I love an old tub!!! And by the looks of yours, it is not a new model! If I'm a buyer looking at your house, I'm thinking "great! That tub is original and probably comfortable!" Our tubs in this house (built in '94) are steel and they are definitely not comfortable to recline in. They also don't hold the heat like an older (quality) cast iron tub will. You have a little treasure that just needs some TLC! I'd suggest checking out tub/tile re-finishers in your area. I know what you are talking about with an older tub---the kind momma scoured with Comet every week until the glaze was gone! They can also cover up those sailboats too. Do you plan on keeping the slate floor? It looks nice to me. The only other suggestion (aside from swapping the door and vanity) would be to put up some bead board on the lower section of the wall. Why? Well, the way the tub tile butts into the window looks awkward. If you have white bead board next to the tile (under the window and beyond) then there won't be any contrast in color and the lack of space between the tile and window won't show up at all. Above the bead board, I'd nix the yellow and go with a light sandy, golden tan. I could see this bath looking very Pottery Barn/beachy. She does not like the sink? Those crazy sailboats? The grody tub? Well, you've obviously done something right, LOL!!! The kid has good taste--what more can you ask for? :)

There are no hard and fast rules for tile orientation. You can run them whichever way looks best to you. My daughter and my son both recently redid their bathrooms and put 12x24 tiles stacked vertically on the walls. They didn't have to decide on vertical vs horizontal for the floor because they used 24x24 squares on the floor. In my bath I have 10x13 vertical on the walls and 18x18 on the diagonal on the floor. IMO the large square tiles make their small floor spaces look bigger. Do your tiles come in squares too? Maybe you could put them on the floor. If you stay with the 12x24s on the floor placing then horizontal ( long side parallel to the tub may make your room look wider). You can still put the wall tiles whichever way you want. Here's a couple shots of my DD's tiles Good luck in your remodel.

Lighter walls would be a good choice here. Sometimes darker colors are better for small bathrooms like powder rooms, but I think it would overwhelm your bathroom rather than making a statement. I would also go a bit lighter on the floors. Neither the wall nor floor covering has to be tile. Large-format porcelain slabs minimize grout lines which makes them a good choice for small spaces. However, they have a more modern feel that may or may not work for your house. The walnut has a more traditional feel than the oak, but both are versatile enough no matter what else you have in your home. If you go walnut, definitely go with floors that are more of a taupe/cream. I would try to look at them in person as you may have a personal preference. The other difference is push/pull to open/close vs drawer pulls. I personally prefer the feel of the latter, but it's a matter of what you're used to.

Jennifer: Sounds lovely! Most the three wall alcove tubs come in 32", but I know for one Jacuzzi makes one called "Nova" that is 36x72x 19" deep. What's also nice about this is it's not an integral apron front, but your chance to do paneling or tile on front of tub. One nice add that will increase your safety is to do a small (perhaps 24") grab bar mounted vertically at the head of the tub to assist with you getting in and out. They're available in numerous finishes and styles, and I lean towards the thinner ones, 1 1/4" diameter, as they look more like beefy towel bars and not hospital grab bars. Good luck!