North West town named ‘bed and breakfast capital’ with 64 per square mile

Blackpool is the UK’s bed and breakfast capital with 64 B&Bs per square mile, according to new data.

Research from insurance firm Direct Line shows that 862 B&Bs now operate in the Lancashire seaside resort.

The figure is over 50% higher than in London, which came second place in the ranking with 569 B&Bs.

Edinburgh ranked third with 394 bed and breakfast businesses, followed by Inverness (232) and the Isle of Wight (229).

The final five places in the top 10 were taken, in order, by: York (194), Scarborough (183), Weymouth (166), Bath (155) and Bournemouth (133).

Jane Guaschi, business manager at Direct Line for Business, said: “With its beaches, attractions and iconic tower it’s not hard to see why Blackpool is the archetypal British holiday hotspot.

“It is, therefore, good news that our analysis shows that it’s also the bed and breakfast capital of the UK, giving holidaymakers a wealth of options when it comes to choosing accommodation for their stay.”

Despite Blackpool’s place at number one, the wider North West ranked fourth with an 11% slice of the UK’s overall B&B spread, behind the South West (20.5%), Scotland (16.7%) and the South East (12.5%). Yorkshire & The Humber ranked fifth, with a 7.8% share.