I used to love visiting Blackpool but my stay in the disgusting Astoria Hotel ruined my holiday

A regular visitor to Blackpool says she had such a bad experience in a hotel that she probably won’t be coming back to the resort.

Julie Potter, from Rochdale, has been coming to the resort for years because her 16 year old daughter, Katie, has always loved the town.

But she says her plans for an overnight stay on Tuesday April 2 turned into a nightmare and now her daughter, who has autism, doesn’t want to return anymore.

The mum-of-four says that when she asked for a room change at the Atlantis Hotel on Hull Street, because there was mould on the walls, she was told to go across the road to a ‘sister’ hotel the New Astoria- but that room was even worse, with blood on the sheets.

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She ended up desperately trying to find another hotel and was told by the owner she would not get a refund.

Julie said she had no qualms about booking into the Atlantis, on Hull Road in central Blackpool, via Booking.Com after being impressed with the photos and the good reviews.

She said: “When we got there it was one of those places with no reception - when I arrived I was given instructions via a text message, which was a bit different.

“When I got inside the room I could see straightaway there was mould up the walls.

“I didn't want my daughter to be staying in a room like that so I texted the phone number and asked if we could change it.

“I was told they had a room for us in another place they owned across the road - the Astoria.

“I couldn't believe it when I saw the room.

“The bed was absolutely disgusting. There was hair and blood on the sheets, the bed was torn and it was totally unacceptable. No one would want to stay in that room.

“All we wanted was a clean, decent room. We didn’t want anything fancy.

“My daughter was unhappy and we just wanted to settle into our room but we couldn't. I messaged again but got no rely, so I ended up walking out and getting a coffee in an amusement arcade, trying to find another booking on the phone.

“The owner of the hotel contacted me later and he was angry about what I told him and wouldn’t give me a refund.

“The trip had been totally ruined, it was awful and I was so upset for my daughter, she had been looking forward to it so much”

Julie ended up walking along the prom trying to find a hotel to stay in and managed to get in at the Royal Seabank Hotel on central promenade.

She said: “I said to the man, I’m not being funny but is the room clean, I’ve just had a terrible experience?

“He invited me up to check the room and couldn't have been nicer.

“The room was lovely, it was such a relief.

“The sad thing about this is that my daughter has told me she doesn't want to come back to Blackpool again, it has totally ruined it for her.”

The owner of the establishments, who owns a number of others in the town, told the Gazette: “As soon as she told me about the mould, I offered to get a cleaner round to sort it out.

“We offered her a second room, not everyone would do that.

“I wasn’t even told about the problem with the other room until after she’d left and she rang me about a refund.

“On Booking.Com it says our hotels provide an excellent service in Blackpool, with a lot of really good reviews.”