Looking for a hot tub but not sure which brand.

join costco when it opens down there in a couple months.

they're depleted at the moment but at any given time they have 10 or so hot tubs and i cant remember who makes them but its a very well-regarded brand out of california and of course you get costco's legendary customer service after the sale.

i wouldn't even think to go to pool and spa depot and pay 3x as much with zero support when things break.

It depends on what you’re looking for. The stuff at Costco is not high end. It doesn’t mean it is low end but it isn’t high end either. Hot tubs sold online are usually a bit of a joke in the industry although Costco does do a bit better of a job as compared to other sellers out there in choosing their manufacturing partners. Many of the hot tubs sold online are missing key features.

For example, my friend was recently looking at one and sent me the specs. It is was on Wayfair. The whole thing was crazy. It was a stripped down piece of junk without a heater. But the photo looked pretty good.

The manufacturer that CAD is referring to is likely Watkins. They make Hot Springs and Caldera. They also will sometimes sell to Costco. Not all tubs on Costco’s website are made by Watkins. When Watkins does sell to Costco it is a very stripped down model. It would be like GM deciding to sell SUVs to Costco and they might come from the same factory as Chevy, Cadillac and GMC but this is instead a very stripped down entry level brand that GM makes under an obscure brand that you’ve never heard of for Costco. As CAD mentioned Watkins is Cali based however over the years they’ve moved more and more of their production to Mexico and from what I understand only their premium product is still made in their US facility.

It comes down to how much you want to spend and what is important to you in a hot tub. No one is buying a high end hot tub from Costco unless Costco strikes a deal for a limited promotion with a manufacturer and local dealer. Since demand is so high right now these deals seem limited.

My preference in brands is Bullfrog Spas. They use a “Jet Pack” system which is really unique. They’re US made in Utah.

I bought a bullfrog last year and love it. Looked at all the major brands and went with this one based on the dealer. They all have pros and cons, but I want support to be there when I need it.

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I bought a Sundance Optima spa in 2005. never had a problem with it. still going strong today.

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Seconded.
We bought a Sundance Metro in 2008. Only thing ever replaced was the pump. Seal started leaking literally 9 days before it went out of the 5 year warranty. Replacement pump is still going strong.