Top 10 haunted luxury hotels that will spook you

December 02, 2019

Happy Halloween! If trick-or-treating, attending costume parties, or carving pumpkins into jack-o’-lanterns are too tame for your Halloween, consider booking a stay at one of the most haunted hotels in the world. The following 10 luxurious establishments are teeming with spirits and ghosts that will test your nerves during your stay.

10. HOTEL DEL CORONADO, SAN DIEGO, USA

Hotel del Coronado is an iconic destination at the Pacific’s edge just minutes from downtown San Diego. The property’s Coronado Island setting captures the relaxed beauty and seaside charms of the quintessential Southern California coastal lifestyle. However, if you consider a stay here, you want to steer clear of the areas of the hotel said to be haunted by one Ms. Kate Morgan, a woman who died under mysterious circumstances in the hotel in 1892. Guest who stayed in her room (#3327) have reported unusual observations, such as the TV turning on by itself and flickering lights.

HOTEL DEL CORONADO, SAN DIEGO, USA
9. MOANA SURFRIDER, A WESTIN RESORT & SPA, HAWAII, USA

Widely known as the “First Lady of Waikiki,” this historic hotel first opened its doors in 1901 and offers a seamless blend of Victorian elegance and contemporary comfort, just steps from the immaculate shores of legendary Waikiki Beach and within walking distance of Honolulu’s most beloved shopping, dining and entertainment attractions. However, there are reports of haunting at this luxurious property. Jane Stanford, co-founder of Stanford University, died at the resort in February 1905 while vacationing following a poisoning attempt on her life. Guests and hotel staff have said they’ve seen her walking at night in the hotel.

MOANA SURFRIDER, A WESTIN RESORT & SPA, HAWAII, USA
8. QUEEN MARY, LONG BEACH, USA

Once a world-class ocean liner that sailed primarily on the North Atlantic Ocean, the Queen Mary left Southampton for the last time on 31 October 1967 and sailed to the port of Long Beach, California, where she remains permanently moored. The ship now offers guests unique accommodations and a wide array of attractions that simply cannot be found anywhere else. With such a varied and intriguing past it’s not surprising that the Queen Mary has been voted one of the most haunted places in America by Time magazine. Among the ghosts reportedly still hanging around are a sailor who died in the ship’s engine room, a ‘lady in white’, and children who drowned in the ship’s pool.

QUEEN MARY, LOS ANGELES, USA
7. TAJ MAHAL PALACE, MUMBAI, INDIA

The 550-room Taj Mahal Palace opened in Mumbai, then Bombay, in 1903, giving birth to the country’s first harbor landmark, combining Moorish, Oriental and Florentine styles. This legendary luxury hotel has played host to kings, dignitaries and eminent personalities from across the globe. The hotel bore the brunt of the 2008 Mumbai terror attack, yet reemerged gallantly renovated. As rumor has it, some believe that the hotel’s architect W. A. Chambers killed himself in the building as the design for the place did not go according to the plan. Hotel staff and guests claim that his ghost roams the old wing of the hotel, obviously still lamenting his design gone bad.

TAJ MAHAL PALACE, MUMBAI, INDIA
6. THE WESTIN EXCELSIOR, FLORENCE, ITALY

The Westin Excelsior is an undisputed masterpiece in its own right: a classic palace with cutting edge contemporary interiors flawlessly paired with unique renaissance features. All 171 guest rooms & suite are beautifully decorated in period style, offering a taste of Florentine tradition. However, night sweats, hand tremors, grand illusions and temporary disorientation are supposedly just a few of the symptoms that you might experience when staying in room 152. Dark shadows overcome the room, lights flicker, the faucets turn on and off and the feeling that someone is laying on the bed with you are constantly reported by guests staying in this tiny room.

THE WESTIN EXCELSIOR, FLORENCE, ITALY
5. THE AHWAHNEE HOTEL, CALIFORNIA, USA

Located within Yosemite National Park, the Ahwahnee Hotel was built in the 1920s with the specific goal of attracting well-to-do clientele. The property is an architectural gem, combining grandness and intimacy. With breathtaking views of Yosemite Falls, Half Dome and Glacier Point, the hotel brings the outdoors in, inviting guests to feel at home, surrounded by unsurpassed natural beauty. Legend says that the ghost of Mary Curry Tressider, a woman instrumental in the hotel’s development who passed in 1970, haunts her old apartment on the sixth floor. People believe to see her ghost roaming throughout the floor to this day.

THE AHWAHNEE HOTEL, CALIFORNIA, USA
4. THE STANLEY HOTEL, COLORADO, USA

The 420-room Stanley Hotel, known for its architecture, magnificent setting, and famous visitors, may possibly be best known today for its inspirational role in the Stephen King’s novel, “The Shining”. Room 217  features prominently in the novel, having been the room at the Stanley where King spent one night during a short vacation. Sixty-two years before he arrived, a housekeeper in the hotel was struck by lightning in the same room. This Colorado hotel has been featured as one of America’s most haunted hotels and with the numerous stories from visitors and staff, The Stanley Hotel continues to “shine” today, as it did in 1909 when it first opened.

THE STANLEY HOTEL, COLORADO, USA
3. THE RITZ-CARLTON NEW ORLEANS, USA

Set within the historic 1908 Beaux Arts Maison Blanche building, The Ritz-Carlton, New Orleans retains the grace and charm of an antebellum mansion. Accommodations capture the essence of the city, bridging the gap between the desires for exploration and relaxation with thoughtful amenities that indulge your penchant for the finer things. Several ghosts supposedly haunt the hotel, including an older gentlemen sometimes seen quietly reading in the library and two young girls who routinely run up and down the hallways.

THE RITZ-CARLTON NEW ORLEANS, USA
2. THE LANGHAM LONDON, UK

Renowned for its impeccable service, The Langham London was Europe’s first “Grand Hotel” and continues to reign from the British capital’s West End. However, in the hotel’s sumptuous rooms lies a darker secret since the property has the reputation of being the most haunted hotel in all of London. The most active of the ghosts at the hotel is said to be that of a German prince who was thought to have met his death when he threw himself out of the window of an upper-storey room. Guests have seen his ghostly form moving through walls and closed doors and he is often accompanied by a sudden drop in temperature.

1. FAIRMONT BANFF HOT SPRINGS HOTEL, CANADA

The world-famous, 768-room Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel stands as a landmark in the picturesque alpine town of Banff, Alberta. Canada’s “Castle in the Rockies” has been providing legendary hospitality to its guests for more than 125 years. However, if ghosts make you nervous, it is best to avoid the Fairmont Banff Springs hotel since the hotel is known for being haunted. The Ghost Bride is probably the most famous of all the specters residing in the hotel. The story goes that in the late 1920s a young bride fell to her death while descending one of the hotel’s marble staircases on her wedding day. Since then, hotel staff and guests alike have reported seeing a veiled figure moving up and down the stairs, or seeing a figure in a wedding dress dancing in the ballroom upstairs.