The Real ‘Spirit’ of Your Holiday - Haunted Hotels!

Vedika Anand

Last updated: Apr 3, 2017

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Everything about the old log hotel was really spooky. The creaky wooden stairs and the faded ancestral paintings of previous owners in their formal best and severe expressions just waiting to jump out at me! The entrance lobby was decorated with the heads of stags, leopards and boars mounted on the dreary walls.

We reached Nainital after sunset and I was quite exhausted after the drive from Delhi. All I wanted to do was get in to bed and pass out, which is exactly what I did. The next morning, I wondered if the place was haunted and if that’s what got me all spooked the night before. After all, there are hotels around the world where paranormal activities have been documented so could this also be one of those haunted hotels that could be added to the list?

Fairmont Banff Springs Resort, Banff, Canada

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“I will return...” said Sam McCauley and apparently he has! Sam was the friendly bellman at the luxury Fairmont Banff Springs Resort who died in 1975, soon after he was forced to retire. Dressed in an old-fashioned uniform, his ghost apparently still helps guests with their luggage on the 9^th floor. Don’t worry, he’s still very friendly and polite! Apparently, when guests try to tip him, he disappears.

You could also bump in to the beautiful bride who met her death by falling down the stairs. She’s been spotted in the ballroom, waltzing and of course, walking down the steps, leaving an icy chill in the air.

Room 873 of the Fairmont Banff Springs Resort tells the most chilling tale. This is where a man killed his wife and daughter and then committed suicide. Many maids have entered the room to clean the finger prints off the mirror but could never get them off as they mysteriously reappear. Though the room has been walled off, many guests have reported hearing the screams of a woman and child from behind the wall.

There’s more…there’s a wandering bagpiper who may come asking for something he’s lost – his head!

This hotel, part of a global chain, is located in the Banff National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with superb views of the Rocky Mountains and a marvellous golf course.

The Stanley Hotel, Estes Park, Colorado, USA

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The Stanley Hotel offers stunning and panoramic views of the Rocky Mountains. Many famous Hollywood personalities like US President Theodore Roosevelt, the King of Japan and Margaret Brown (a Titanic survivor) have stayed here. But they are not the reasons for this hotel becoming famous. The mystery lies in Room 217 where doors open and shut themselves as so do the lights that turn on and off. This room, apart from the other unexplained activities in this hotel, inspired the American author Stephen King to write his bestselling horror book The Shining, which was made in to a movie in 1980 starring Jack Nicholson.

Freelan Oscar Stanley built this 138-room hotel in 1909. But even after his death, he feels the need to oversee things and still does the rounds of the administration office. His wife, Flora, obviously likes the beds made early, so you might wake up feeling cold and find your blanket folded neatly at your feet! They both like to dress formally and walk down the main staircase to the lobby and other public areas. Flora enjoys playing the piano as well.

Room 418 is another special room. In the hallway outside the room, noisy children keep guests awake at night and also seem to take a nap in their room while guests are out exploring the city. Moreover, on several occasions on the second floor, a little ghost child has been spotted calling out to his nanny.

For your spooky pleasure, the hotel staff are more than happy to take you around on the hotel’s Ghost Tour!

Le Pavillon Hotel, New Orleans, USA

Starting as the National Theatre in 1867, Le Pavillon Hotel was converted in to a hotel in 1970. Owing to its theatrical background, many ghosts also perform here! On the 3^rd floor resides the mischievous youth who loves to play practical jokes on the cleaning staff. Other ghosts that have been identified are a depressed girl in Room 930 who likes to just sit on the bed and a young aristocratic couple, seemingly from the 1920s, who stroll around the grounds. The hotel claims that all these ghosts are benevolent and harmless.

Le Pavillon Hotel is considered to be the most historic hotel in New Orleans’ French Quarter. Keeping with the city’s reputation of having many haunted locations, there are organised ghost, voodoo, vampire and other tours around New Orleans that you can take!

Jamaica Inn, Cornwall, UK

haunted-hotels-jamaica-inn — Photo Credit : Robert Linsdell/Flickr Creative Commons

Summoned outside, the man left his half-finished drink and went to see what the matter was. His assailants disappeared and he never made it back alive to finish his drink. This was in the early 1900s. Till date, occupants of Jamaica Inn hear footsteps leading up to the bar and wonder if it’s that man coming to finish his drink. Apparently, a man has also been spotted sitting on the wall outside the inn by many people. Is he the same person?

But he’s not the only spirit in Jamaica Inn. Previous owners have heard conversations in a language similar to old world Cornish but have never seen anyone. During their investigations, organizations like the Ghost Society and Most Haunted have heard the sound of horse drawn carriages on cobble stones in the courtyard and seen a man in a tricorne hat (like the character Jack Sparrow’s in the movie Pirates of the Caribbean) and cloak who suddenly appears and walks through solid walls! They definitely found some paranormal activity especially in Bedroom 4, at the hotel’s reception that used to once be the generator room, at the Smugglers’ Bar and the museum.

Made famous by Daphne du Maurier's novel of the same name, Jamaica Inn, once owned by the famous thriller writer Alistair McLean, stands on the edge of the picturesque Bodmin Moor.

Hotel Burchianti, Florence, Italy

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You’d never believe that this charming, well-respected hotel in the heart of Florence would be riddled with ghosts, making it one of the most haunted places in Europe! With a guarantee of some sort of paranormal activity during your stay, you really need nerves of steel to check-in here. The Fresco Room, with its beautiful painted ceiling seems to charm all including the ghosts. There’s always this feeling of being watched and if you’re lucky (or unlucky!), you may see the apparition of a man in a pink glow and feel an icy chill around you.

While lying down, some guests have had the sensation of someone is pressing hard against them, making it difficult for them to breathe and move. Others have seen an elderly woman sitting in one of the chairs, knitting. There’s also the ghost of a little girl that goes giggling down the halls and another of a helpful maid who goes from room to room.

Apparently, the earlier owner never liked to stay the night in the hotel and used to leave the premises in the evening, leaving the nervous watchman to patrol the premises.

Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, Los Angeles, USA

haunted-hotels-hollywood-roosevelt — Photo Credit : Supermac1961/Flickr Creative Commons

The famous Roosevelt Hotel in Los Angeles is well-known for star sightings – alive and dead! While a maid was cleaning a mirror, she saw the reflection of a blonde woman. She turned around to speak with her and there was no one there! Marilyn Monroe loved this hotel very much and this particular mirror used to be in her suite. This blonde lady has been sighted many times in the same mirror.

Room 928 is haunted by the ghost of Montgomery Clift who still roams around playing the trumpet and rehearsing his script. The Blossom Ballroom is another haunted place. It was the site for the first Academy Awards. There’s a spot in the room where the temperature is colder than the rest of the room and the place is haunted by a man in black.

So here's your chance to either be a ghost hunter or be most haunted. Pack your nerves of steel and head out to stay at one of these haunted hotels. Who knows, you may end up making some new friends. Happy haunting!

(Ordered by Shraddha Vyas)

Comments

Shraddha Vyas | on 02 June 2014

Wow!! I ordered and it served so hot! :D :D Loved these list and I wanted Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel to be in the list and you did add. :) Wonderful post. Thank you so much! :)