I just put a down payment on a Caldera Kauai which will be replacing a 15 year old Tahitian (which is still running fine after all this time). I would have preferred to go with a smaller size because mine is indoors, but the smaller ones all seem to lack critical aspects for me. It sounds like exactly what you are looking for, but is unfortunately likely beyond your price range along with the Hot Springs.
Smaller/cheaper spas often don't have loungers that are all that comfortable. Worse, as far as I"m concerned, they almost always lack a circulation pump. The circulation that keeps a hot tub always hot is of top importance to me because I'm in there a couple times a day on the bad days and I can't always get back and forth to heat it up in advance, particularly when I decide I need it during a bad day. The little circulation pumps probably save a great deal of money as well if the tub is used fairly regularly since without one they use a jet pump to bring the temp back up. Apparently the cheaper spas can either have the heat on or the jets at one time, not both. Once I decided that circulation pump was critical to me, it cut down my available choices significantly. Without that, I might have gone for a FreeFlow model, knowing the manufacturer is Watkins (same as Hot Springs and Caldera).
My deciding factors on buying the Kauai is that I know just how comfortable the seating and lounge is and know first hand about the quality of Caldera spas. Plus, our dealer is fantastic, having gone out of their way to help us out a number of times over the years.