What a refresh can genuinely fix
Replacing taps, a shower valve, a toilet seat and a basin, re-grouting and re-siliconing, upgrading lighting and extraction, and redecorating can transform a room for a fraction of a refit. Where the tiles are sound, the layout works and the waterproofing is intact, this is often the better-value decision by a wide margin.
The signals that say full refit
Persistent damp or staining below the room, hollow-sounding tiles across a wet wall, a shower installed before modern tanking practice, movement in the floor, or a layout that cannot accommodate how the household uses the room. Any one of these means money spent on surfaces is money spent twice.
Cost per year of life
Compare options on cost divided by expected years of service rather than headline price. A £1,500 refresh buying five years is broadly comparable to a £9,000 refit buying twenty-five - so the choice usually turns on how long you intend to stay and whether the room's underlying condition allows the refresh to last.
Hybrid approaches
Often the best answer is partial: strip and re-do the shower area properly, leave the rest. This works when the failure is contained and the tiling can be terminated at a natural break such as a corner or a change of plane, rather than mid-wall.