Best Factory Direct Spa?

[danielluke28]

I'm looking for an affordable, quality factory direct spa. I would like it to seat 5/6 people, have decent pump hp, and preferably be 34"-36" deep. I do not want a spa where I'm paying for extras like lights and mp3 player. I dont want to go through a local dealer and pay a higher price for their warranty service. The minimum manufacturer's warranty is okay with me. I can fix problems that arise, but I do really want to find something that is quality made. I dont mind paying for quality, just not extras.

Can anyone recommend a spa brand that sells direct from the factory, so I can save money?

[Loopcity]

One thing to consider is that when you buy factory direct, they usually have a general trucking company drop it curbside. You have to figure out how to get it to the backyard and are responsible if you damage it. We get calls from people who bought online and want us to come move it to the backyard and explain how to use it.

Additionally, I can't imagine buying a hot tub and not seeing it in person, sitting in it and making sure it fits properly, let alone not wet testing it. Purchasing online may be fine for you, but you don't save as much as you may think. Dealers save money by purchasing truckload's. Shipping one spa costs about the same as shipping 8 spas. We also avoid the residential and lift gate fees.

I think that if you go to a dealer and ask to see a more basic but high quality hot tub, you'd probably find the price to be not far off of factory direct.

[Dan The Spa Man]

Loopcity is correct: Most quality tubs are picked up by dealers b/c they are *quality* tubs. Rarely do you find a factory-direct tub that is of great quality, and the aforementioned savings generally are not what they seem, as pointed out above. Other factors are: How do you get parts if you need one? From feedback from customers (I am a spa dealer myself), I get many that come to my establishment looking for parts for XYZ Spa Brand, and they are frustrated that they are having a difficult time getting customer support from the factory. And in most cases, factory-direct brands use lessor quality parts that fail more frequently than better quality brands. Yes- You pay more b/c you're dealing with a middle man. But the value of the middle-man should not be quantified simply as an extra unnecessary fee. The benefits in many cases cannot be quantified monetarily, but are ever-valuable in the long term. I hope this helps you. Good luck moving forward.