companies with no local representation (or less than stellar reputation), you really do not want to purchase one of these anyways. Did you try the fried butter? I cannot wait to get there....greatest fair in the world! Please feel free to holler if you have any questions and I'll give you straight answers. Terminator East_TX_Spa, first things first: we tried the fried butter with grape jelly... YUM. However, rumor has it that the garlic fried butter is the real winner. We'll be trying that in the next week or so and I will let you know what we think. (Hmmmn.... scared of my buoyancy in a hot tub after all the fried food - but I digress.) We don't plan on purchasing AT the Fair, but it's very convenient to see several vendors in the same place without driving all over and get an idea of pricing, options, and tub styles -- THEN decide what appeals most to us and who we'd like to follow up with and wet-test. I've seen a couple of comments on the hot tub boards about Aries... none negative so far. This is a big purchase, though, and one we want to love for a lot of years. Consumer Reports doesn't do tub ratings, and so I think it's important that my husband and I arm ourselves with as much knowledge as possible so that we go in as educated consumers. Sundance seems darn popular and has a booth, Morgan Spas I see advertised a lot around town (but not sure of quality... and their ads seem dated, so it makes me question the tubs), .... and Jacuzzi had a decent-looking booth at last year's Fair. I know they're 'the name' - but I'm hoping for first-hand opinions on any/all. East_Tx, you didn't really express an opinion other than their booth looked good. Well, you did say.... "My opinion of Aries has not changed based on a couple of local folks who have come in recently looking for parts and service on their spas." Don't know what your opinion was to begin with - you're nothing but tactful! - but I'm guessing not so great and we will certainly take that into consideration. Their BBB rating is A+ but BBB isn't always an unbiased source. Hoping more local folks chime in... the internet community has been amazingly helpful to us with some big ticket purchases we've made in the past like cars, TVs, and diamonds - so I am hoping for the same results when it comes to hot tubs. Thank you to all who have read this far.

Greetings, all! My husband and I are seriously researching hot tubs and wondered if any of you might have specific recommendations for any of the D/FW-area dealers. We're looking for a a spa for the two of us to help with various neck, back and shoulder issues, hence my user name. We went to the State Fair of Texas last weekend (I know, I know - we didn't commit to anything! We were good. ) and looked at the Aries Spa booth. Didn't make it to any of the other hot tub vendors on that visit, but we have season passes for the Fair and will be making the rounds over the next few weeks to see what we'll want to eventually wet test. I see from forum searches that East_Texas/Terminator has his opinion on the Aries booth setup (Terminator, I wish you were closer to Dallas!) but am wondering if anyone has first-hand opinions of the Aries product. We saw a model (Catalina) with double loungers and bench seating that really appealed to us. It seats four comfortably, though we're not terribly social people and don't anticipate sharing the tub more than a few times a year. By no means are we tied down to Aries; that's why I'm here testing the waters, so to speak. If anyone has suggestions or recommendations, we're all ears. Thank you! We look forward to learning from the hard-earned wisdom of the community.