ONE of East Lancashire's most historic landmarks has opened its doors to bed and breakfast visitors.

Whalley Abbey, which was founded in 1300, is offering rooms at its newly-refurbished retreat and conference house.

Overnight guests are to be charged the standard rate of £42 per person to stay in one of its 17 bedrooms, which were upgraded to en-suite last year.

Abbey bosses hope the rooms' unique position overlooking the historic ruins will attract visitors keen to stay somewhere different.

They say they don't intend to exploit the unique theme of staying in an Abbey, but revealed that a cluster of rooms occupy the Paslew suite, named after John Paslew, the last Abbot to occupy the monastery before the Dissolution in 1537.

The tourism move comes after Blackburn Diocese, which owns the site, carried out £1million worth of work last year to upgrade the retreat house and conference centre, which sits next to the Abbey ruins.

An eight-month refurbishment programme also created a new dining hall and reception area, and included a new disabled lift.

The venue reopened in September last year.

Built to attract more business conferences, wedding receptions, and social functions, the Abbey's transformation is designed to attract enough business to pay for the site's running costs.

Blackburn Diocese last year withdrew an annual subsidy to cover the site's costs after agreeing to pump £1million into its redevelopment.

Claire Davies, Whalley Abbey's manager, said: "We have just started offering B&B rooms at the standard rate, and we are applying to the tourist board for a rating.

"This will help us advertise as a B&B venue, so when people are thinking of visiting the Ribble Valley they could consider staying with us.

"What sets us apart for bed and breakfast is the setting, with the rooms in the west wing overlooking the Abbey itself. Also, guests can enjoy a stroll around the grounds.

"It means we won't be relying just on group bookings for conferences and retreats. As things stand we are doing pretty well since we re-opened.

"We've got five weddings booked for the coming year, and our weekends are booked for church retreats until the end of 2007.

"Also, because our weekends are usually fully booked, we are now welcoming weddings during the week.

"Everything we make is ploughed back into the upkeep of the Abbey, and we are confident that all this means we are ensuring its long-term future."

The Abbey site is a former Cistercian monastery, dissolved by Henry VIII, and sold to private owners in 1553.

The Abbey house was bought by the Church of England in 1923, and became the diocesan retreat house and conference centre when the Diocese of Blackburn was created in 1926.

During last year's work, archaeologists found fragments of medieval tile, including ancient pieces of pottery, glass and a wattle and daub partition wall in the east wing.