That is a hard one with those tiles. I would have to think if you did a white, it would kind of work with the colour of your tiles. At the end of the day, they do need to be replaces, but as you said, due to budgeting reasons, you cannot, I can pass on this photo of a nice bathroom with those tiles for you though for inspiration... : )

Hi Kirsty, could you please advise the colour of your vanity and whether it is a custom made one and if not, could you let me know its name and where you bought it. Also, what is the colour of your floors tiles and where did you get them from. (I have come to the conclusion that charcoal/dark grey tile plus a much lighter grey tile plus white on some walls plus a timber vanity or timber accessories in bathroom , plus white (or close to it) below sink counter top is the way to go for a beautiful bathroom. The trick is figuring out exactly what proportion of each colour to use and where to put them for each particular layout.

What a great job you did. So good that you just went with white. The concrete floor tile on wall behind the vanity would have been too busy after now having seen the finished product.

yes to all, we did have the tiles professionally sealed, but sealing is not a cure all in my experience but I'm sure it helps considerable . my wife does buy those hand made goats milk styles soaps etc and I don't imagine there is anything more testing for stone, and yes it does mark. The Grey ( bane of my existence )granite much more so than the beige travertine ) I must admit though, the kids bathroom was almost non existent as one has sensitive skin and uses pump pack. I would also imagine climate, airing/ sunlight, volume of use and the time you have to manage it would also be contributing factors. We are way short on time and they don't get the attention they deserve, so I would suggest asking around, others may manage it better and it not be an issue. If your only doing your bathroom you may consider the risk factor not worth it for the volume, but for me, the advantage of travertine in the rest of the house far out weighs any marking issue in the showers, and wont stop me from using it again. To be honest when we sold the last house I just took to the shower with one of those paint scrapers with the razor in the end and most of it came off and it didn't detract from the look of the house. Sorry i have probably only muddied the waters even more, good luck with it.