When it comes to hotels, we think about going on vacation and taking a break from reality.
But have you ever thought about staying in a haunted hotel?
Some people consider a vacation involving paranormal activity as a great escape, but for others, it is their worst nightmare.
But how do you know if a hotel is haunted or not? Would you change your stay if you found out your hotel was haunted?
Here are the 5 most haunted hotels in America.
The Stanley Hotel, Este Park, Colorado.
The Stanley Hotel, situated in Este Park, Colorado, is said to be one of the most haunted hotels in America.
It is known for its spirits who walk the hallways and “entertain” guests.
The Stanley Hotel opened on July 4, 1909, consisting of 142 rooms, with the intention of housing travelers and city folk.
It is said that some of the spirits of both guests and staff wander the halls, and there have been reports of hearing a piano playing and wicked-sounding laughter.
The Stanley hotel became widely known as the location where Stephen King came up with the concept for “The Shining” in 1977.
King spent a night in The Stanley hotel, and it is said that in the aforementioned novel, the hotel featured is based on this very hotel.
Originally the hotel was a peaceful place to stay, but after the release of The Shining, the hotel became a place of paranormal curiosities.
This place is so mysterious it is even featured on both television series Ghost Hunters and Ghost Adventures.
Playing on this supernatural activity, the hotel regularly hosts paranormal-inspired events for guests to be spooked by the spirits that roam the hotel.
Crescent Hotel, Eureka Springs, Arkansas.
Crescent Hotel has been referred to as America’s most haunted hotel, and it is situated in the Victorian resort of Eureka Springs in Arkansas.
The hotel was built in 1886 as a resort for the rich, but it didn’t last for long. Sadly it closed down as it was unmanageable, but it reopened in 1908 as a college for young women.
Since then, its purpose has fluxed between being a school, a hospital, and a hotel.
The most recent transformation began in 1997 when the building was purchased by a couple who started a six-year renovation of the hotel. Sadly the owner died in a car crash in 2009, so his wife became the sole owner.
The building has had an incredibly unlucky life of abandonment, but it is still open as a hotel today.
In 2016 the building was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
There have always been claims of ghosts in the hotel, so in 2005 the television series Ghost Hunters visited Crescent Hotel and confirmed paranormal activity.
Regular appearances of ghoulie ghosts include a sick-stricken cancer patient looking for her room key, a mysterious man in a white suit, and a construction worker who plunged to his death during the initial build.
There is even the ghost of a creepy cat called Morris, who once lived on the site.
The Grand Midway Hotel, Windber, Pennsylvania.
The Grand Midway Hotel was built in the late 1800s in Pennsylvania and has been a place of ghosts and ghouls for many years.
Originally the hotel was built to house coal mining immigrants; it has also been a brothel and a local venue for events.
Since 2000, it has become a bohemian-gothic style arts venue and hotel, attracting curious folk from around the world.
Each room is themed, and most of them come with their own unique stories of events that have happened in those very rooms.
Some speak of magical events and others of terrifying encounters, and it is said that “The Canopy” room is the most terrifying of all. It is said to have the ghosts of people who once inhabited the building.
To keep in line with its spooky atmosphere, The Grand Midway hotel has two Guinness World Records. The hotel contains the largest Ouija board in the world, as well as the world’s largest tarot card.
This building of curiosities has attracted global attention and has been featured on television programs such as The Haunted Collector and The Exorcist Files.
Hotel Monteleone, New Orleans.
The hotel was built in 1886 and has been taken care of by more than five generations of the founding family.
The International Society of Paranormal Research stayed for a few days in 2003 to monitor the activity present at the hotel.
Their investigation allowed them to make contact with some spirits that wander about the hotel.
They included a former employee named William Wildemere and a child named Maurice Begere.
Sightings of a maid are quite common, and according to the paranormal investigators who connected with her, she said she was making sure the hotel stayed clean.
Other regular occurrences include the dining hall doors opening and closing even when locked and an elevator that will stop on the wrong floor.
There is even a hallway that drops in temperature and reveals images of children playing when guests walk along it.
Colonial Inn, Concord, Massachusetts.
In 1716 the Colonial Inn of Concord was constructed.
The inn was used during the Revolutionary War as a hospital, and as a result, many soldiers ended up there.
Wounded patriot soldiers would be taken and operated on in what are now the guests’ hotel rooms.
It is said that room 424 is where Dr. James Minot had his operating room.
Many guests who have stayed in this room have reported some pretty freaky abnormal activity.
It is widely known that the halls of this hotel are often walked by ghosts, especially those of soldiers who died here.
These are just five of the most haunted hotels in America, but there are many more!
Most hotels that have experienced deaths or that were hospitals are said to be haunted because of their pasts.
Some hotels are just old and have an eerie feeling when you walk around them at night.
So if you are looking for a spooky encounter, then why not look at the Historic Hotels of America list to find one near you.
