My mother has developed some mobility problems that make stepping into/out of her bath/shower quite difficult. She lives alone in a remote area and will not even consider relocating. So my alternative is to replace the tub with a low threshold shower. I would like any recommendations for manufacturers of multipiece shower pans/surrounds and installation experiences. The bath is a small, utilitarian one in a klinker built farmhouse. It is the only one in the home. The tub is 5'x30", 1 piece fiber glass with surround. I have experience in the relevant skills but this project needs to be done in a weekend. It's a 700 mile round trip from my home and 35 miles to the nearest home improvement store. So it needs to be a simple enough install that I don't waste 1.5 hours running to get unanticipated parts. The requirements are in order of priority 1)ease of access for my mother 2) ease of installation 3)ease of cleaning 4) cost 5) esthetics

kmcg - Good point about the safety bars. If this for an elderly you probably should install grab bars even with a walk in shower. We did that too for my MIL. Also, be sure to check your local codes about the drain. Some allow 1-1/2" drains as since many of us use low flow showers now it's not a problem. I have put a rubber flat stopper over mine some times when I feel I need a foot bath. Even after washing may hair etc, it doesn't get close to overflowing.

We're almost finished remodeling our only upstairs bath, with a room size of 7.5 x 8.5' - so not too different from yours. We decided not to do a tub, because the entire family prefers a walk-in shower. Easy to get into, easy to clean, opens up the room. I don't think we'll miss the tub at all, and there's a tub in the basement bath in case anyone breaks a leg or something. Layout is basically a 3 deep by 4 wide shower, then a toilet on the right wall, and a 60" vanity + 24" linen cabinet on the left. The room feels more spacious than I could have imagined. The Kohler cast iron shower pan is lovely. But I have no idea if it would keep in all the water with just a shower curtain. Probably, as long as there are magnets at the bottom of the curtain. There's one bathroom design that I love, which I will link to below. It has a large shower at one of the skinny ends of a rectangular room, with just a panel of glass and an open doorway. Toilet on right, vanity on left as you walk in. This particular room is larger than yours, but it seems like you might be able to do something similar - if you want a really WOW kind of shower. I think it's very cool, and would have done it if I hadn't had a vintage window in the way. Here is a link that might be useful: Velvet and Linen blog

If you do a grey floor you could do either match the tub or do a white tub. If you do both grey then you also have to think about the toilet and sinks in grey as well.