[jyl]

The wife likes taking baths, so replacing the tub with a shower, or enclosing the tub with an opaque surround, won't work. There isn't extra room to add a shower, due to the size of the room and the house layout.

I do like the idea of having stainless steel handrails made. One long side of the tub is placed against the wall, and you enter over the other, exposed, long side. So the rails could anchor to the wall and/or ceiling and come out to encircle the two short ends of the tub and maybe curve in to partly encircle the exposed long side. That seems less groovy than a curved clear surround, but cheaper and more practical.