Stair Coverings alternatives to carpet

[Eric Gutierrez]

Other than carpet and replacing the treads with hardwood treads, what are some good alternatives for durable stair coverings?  They go down into a finished area of the basement.  I attached a few pictures for reference.  

[Mike McGee]

What some don't realize is that you can't just paint or stain stairs that were built originally to be covered with carpet. Stairs that were designed to be covered were built in a different manner and with different materials than those designed to be painted / stained. They are often nailed from the top so you have large exposed nail heads, the treads are usually made with cheap ugly wood and risers from OSB. If you try to paint or stain stairs like that you will have one ugly set of stairs! 

So, you need to either replace the treads and risers (expensive!) or cover it with something. The question in this thread is what are the options, besides carpet, can be used to cover stairs like this.