New Flooring ideas

I have been struggling for a while with how to replace my bathroom floor. I Have already taken up the old vinyl bathroom flooring long ago and the wooden flooring that remains has some problems. Although the floor has been nicely sanded, stained and varnished, the boards have gaps which ordinarily would not be too much of a problem.
Underneath the bathroom, however is the kitchen and I have lowered the kitchen ceiling in places and inserted ceiling lights which are very visible through the bathroom floor.
I am left with the conclusion that if I don't want the kitchen lights shining through the bathroom floor, I have to think about Fitting laminate flooring or replacing the original boards with some oak floorboards.
I really like the idea of having the real wood floor, but am equally attracted by the practical advantages of laminate flooring. Let's not gloss over the fact that laminate can be had for less than £5 per square metre, as opposed to from around four times as much to more than ten times as much for solid oak flooring.
I am also quite taken with the range of finishes avaiable from the range of laminates on the market, but it will be a while before I get round to the bathroom floor, so I will have plenty of time to consider my final choice.