I am looking for opinions for the hall flooring on our lower level (midwest raised ranch). The upstairs level is character white oak with a natural finish. Knot holes are filled with black. The stairs are white oak with natural finish, no black filled knot holes.
When coming down the stairs, you can see the floor in the hall, bathroom, family room and the guest bedroom. I would like to keep it cohesive. I am thinking lvt because it is our main entry off of the garage and a high traffic area; also includes a laundry/utility room and bathroom, so the potential for water leaks.
My questions are:

1. What color would look best? Dark charcoal? Medium gray? Or a lvt that matches the white oak upstairs? (I’m worried if I try to match the upstairs but with lvt it will just make it obvious that it is fake)
2. Is it too “busy” to tile the bathroom floor with a different tile or should we keep it all the same flooring?
3. The family room is currently carpet. Would you put the hard flooring down throughout the family room with a large area rug or keep the carpet? I don’t necessarily love carpet but i feel like it warms and softens the lower level. But maybe an area rug would do that?
   Thanks for your opinions!