Looking for more tricks than treats this Halloween? Why not try and brave a night at one of the most haunted hotels in the world?
From glamorous Hollywood high-rises to Dublin’s stately “Grand Dame,” there’s no shortage of haunted hotels you can book — in some cases, with points — to get into the All Hallows’ Eve spirit.
We’ve selected our favorites — a mix of urban towers, historic mansions and more — that are rumored to have some supernatural guests. Here are 10 of the most haunted hotels in the world (that you’ll actually want to stay in).
The Stanley Hotel
- Location: 333 East Wonderview Ave., Estes Park, Colorado
- How to book: Cash rates start at $197 a night. But the hotel offers historic tours, ghost tours and a tour dedicated to “The Shining,” starting at $35 per person.
The Stanley Hotel is the iconic property that inspired Stephen King’s “The Shining.” The hotel even has a hedge maze, albeit one with a much happier ending than the movie’s icy finale.
Located in Estes Park, Colorado, the hotel opened in 1909 and was intended to be a posh getaway for America’s upper crust, intended to rival the grand hotels on the East Coast. By the 1970s, however, The Stanley Hotel had fallen into disrepair. It might even have been demolished had King not stumbled upon it during a winter storm in 1974.
There are 140 rooms at The Stanley Hotel, though only 13 are considered the most haunted. The hotel’s website does specifically point out which rooms are the most “spirited,” should you prefer to test your nerve.
Room 217, the same room that inspired “The Shining,” is said to be haunted by the former head housekeeper, Elizabeth Wilson. Wilson survived a gas explosion in the room and returned there after her death to continue what she did in life, looking after guests by unpacking and folding clothes and lining up guests’ shoes.
Or you can book “Lucy’s Spirited Grand King” and stay in the room said to be haunted by the spirit of a playful young girl named Lucy (and possibly also her cat).
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Related: 6 things I saw during my stay at the ‘haunted’ Stanley Hotel
The Equinox Golf Resort & Spa
- Location: 3567 Main St., Manchester, Vermont
- How to book: Cash rates start at $144 per night.
The Equinox Golf Resort & Spa dates back to 1769, and over the years, it has welcomed a variety of high-wattage guests such as former presidents William Howard Taft, Ulysses S. Grant and Theodore Roosevelt. It also has more than a few phantoms in residence, including a First Lady. The ghost of Abraham Lincoln’s melancholy wife, Mary Todd Lincoln, who stayed at the hotel with her two sons in 1864, has been spotted wandering the property with one of her children — and occasionally, she’s been known to move rocking chairs and household items.
Other haunted tales include that of a female specter who haunts the hotel’s grand staircase, Revolutionary War-era ghosts in the Marsh Tavern, where locals have gathered for 250 years, and sightings of an elderly bellman named George who stayed on staff even after his death.
Bourbon Orleans Hotel
- Location: 717 Orleans St., New Orleans
- How to book: Cash rates start at $131 per night.
New Orleans is considered one of the most haunted cities in America, so it’s not surprising that uninvited guests can be found in many of the city’s hotels. One of the city’s most notorious hotels for ghost sightings is the Bourbon Orleans Hotel.
The building that now houses the hotel was built in 1815 and was originally intended as a ballroom and theater. After being devastated by fires in 1816 and 1866, it was purchased by the Sisters of the Holy Family (the first Black American religious order in the United States), who converted the property into a school for Black American girls, an orphanage and a convent. It also briefly operated as a hospital during the Civil War.
Ghosts from the hotel’s many eras have been spotted throughout the property. Some of the most common sightings are the young children who died from yellow fever when the property was an orphanage, a Confederate soldier who paces the hallways and a phantom who hides behind the drapes in the ballroom.
The Hollywood Roosevelt
- Location: 7000 Hollywood Blvd., Los Angeles
- How to book: Cash rates start at $246 a night.
Constructed in 1926 and located off of LA’s famed Hollywood Boulevard, The Hollywood Roosevelt has long been a favorite destination among the stars. Marilyn Monroe lived in a room above the Tropicana Pool for two years; Shirley Temple took her first tap-dancing lessons with Bill “Bojangles” Robinson here; and Clark Gable and Carole Lombard used to meet in the penthouse of the hotel while they were having an affair (Gable was married to actress and socialite Maria Langham at the time).
Rumor has it that a few of the hotel’s most illustrious clients are simply uninterested in checking out, and celebrity spirits are regularly spotted around the hotel. Marilyn Monroe’s spirit, for example, has appeared in the mirror of many guest rooms. Some visitors also report seeing a little girl in a blue dress playing around the hotel — could it be Shirley Temple?
The Marshall House
- Location: 123 East Broughton St., Savannah, Georgia
- How to book: Cash rates start at around $192 a night.
With a history of piracy, a legacy as a hub for the trade of enslaved African people and a site of yellow fever epidemics, it’s no wonder that Savannah, Georgia, is regularly ranked as one of the most paranormally active cities in America — and The Marshall House is one of the city’s most well-known haunts.
Built in 1851, the hotel was twice used as a hospital, once during a yellow fever epidemic and again as a Union hospital toward the end of the Civil War. The hotel is said to be inhabited by several ghosts, including soldiers with missing limbs, children who play marbles in the hallways and the spirit of Joel Chandler Harris, a Southern journalist and folklorist who lived at The Marshall House for a short period — his typewriter keys can sometimes be heard clacking away in his favorite room. Guests have even complained of hearing and seeing a phantom cat and smelling a terrible odor on haunted floors.
Fairmont Banff Springs
- Location: 405 Spray Ave., Banff, Alberta
- How to book: Rates at this Fairmont property start at around $476 per night. You can also redeem Accor Live Limitless points here. Points are worth a fixed value, and you can redeem them in increments of 2,000 points for about $40 off your stay.
It’s only natural that a hotel over 130 years old would surely have a few ghostly visitors, right? The Fairmont Banff Springs is home to several frightening (but benevolent) specters.
One of them is a bride who died falling down the Fairmont’s marble staircase before she could say “I do” — guests have reported seeing a veiled woman swaying in the grand ballroom and around the hotel. The spirit of the hotel’s former head bellman has also been known to wander the hotel’s halls, ensuring everything runs as it should.
Certain rooms at the Fairmont Banff Springs are said to have particularly strange activity. Complaints include pillows being pulled out from beneath guests’ heads, bloody handprints appearing on the bathroom mirror and even sleeping patrons getting shoved out of bed.
The Shelbourne
- Location: 27 St. Stephen’s Green, Dublin
- How to book: Cash rates start at around $419 or 81,000 Marriott Bonvoy points per night.
In 2013, actor Lily Collins told Jimmy Fallon the ghost of a young girl haunted her during her stay at The Shelbourne, an Autograph Collection property in Dublin — and she’s not alone.
Many visitors have reported mysterious occurrences at the 200-year-old property, like the taps turning on, strange giggling, doors slamming and a shadow of a girl roaming aimlessly through the building, especially on the sixth floor.
In fact, so many guests complained about paranormal activity that the hotel eventually insisted a staff member stay in the supposedly haunted room. The “lucky” employee reportedly ran out of the room, terrified, after the rumors proved true. The ghost at fault is thought to be Mary Masters, a 7-year-old girl who died of cholera in the building hundreds of years ago.
The Langham, London
- Location: 1C Portland Place, London
- How to book: Cash rates start at $599 a night.
Dating back to 1865, The Langham, London is known for having several shadowy residents — England’s cricket team even reported being spooked at the luxury hotel. One of the ghosts was a doctor who murdered his wife before dying by suicide during their honeymoon. Now, he’s most frequently spotted during the month of October, walking through the hotel still dressed in Victorian-era clothing.
Related: Old-world elegance in a classic grand hotel: A review of The Langham, London
Napoleon III has also reportedly been spotted roaming around the basement, which was one of his favorite hangouts when he was alive. There was also a German prince who died by suicide before World War I by jumping out a window — he’s said to be the most active ghost at the hotel. He’s often seen in the mornings and appears and disappears while wearing a military jacket. And one particularly mischievous ghost likes to toss guests in Room 333 (the most haunted of all the rooms at The Langham) out of bed.
The Emily Morgan Hotel
- Location: 705 East Houston St., San Antonio
- How to book: Rates start at $132 or 32,000 Hilton Honors points a night.
San Antonio is perhaps best known for the Alamo, but just across the street from the historic mission, visitors can find one of the most haunted locales in the Lone Star State: The Emily Morgan Hotel. Fun fact: the hotel is named after Emily Morgan, the Yellow Rose of Texas.
The building that now holds The Emily Morgan initially operated as the city’s Medical Arts Building from 1924 to 1976, while also serving as a hospital. The basement, seventh and 14th floors (which is really the 13th floor — it’s common for older buildings to “skip” the 13th floor) are said to be the hotel’s most haunted areas. Perhaps most terrifyingly, the elevator has even been known to drop down to the basement even when it wasn’t selected.
Several local ghost tours feature the property and its history of paranormal activity, should you want to learn more.
Omni Parker House
- Location: 60 School St, Boston, MA 02108
- How to book: Cash rates start at around $263 per night.
As the longest continuously operating hotel in the U.S., it isn’t surprising that Boston’s Omni Parker House has a few ghost stories to its name. The hotel opened in 1855, hosting several notable authors, poets, government officials and culinary legends. It’s even said that Charles Dickens’ first American reading of “A Christmas Carol” took place here.
Staff and guests alike claim the ghost of Harvey Parker, the hotel’s founder, roams the halls on the 10th floor. Guests have also heard whispers outside their room, only to find the hallway empty upon opening the door, complained of noise from rooms that turned out to be empty and witnessed elevators being repeatedly called to the third floor.
Some of the city’s ghost tours make a stop at the Omni Parker House, while hotel guests and visitors can stop in for a drink and dinner at Parker’s Bar. For the Halloween season, the bar is serving Victorian-inspired cocktails and adding festive decor.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: thepointsguy.com
