Anyone can visit a haunted house, but did you know you can actually stay overnight at one? Only the bravest dare to book a stay at a haunted hotel, where you can experience your very own ghostly activity in real time. Maybe it’s the influence of so many movies and TV shows, but things going “bump” in the night seem to be even, er, bumpier in an unfamiliar hall packed with sleeping strangers. From a spot in Salem, Massachusetts, to a historic castle in Denmark, these famous properties have wracked up all sorts of tragedies and legends over the decades—many of them are centuries old.
To ring in Halloween season, there’s no better activity than a stay in the notoriously ghost-populated city of New Orleans, Louisiana, or a centuries-old manor in Europe. Plus, many of the towns and cities these hotels are home to are rife with paranormal activity—and are well worth exploring on a spooky fall getaway. Spend the day enjoying a haunted walking tour, and the night snuggled up in bed, experiencing your very own supernatural experiences. Whether they’re castles in Ireland or resorts ranked highly in our Readers’ Choice Awards, these hotels all have a little extra spirit. Here are 64 of the scariest stays in the world, from a permanently docked historic ocean liner haunted by the now-dead crew to a luxurious Arizona resort occupied by a ghost cowboy. Read on if you dare.
FAQ:
What are the most haunted hotels in America?
There’s no specific hotel in the US that is “the most haunted,” but there are a good number of hotels that have frequent ghost sightings, especially in historic cities like Salem, Massachusetts, and New Orleans, Louisiana. A few of the most famous ones include The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park, Colorado, which inspired Stephen King’s Overlook Hotel in The Shining, and The Hawthorne Hotel, in Salem, Massachusetts, which was used as a filming location for both a Ghost Hunters investigation and an episode of Bewitched.
Do haunted hotels offer ghost tours?
Yes, some do offer ghost tours or paranormal investigations. The Shanley Hotel in the Catskills offers an all-night-long paranormal investigation that lets you hopefully speak with the ghosts that call it home, while the the Sagamore, also in New York, offers in-house ghost tours for interested guests. While not all offer ghost tours of their own, plenty of other hotels on this list are featured on haunted walking tours in their city, so guests can get the chance to learn about the history from an expert.
Which countries have the most haunted hotels?
It’s hard to say which exact countries have the most haunted hotels since hauntings are often based on word of mouth, but the US, England, France, Ireland, and Scotland are particularly known for their many ghostly places to stay. Plenty of their famous spots have been seen in movies, TV shows, and featured in magazines. A few of the most famous include The Stanley Hotel in the US (as mentioned above), The Mermaid Inn in England, Chateau de Marcay in France, Ballygally Castle in Ireland, and Dalhousie Castle in Scotland.
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