Seaside B&B owners believe an explosion of Airbnbs is "strangling" trade at traditional guest houses.

Visitor numbers in Herne Bay are said to be falling as more and more tourists choose to stay in rooms and properties rented through the growing online operator.

For Nick Coffin, who owns the Evening Tide guest house in the town, the situation has become unviable, forcing him to launch a bid to transform the 10-bedroom building into flats.

The 59-year-old says he came to the decision after concluding traditional B&Bs are now seen as "out of date”.

And he pins the blame largely on Airbnbs, which have swelled in number to almost 100 in the town, while there are now just eight B&Bs.

“Bed and breakfasts are out of date," he says. "I’m only open on a Friday and Saturday at the moment.

“People don’t come here in the winter, so you can’t make it pay just for three months a year, and you’ve got a lot of Airbnbs here, which kills the business.

“All I’m doing is earning enough to pay my bills.”

Evening Tide – which is expected to remain open until October – has been marketed by estate agency Wilbee and Son for almost £900,000 over the last year, but a sale has failed to materialise.

While Mr Coffin does also believe Covid and the subsequent fall in European tourist numbers to the area has contributed to his loss of trade, he describes Airbnbs as “the killer”.

"When I took over in 2017 it was very good as we had Europeans visiting, but with Covid we've had two years without people coming over really," he added.

"The European trade would usually start in March, which made it pay when it wasn't busy."

Recent searches on the Airbnb website show there are almost 120 rooms available to let across Whitstable and Herne Bay, while there are 100 more in Canterbury.

Fellow B&B owner Andy Griffin, who runs Lazy Daze in Avenue Road, Herne Bay, also blames their proliferation on the “strangling” of his business over the winter months.

“I just think people’s first port of call is to look at Airbnb – I can’t imagine anything other than them that’s nicking our work,” he said.

“It’s not killing business, but it’s definitely strangling it. There are fewer B&Bs now, but we’re still quiet.

“My prices are reasonable – you can get a single room for £35 with us.

“At this time of year, we’d tend to take in builders who are working in the area and I’d be almost as busy in the winter as in the summer, but I’ve had none this year. They’re going somewhere else.”

For a weekend stay in late May, prices at Herne Bay B&Bs listed on one booking website range from £79 to £100 a night.

The £100-a-night B&B offers a twin bedroom with a private bathroom, flat-screen TV, Netflix, tea and coffee-making facilities, free wifi and a "very good breakfast".

Meanwhile, Airbnb prices vary from £45 to £205 a night, ranging from a stay on a futon with a shared bathroom, to the chance to rent an entire regency seafront seafront house sleeping four people.

A £104-a-night Airbnb offers holidaymakers the chance to rent an entire "studio cottage" near the sea.

Featuring a kitchen area complete with cooking utensils and appliances, it also offers a dining bar, bathroom, Nespresso machine, sound system, TV with a DVD player, and a shared courtyard garden, but does not include food.

KentOnline analysis also shows there are more than 700 Airbnbs available further along the coast in Thanet, which recorded a 450% increase in the holiday lets between 2016 and 2019.

Denise Hill, who has run the Langmead Guest House in Ramsgate since 2017, says she hopes to see more people considering traditional bed and breakfasts when booking stays, rather than automatically opting for Airbnbs.

"It's a matter of personal preference," she said.

"I know some people like Airbnb because it gives you lots of freedom, they can make their own meals, they're self-catered.

"But a lot of people who like the more traditional sort of trip to the seaside, they still opt for the whole B&B experience.

"People just automatically go Airbnb. Don't just ignore B&Bs because we're still here too. I do feel that more people are realising that."

Other B&B owners say they have not felt the proliferation of Airbnbs is impacting their business.

Michael Carter, who runs Sunny Lodge Guest House in Cheriton Road, Folkestone, said: "We're full up all the time - we're making too much money."

Responding to concerns raised by B&B owners in Herne Bay, an Airbnb spokesman said: "The pandemic has fundamentally changed the way we travel and home sharing helps ordinary families take part in, and benefit directly from, travel.

"Nearly a quarter of listings on Airbnb in Herne Bay are private rooms where locals are welcoming guests into their homes and benefiting from tourism in the area, and nearly a third of UK Hosts on Airbnb say the income helps them to make ends meet.”