Whether you sit down for a bath or stand for a shower, you have to get into it and out of it the same way. Are you going to have any grab bars nearby? That would be important for safety either way. But with our deep tub, we are not having a standup shower. It will be a handheld sitdown operation, yet we will still have to get in and out of the tub safely, by standing and holding a grab bar. If you have not closed in all the walls surrounding your freestanding tub, be sure the contractor adds blocks behind the walls in the appropriate spots to securely mount grab bars in several positions. I would think the width of the tub is more important in determining whether you can comfortably and safely stand up for a shower in your tub. Since ours is a clawfoot slipper tub, we omitted a standup shower feature. Even so, we still have to deal with getting in/out of the tub.

I've done showers that had all kinds of windows. I'm not saying it can't be done. BUT. be aware there's a risk associated with it. <a href="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/Bill_Vincent/media/Flaherty033.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="" border="0" alt=" photo Flaherty033.jpg"/></a> <a href="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/Bill_Vincent/media/Allen120.jpg.html" target="_blank"><img src="" border="0" alt=" photo Allen120.jpg"/></a>

@jewelisfabulous - ahh, so nice to have a window! I'd like to hang artwork, but I'd be a bit concerned it might fall and damage our new tub! @monicakm_gw - thank you taking the time to attach a photo. What a serene bath tub you have! You just gave me a great idea for the 3 walls that will be bare since we won't be tiling all the way up to the ceiling. A towel rack would look great on the back wall :) 1. Did you mean your tub is 19" in height (from the floor)? 2. If it's not too much trouble, I'd love to see what your faucet for the bath tub looks like!

If you want a tub and use a tub, then get a tub. As others have posted, you should have an excellent walk in shower - preferably with a bench - because that will almost certainly be needed at some point. My understanding is that if you want a whirlpool sensation, then the air tubs are the way to go since they don't have the interior pipes that get disgusting. You should probably get a tub that has a comfortable ledge so that you can more safely get in and out of the tub by sitting on the ledge and swing your legs in and out. Some of the tubs you have posted are more difficult and potentially dangerous so you have to balance yourself by having your leg go up and over the edge of the tub and that creates a lot of potential for a catastrophic fall. Presumably you are not considering resale as you plan to stay in this place for the foreseeable future so you should do exactly what you want. I remodeled with an view to aging in place and I removed the tub in the master and have a luxurious walk in shower - no tub at all as the second bathroom only has a smaller shower. ETA And you might want to rethink the large marble on the floor because that can be extremely slippery and hazardous if you or your feet are the least bit damp. I don't think that honed makes the surface of marble less slippery than polished as my counter is honed and it is slick and would be slippery when wet. As far as I can tell honed is more of a cosmetic choice as I wanted a softer look in the master bathroom. You should make sure that the COF is high enough so that the tiles aren't a slip hazard OR have a floor with smaller tiles so that your feet have something to adhere to. I had a tub/shower combination in my master and it was very slippery - when I remodeled I rented an apartment with 12" x 12" marble tiles in the bathroom and they were extremely slippery as well - I felt I was courting death or serious injury whenever I took a shower.