There are steel tubs that have a resin or plastic backing applied to them to give the feel of cast iron without the weight. These don't have the cheap feeling of the typical stamped steel tub you're probably thinking of. American Standard 'Americast' is one such product.

Your wife is correct about the non-slip bottom being very difficult to clean. Once dirty, it will stay dirty. And that's regardless of the tub material, as there are cast iron tubs that come with non-slip bottom too. You should get a tub without a non-slip bottom, and if you don't want to slip in the tub, just buy a mat at Bed Bath & Beyond or a place like that for, like, $12.99. They make them now where they're anti-microbial so the mats don't get mildewy. And in any case, if the mat gets dingy, you throw it out and buy a new one for $12.99. When a non-slip tub bottom gets dingy, you live with it until you get rid of the tub.

I used to work in the bath resurfacing trade, I'd recommend a pressed steel bath anyday, the thicker the better. Acrylic/fibreglass ones look lovely and glossy for the first couple of weeks, It's downhill from there! They chip easily - especially from dropped shower heads and heavy bottles or soap dishes. If you're worried about getting a bath without anti slip or non slip coatings I'd recommend adding decals rather than a bath mat, even if they are Mildew free, you still feel like your at grandma's house or a cheap motel/hotel. When I worked in the trade we bought decals from a company called non-slip bath (www.nonslipbath.co.uk) - they're very discreet decals that are easy to clean and hard to spot when just glancing at the bath. And they're there all the time so you can't forget to put the mat in. I've put them in thousands of hotel rooms. I've had them in my bath for two years and I don't even notice them, and I havce a proffesional eye when it comes to looking at bath tubs.

Here is a link that might be useful: Non-slip bath

I respectfully disagree with Jon Boy's recommendations to put decals on your tub. You will be permanently defacing your tub with those decals. Try ever getting them off. It's impossible to do it; there'll always be residue and the shadows of those decals. You will also have the same problem as with a non-slip surface--those decals with their textured surface (as described in Jon Boy's link), will grab onto grime and keep it.

I also disagree that using a bath mat is like "your grandma's house or a cheap motel". If you need a bath mat, use it, for goodness sakes. Roll it up and put in in the cabinet or vanity when you are done with it. Besides, perhaps the OP is a grandfather, and Jon Boy inferring that being at a grandparent's house is something negative to avoid is condescending.

One of the tubs in my house does not have a non-slip surface, but one of my other tubs does. The one with the non-slip surface (it's cast iron) is permanently dirty looking, despite all my efforts to clean it. For the tub without the non-slip bottom, I personally have never found the need for a bathmat, but I do keep one on hand for guests who might want one. It's nice to have that flexibility. Decals are permanent, and kinda '80's too.

anybody found a source on this side of the pond?