Twelve months ago, The Gazette reported how £55m worth of visitor accommodation was on the market.

Another difficult season later and the bite of the credit crunch has seen the figure rocket.

Today, £80m worth of guesthouses, hotels and self-catering apartments – around 4,000 rooms in total – are on the market.

The latest edition of The Gazette's Property Finder publication lists more than 330 different types of holiday accommodation up for sale.

While some hoteliers blame another poor season – with takings reportedly as little as £200 a week at some family-owned hotels – others point the finger at Blackpool's slow regeneration.

Expansion of national budget chains such Travelodge has only compounded the problems for many operating at a time when the nation teeters on the brink of recession.

The majority of the hotels on the market are small to mid-range businesses – between eight and 20 rooms – but there many with up to 40 rooms now up for sale in the £1m price bracket.

Depressingly for many now wanting to get out of town, there is not exactly a queue of prospective buyers.

Some hoteliers The Gazette spoke to have been on the market for more than three years.

Paul Crossley, managing director of Kendrick and Co estate agents, said: "The collapse of the housing market has not helped some of the smaller hotels who want to sell their property.

"They are stuck in the same bracket as residential properties and therefore have suffered because of the credit crunch and the non-movement in the housing industry.

"While investments by Blackpool such as the opening of Debenhams has had a positive effect, it's too early to tell whether this will be a temporary increase in investment or a permanent one. A lot of people want to sell, but unfortunately there are not a lot of people out there with the funds to buy."

While Blackpool has seen massive investment over the past year, with the revamped Houndshill shopping centre reopening, including the flagship Debenhams store, the ongoing work on the seafront and the Central Corridor project, some hoteliers say it will be years before the benefit is felt.

Lynn Cole, chairman of Blackpool Combined Association, said: "Some of the smaller hotel owners cannot afford to wait until the projects are completed as many will have gone under by then.
"I know of some hotels who are surviving on takings of £200 a week and no-one in the tourism industry can survive on that in the current market.

"The council allow budget chains to come in but do not provide enough support for the hotels which are struggling.

"I've not seen the council come up with anything tangible to help the failing hotels."

However, Coun Maxine Callow, cabinet member for regeneration and tourism at Blackpool Council, said the financial uncertainty in the holiday market was not just specific to Blackpool.

She said: "This figure (of £80m) is perhaps not surprising considering Blackpool has approximately half a billion pounds of holiday accommodation. This is a turnover of around 15 per cent.

"Like the rest of the country the property market in Blackpool is feeling the effects of the credit crunch. More properties will be for sale because the market has slowed. There are many reasons why people are selling up and not all of them are negative.

"We have lots of support and training available to hoteliers to help them make the most of their business."