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hi, about 6 months ago i bought a Hot Springs Grandee 2006 GG model, which i am very happy with - i did extensive research and one of the spas i look into was the same that you mentioned. without going into detail i would advise against this brand. one thing i really do suggest you do is wet test the exact tub before you plunk down your money. that actually swayed me in my final choice, i almost bought a sundance spa. if you cannot do that on sxm you may want to wait until you come to the US. i cannot stress how important it is. seating, noise level, configuration, lounger or no lounger, etc etc are different in all tubs. make sure you go with a reputable mfg but being in sxm you should see how you would get service if needed. good luck. by the way i'm making my 5th trip to sxm 8/21, staying in maho. first stop cherries, i love the quite season. m

you are where i was 9 months ago - todat i'm enjoying my hot springs grandee. no stero but everthing possible to keep my maintenance time down. you must do a wet test, that changed my mind from sundance to hot springs. I too was impressed with the thermospa cd presentation and reading material but i'm soooo glad i backed away from them after the presentation in my home. good luck.

my hs grandee was delivered 10 days ago, that was exactly 4 weeks after giving the dealer (in nj) the go ahead that i was ready to accept delivery (had a paver patio built over concrete). still not up and running because of some weather related delays, electrician , etc. i look at it this way, it doesn't matter because i know everything will be just perfect when its ready for the first dip. good luck - the grandee is it man!!!

go with the guy you trust the most - its a one time cost "hopefully" my price was 1,000 - but the quotes ranged from 750 - 1200

i did tons of research over a 6 months period - when i started io thought i would have the tub all ready to jump in over this past winter - i found that there was so much to consider that it delayed my decsion so it is now scheduled for delivery mid april - the two primary deciding factors were the wet test and the dealers reputation, since you will need them to stand behind what they sell. i found a great dealer in central nj after deciding to go with the Hot Springs Grandee. - cost was $9,500 with some bells and whistles. i could have save about $500 in sales tax if i bought it from a dealer out of nj but i'm convinced the extra $500 was well spent buying it from this dealer who has been in business 30+ years, a real family owned business and they treat you as such. i cant wait till mid April. good luck with your research.

i dont really have an opinion on the gazego but you should give serious thought to finishong off the slab with the slate before installing the tub. this way if you decide to move it a little to the left, right, forward backward,etc. you can do so easily- i just had a 5" slab poured and flag stone cemented on top of it so its really a level patio, my grandee will sit on top of it and in still can place whereever i want on the "patio" it is schedule to be installed in April. good luck

i live in nj and the quotes i got ranged from 800 - 1500 - so do your homework. it also depends on where the electrical box in your home is located and how much work they have to do to run the line from it, like running lines in a drop ceiling if your basement is finished vs working in an unfinished basement, if your town requires permits and inspections, etc). good luck. m

by not having friends and family join you, you would not be getting the full benefit. enjoy and leave your selfish neighbors out!!!

hi, to further comment regarding the lack of power the pumps in the grandee - in my research that was a concern to me as well - with the new "GG" model HS put in more powerful pumps and a better heater. by the way i signed the deal last night. because its already snowing here i will not be able to get the site prep done until early spring so the dealer is giving me a 2006 for the price i negoiated - must say so far my dealer has been wonderful. good luck and do the wet test. m

i did tons of research and got down to the sundance optima vs the HS Grandee - the wet test did it for me, if you can i suggest that you do a wet test even if it means a long drive. maybe the local dealer knows your serious he will fill the tubs on display in his show room, one sundance guy did that for me. your strenght is the $$$$$ in your pocket that they want to seperate from you. you it as leverage. tomorrow i do my final negotiation for the grandee, yea baby. from what i learned the filtering system in the Grandee (i'm referring to the new GG model not the G model) is definately better because it filters 100% of the water, no water bypasses the filters. there is 5 tri-x reusable filters in the Grandee vs one micro fiber 2 filter in the optima and that one will not hold up in the dish washer for cleaning like the tri-x filters. i cant wait until this this tomorrow when i finally have the deal consumated and put all this research behind me. if you have any real important questions i suggest that you go to the source --> the mfg not the dealer. both companies where very helpful in answering my questions. oh by the way the Grandee needs to be on a specially made weight bearing platform or concrete slab at least 6" thick. if i wasn't so busy i could sell these things. hahaha - check out my posts for info on these two brands, some of the responses i got where very informative and helpful. they relate to questions on these two tubs. what State are you in? good luck. m

hi, i know this is a little dated but here's info i found out on the new gg directly from Watkims mfg. (i going to be buying a grandee as well - hopefully this coming weekend). 2 dx moto messages (each actual has 2 jets ) so that brings up the total # of jets by 2 2.0 hp pump #8000 2.5 hp pump #9000 5 tri-x filters is standard 4.0 kw titanium heater the grandee im looking at comes with all Hot spring mfg extra; -cover lifter -step, -ozonator the quote i got was $8,745. would you mind telling me your quote and the extra included? you do realize that the grandee must be put on a level surface of 4" cement or 115 per sq foot weight bearing decking - thats probably extra cost - it is to me anyway. thanks, Michelle

1 - some say get the ozonator and some say don't, more the former. from my research it appears that w/o the ozonator i would have less work to do but the water quality would be slightly less clean (for lack of better terminology). there would only be a 3 step addivtive of chemicals (something called baqua (spelling??)) to follow if i go without the ozonator, unlike with the ozonator which would require more and harsher chemicals (like chlorine or bromein(spelling again??)). if i go w/o the ozonator upon purchase and decided to get it at a later date that can be done (hmmm, i forgot to ask at what cost). any comments or guidance on this would be appreciated. 2 - if i make the purchase through dealer that is about 55 minutes away from my home and in another State (who i feel very comfortable with) vs one that is 15 minutes away and in my State can i expect to encounter a problem getting service (warrantee or otherwise)? it is not as if i dislike the in State dealer in any way, it's just that the out of State dealer was visited first (without any intension of try to skirt around the in State dealer), he was very imformative, helpful, and no hard sale at all, the in State dealer did a hard sell either. pice may dictate this (see #4 below) but right now they are close enough that this is not an issue. 3 - The Grandee is a large tub and i was told that it would be best if it were to be placed on a level concrete slab of at least 4". I guess that this makes sense. my questions are... Can the Level Concrete slab be made at this time of the year in Central NJ? how long before it is cured and strong enough for the Grandee to be placed on it (and filled to 6,300 lbs). I would love to have it for Xmas or New Years Eve but more important then the gratification of getting it sooner rather then later is safety and avoiding foundation problems. Also should the Grandee sit directly on the concrete slab or should something be placed between the two. i recall when i had my deck built the weight bearing wood posts holding up the deck were not put directly into the cement footings, there is some sort of metal thing-a-ma-jig between the two. a Mason i am not. 4 - Pricewise they are comparable at about $9,100 to $9,200 (even taking into consideration approximately $500 additional that would be tacked on for sales tax if i buy from the in State (no sales tax if purchased from the out of State dealer - so obviously the out of State guy is chagring more for the tub). i should mention that i did not pursue any conversation with the in State dealer regarding the price. i must say thank you to all that have provided responses to my prior posts as well as posts from others that i read. it was very informative and helpful to me in narrowing down the field. for those "newbies" (like myself) who read this, take the advise given by many and do the Wet Test. As you can tell from my previous posts i originally thought that the Sundance Optima was for me, but at that point i did not consider any hot spring tubs. There were just too many brands to consider in my original weeding out process and Sundance rose to the top of about the 8 or so that i originally considered. HS was not one of them. The grandee came into the picture only after i decided that the Optima was for me. then after reviewing the HS Grandee (its to long of a story to expain how that came to be) i was on the fense between the two. Todays WET TEST eliminatede the Optima. Thus my last 4 considerations, as stated above. i hope all of you had a very Happy Thanksgiving and hope to be in my Grandee by News Years, considering of course what i find out about #3 above. thanks, M

the HS dealer said that he heard through the grapevine that the jets on the grandee will be silver like those on the Sundance optima. when i was at the Sundance dealer he showed me some Sundance jets and some supposed HS jets (not installed in the spa) the quality of the HS jets did appared sturdier, the moving pats were less flimsy, and the jet itself was heavier. I interperted his comments about HS changing their jets to Sundance like jets HS trying to catch up to Sundance as that is how it was presented, strangely as it may seem coming from an HS dealer. thanks for responding, m

does anyone know (especially you dealers) if HS is changing the jets on the 2006 Grandee to be more like those on the Sundance Optima (silver exteriors and more sturdy)? thanks and have a happy turkey day. m

thanks for the most informative post. i hope to be joining you soon in my sundance optima or hot springs grandee. i expect to be wet testing over this holiday weekend. happy turkey day. m