If you’re afraid of things that go bump in the night, think again before planning your stay at these haunted hotels. From star-crossed lovers to scorned brides, here are 13 hotels across America whose guests checked in and never checked out.
Courtesy of PerryPlanet/Wikimedia Commons
The Carolina Inn
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
The spirit of Dr. William Jacocks, a retired physician who stayed at the inn from 1948 until his death in 1965, is reported to be haunting the halls of The Carolina Inn (est. 1924) in Chapel Hill. A team of professional ghost hunters detected the sound of footsteps, an orb-like object and the sound of a piano playing in an empty, piano-free room. They even captured the words “hey” and “might have won” on their equipment. Jacocks is known for playing jokes and tricks on the guests – especially those who stay in his room on the second floor!
Courtesy of the Gettysburg Historic Hotel
The Gettysburg Hotel
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania
Established in 1797, the Gettysburg Hotel is home to many civil war souls. Guests report visits from a friendly civil war nurse named Rachel who is known for expressing her frustration with caring for the wounded and dying soldiers during the war. Two guests also claim to have spotted Rachel in their hotel room, opening the dresser drawers and removing their clothing.
Courtesy of the Hassayampa Inn
Hassayampa Inn
Prescott, Arizona
Celebrating their honeymoon at the Hassayampa Inn (est. 1927), a newlywed couple checked into the Prescott hotel shortly after its grand opening on November 20, 1927. However, things went awry when the groom left to “buy a pack of cigarettes” and never returned. The new bride waited for three days until loneliness and the thought of abandonment became too much. The bride hung herself from the hotel’s bell tower and guests today still report seeing her dressed in an off-white wedding gown roaming the halls of the Hassayampa Inn.
Courtesy of Ulmanor/Wikimedia Commons
The Heathman Hotel
Portland, Oregon
The Heathman Hotel (est. 1927) has one ghost who prefers to haunt a specific section of the hotel. Ghost sightings have been reported solely in the column of rooms between 303 and 1003. In 1999, a celebrity psychic confirmed seeing a ghost in room 803 and theorizes someone jumped to his death from the balcony and is now haunting all of the rooms he passed on his way down.
Courtesy of Jason Pero/Wikimedia Commons
Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza
Cincinnati, Ohio
During the hotel’s 1983 renovation, construction workers claim to have seen a “Lady in Green” walking the Hall of Mirrors and Mezzanine level of the Hilton Cincinnati Netherland Plaza (est. 1931). Legend says the body of the woman’s husband was never recovered after he was killed during the construction of the hotel in 1930. Now in search of her lost husband, the “Lady in Green” spends restless nights wandering the halls of the hotel.
Courtesy of Ctorbann/Wikimedia Commons
Hotel del Coronado
Coronado, California
Kate Morgan, the resident ghost at the Hotel del Coronado (est. 1886) has a mysterious past that makes even the most experienced ghost hunters scratch their heads. In November 1892, Kate Morgan checked into the Hotel del Coronado alone, under the alias “Lottie A Bernard.” Five days later on Nov. 29, her body was found on the hotel’s staircase leading to the beach with a gunshot wound to the head. The San Diego County coroner determined that the gunshot was self-inflicted, but many remained skeptical as to why this mid-20s beauty took her own life. More than 120 years after her death, Kate still roams the grounds of this beachside resort.
Courtesy of public domain/Wikimedia Commons
1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa
Eureka Springs, Arkansas
Embracing its reputation as one of the most haunted hotels in the country, the 1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa (est. 1886) has its own ghost website, americasmosthauntedhotel.com where visitors can log their paranormal sightings and post pictures of their supernatural encounters. See if you feel the presence of one of the hotel’s six resident ghosts, Michael, Theodora, The Lady in White, The Girl in the Midst, The Little Girl, and The Little Boy during your spooky stay.
Courtesy of Cygnusloop99/Wikimedia Commons
Hotel San Carlos
Phoenix, Arizona
Featured on television’s “Most Haunted,” the Hotel San Carlos (est. 1886) is considered a major attraction in Phoenix. While countless movie stars have stayed at the hotel, the most famous guest is one who never checked out. At the young age of 22, Leone Jensen checked into the Hotel San Carlos in hopes of marrying her fiancé, a bellman at a neighboring hotel. However, upon discovering he had fallen out of love with her and wanted to cancel the marriage, she became so distraught with rejection that she put on her wedding dress and flung herself from the hotel roof. Guests have reported seeing Leone at the foot of their beds and on the roof…still wearing her wedding dress.
Courtesy of Infrogmation of New Orleans/Wikimedia Commons
Le Pavillon
New Orleans, Louisiana
Located in the heart of New Orleans, Le Pavillon (est. 1907) hosts at least four paranormal guests including a 19th century teenage girl, a 1920s aristocratic couple, and a cunning young gentleman. Multiple ghost sightings by staff and guests led hotel management to conduct a paranormal investigation. Severl experts found numerous ghosts in the hotel, one claiming almost 100 paranormal guests.
Courtesy of city-data.com
Lighthouse Inn
New London, Connecticut
Once featured on Syfy’s “Ghost Hunters,” legend says the spirit of a beautiful bride wanders the halls of the Lighthouse Inn (est. 1902), still wearing her wedding dress. The young bride tragically fell down the hotel’s grand staircase and broke her neck in 1930. If you’re interested in owning your own haunted hotel, the Lighthouse Inn is currently looking for a new owner who won’t be scared off by a friendly ghost or two.
Courtesy of Ted Ernst/Wikimedia Commons
The Menger Hotel
San Antonio, Texas
Holding the unofficial title of the “most haunted hotel in Texas,” this historic San Antonio hotel (est. 1858) claims to host the spirits of 32 ghostly guests, among them entrepreneur and founder of King Ranch, Richard King. Guests have also reported seeing a woman dressed in a 1800s maid uniform roaming the halls of the 3rd floor. The apparition is believed to be Sallie White, a hotel chambermaid who was attacked by her husband on March 28, 1876 and died two days later.
Courtesy of The Omni Grove Park Inn
The Omni Grove Park Inn
Asheville, North Carolina
Room 545 of the Omni Grove Park Inn (est. 1913) is home to a ghost known only as the “Pink Lady.” Little is known about this woman dressed in pink who spooks employees and startles guests, but some speculate she fell to her death in the Palm Court atrium around 1920.
Courtesy of the Napa River Inn
Napa River Inn
Napa, California
Once an old warehouse and feed store, the Napa River Inn (est. 1884) is still visited by the son of the building’s original owner, Captain Albert Hatt. After the death of his wife, Margaret, the stress of caring for five children, his own poor health and the loss of this beloved wife became too much, and on April 1, 1912, Albert Jr. hung himself from a beam in the warehouse. Guests have reported seeing a distressed, ghost-like woman in white searching the halls of the hotel and believe it could be Margaret trying to stop her husband from killing himself.
