By Kristi O’Toole

There was a time not so long ago when people were inherently normal and ran away from ghosts and all things spooky, but in more recent times it seems folks just throw all caution to the wind and seek out the undead, ghosts and goblins that creep the earth.
Not that I’m judging anyone. Truth be told I’d spend more money on a hotel room if I thought it came with a scenic ‘boo’, but then I’m the polar opposite of normal.

If you’re anything like me and have a soft spot for spirits, and I don’t mean the kind you drink, you may want to book your next vacation at one of these spooky locations. Actually, maybe you should bring some liquid spirits.
Stanley Hotel, Estes Park, CO

Let’s start with the obvious: The Stanley Hotel inspired Stephen King’s The Shining. And those creepy kids in the movie can allegedly be heard giggling and running amok on the fourth floor, especially around room 418.

Hotel founder and inventor of Stanley Steamer automobiles (not the steam cleaning dudes), F. O. Stanley, and his wife are often seen passing through the lobby, or playing piano in the music room, and a handful of former employees are said to haunt their former posts. The ghost of a housekeeper who died on the grounds allegedly roams around room 217, for example. The hotel plays the Stanley Kubrick film version of The Shining on loop on one of its cable channels, and fittingly, also offers ghost tours.

The 1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa, Eureka Springs, AR

Built in 1886 and part of the Historic Hotels of America Association, this extravagant property in the Ozarks claims to be the most haunted hotel in the country. Originally a luxury hotel and spa, it went bankrupt and re-opened as the Crescent College and Conservatory for Young Women in 1908, before becoming a fake cancer hospital. That’s when things got creepy.

Founder Dr. Norman Baker, a man with no medical training, used the hospital as a front to experiment on humans — alive and dead. He dispensed useless treatments to the living while raking in dough from their families. Eventually, he was sent to jail for fraud. Now, his experiments haunt the grounds, and the apparitions include Dr. Baker himself; a stonemason that fell off the roof and died; a nurse pushing a gurney; Theodora, a cancer patient; and a former student who committed suicide. Of course, there are ghost tours as well, which include a midnight visit to the morgue.

Langham Hotel, London, England

Said to be England’s first “grand hotel”, the five-star Langham Hotel has hosted distinguished guests like Oscar Wilde and Mark Twain. But it’s the spooky stuff that’s accumulated over 149 years that puts the hotel on the list, including a German prince who leapt to his death from a window before WWI, and a man who killed his wife and then himself on their honeymoon. Other spotted spirits include Napoleon III, who spent some of his exile in the Langham, a man with a bloody gash on his face, and various butlers and footmen. Room 333 is said to be the most haunted of all the rooms in London’s most haunted hotel.

Myrtles Plantation, St. Francisville, LA

This stately home is said to have been built on an ancient Native American burial ground, which pretty much never works out. And apparently 10 murders were committed within the hotel’s walls since the 1700s, the most well-known of which was William Drew Winter, who was shot on the porch and managed to crawl up 17 stairs before dying. He can occasionally still be seen doing today, according to legend.

Now, no fewer than 12 ghosts call the B&B home. There’s the lady with the curly hair; the Native American woman; the girl who shows up only before thunderstorms; the children playing on the porch; and Chloe, the slave girl who was hanged by fellow slaves after poisoning the house mistress and her two children. There are also strange noises, blood stains that won’t disappear, cold spots, footsteps, and randomly appearing handprints. Basically, all the vagaries of a daycare, except from ghosts and not toddlers.

Hotel Roosevelt, Los Angeles, CA

In life, Marilyn Monroe spent two years at this landmark hotel. In death, she wanders about the premises, dancing in the ballroom or staring at herself in the mirror of her favorite room, number 229. She’s not alone, though. Apparently the ghosts of Carole Lombard and Errol Flynn hang out, too, and Montgomery Clift is regularly heard playing his trumpet from room 928, where he stayed while filming From Here to Eternity. Which is ironic, considering he basically checked in for all of eternity

Russell Hotel, Sydney, Australia

Sure, a continent formerly populated by convicts would be rife with tales of murder, but this hotel in particular is said to be frequented by spirits of ill repute. As in, prostitute ghosts.
Located in The Rocks, Sydney’s oldest neighborhood and once a seedy slum full of crime, the hotel used to be a sailor’s hostel. Room 8 is said to be haunted by the spirit of a colonial-era sailor who either wanders the halls or stands still and stares at you while you sleep. Other sightings include more seamen and a few prostitutes. Make your own joke there. And like any business-minded establishment, the hotel’s also pimping out its ghosts with tours.
Lizzie Borden Bed & Breakfast, Fall River, MA

This one is such a no brainer I nearly didn’t want to write anything about it. Ever heard the old nursery rhyme “Lizzie Borden took an axe, gave her mother 40 whacks. When she saw what she had done, gave her father 41”? That’s what allegedly happened here in 1892, and now the crime scene is a B&B.

It’s said that Lizzie, a spinster, murdered her stepmother in cold blood with an axe, and her father for having the gall to remarry. Both victims have allegedly made appearances since. And rather than going with anonymous landscapes or flowers, the inn uses crime scene photos for décor. Classy.

Hotel Provincial, New Orleans, LA

The ghosts of Confederate soldiers allegedly haunt this hotel, which was a hospital during the Civil War. Many a wounded soldier have been seen shuffling down the halls, moaning for help, and guests have reported gruesome scenes of bloody soldiers lying in rooms, groaning in agony.
In building 500’s room A, a lovesick soldier who loves rock reportedly changes the radio to listen to WTIX-FM 94.3, an oldies rock station. He’s been spotted in his 1930s military garb, complete with medals, and was even recorded during a séance as saying “I need to leave. She doesn’t love me, she loves you.”

Skirrid Mountain Inn, Monmouthshire, Wales

This hotel is one of the oldest pubs in Wales, dating back to 1100, and the first floor is said to have been used as a Court of Law during the Welsh revolt and beyond, when almost 180 men were sentenced to death by “Hanging” Judge Jeffreys. For some reason the hangings were executed right from the beams of the inn itself, leaving some real bad karma. Judge Jeffreys is said to roam the inn looking for people to condemn, and guests claim to have felt ropes tightening around their necks while they slept, with some even boasting visible marks days later.
Hotel Burchianti, Florence, Italy

A smorgasbord of spirits refuse to check out here, from a ghostly child skipping down corridors, to a woman knitting in a chair, to a maid that just won’t quit. Guests have reported spectral sightings and random chills, as well as the feeling of being watched, grabbed, and of an icy breath sliding down their necks. Some have even claimed to see the apparition of a pink, transparent man, which may or may not be Benito Mussolini, as the fascist leader stayed at the hotel in the past.
Ballygally Castle Hotel, Ballygally, Northern Ireland

This former castle is haunted by Isobella Shaw, lady of the castle in 1625. Legend has it Lord Shaw locked her into a room and starved her after she gave birth to a daughter instead of a male heir, and Lady Shaw died trying to escape. It’s kinda like the inverse of Rapunzel, or something.

Today, more than 400 years later, she still roams the premises in search of the child she never got to meet. Her room has been recreated and turned into “The Ghost Room”, which is open to visitors. I literally lived like, 20 minutes from this place but never stopped, I know, I suck.

Toftaholm Herrgård, Lagan, Sweden

Unrequited love makes for epic tragedies and insistent ghosts. This lavish former country home of a baron is haunted by a peasant boy who fell in love with the baron’s daughter. Upon being discovered with said boy, she was forced into an arranged marriage with someone else. Her lover consequently hanged himself in room 324 the day of the wedding, and still mopes around in hopes of winning her over. Pretty sure dying isn’t a good way to actually win someone’s love, but what do I know?

Elvey Farm, Pluckley, England

Pluckley is the “most haunted village in England”, at least according to the Guinness World Records. Elvey Farm, a dairy farm built in 1406 and turned B&B in the 80s, sits at the center of all things supernatural in Pluckley; ergo, it must be the most haunted hotel in England.
Robert Du Bois, who stabbed himself to death, claims the guest lounge as his favorite haunt, while farmer Edward Brett, who shot himself in 1900, has staked his territory in the former dairy, his last words of “I will do it” echoing through the room. And he sure did it. There’s also an unknown man-ghost in military garb squatting in the barn (said to look like Stalin), the so-called Red Lady bemoaning her dead child in the graveyard, and the White Lady who haunts the church.

So when you’re looking for your next vacation spot, bear in mind you may be sharing your room with someone other than the escort you paid for. Just saying.

In my next column I’ll discuss stories of imaginary friends that weren’t so imaginary.

Until then, leave the night light burning.

When Kristi isn’t writing for NewzBreaker, she writes supernatural suspense novels having three currently published. If you would like to check out any of her books they can be found online and at other major retailers like Books a Million and Amazon. Never one to rest, she also paints/designs shoes and items for the home. Check out her eBay store, Watered Down Vodka and her FB page.

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