15 Most Haunted Hotels

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5 – Karosta Prison Hotel,

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  • Originally intended as an infirmary, Latvia’s Karosta Prison was used as a Nazi and Soviet military prison for most of the 20th Thousands of prisoners died on site.
  • Today, guards still walk Karosta’s halls and courageous people looking for an authentic jail experience pay to occupy its cells.
  • Visitors can take a quick guided tour, or opt for the full Karosta experience, which includes prisoner garb, interrogation, harassment and, finally, being locked in a cold cell for a night literally in prison.
  • Before embarking on the full prison experience, tourists are made aware that disobedience in the prison could result in insult or even physical punishment. They are also required to sign a waiver.
  • Karosta Prison also houses the spirits of the many who died within its walls. The staff relay stories about lightbulbs that unscrew from their sockets, doors that open by themselves and the ghost of a woman who hanged herself and now wanders the corridors.

4 – Hotel Chelsea,

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  • New York bohemian landmark Hotel Chelsea was built in 1885 and was the home of countless artists, authors, poets, and musicians. It’s famous for its many celebrity deaths, but is probably best known as the place where Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious stabbed his girlfriend Nancy Spungen to death.
  • Andy Warhol, Janice Joplin, Eugene O’Neill, Thomas Wolfe, Mark Twain and more allegedly haunt this red-brick Manhattan building.
  • Poet Dylan Thomas was staying at the Chelsea when he fell into a fatal coma and later died in hospital.
  • Guests have reported all manner of paranormal phenomena, from cold air to phantom footsteps, to lights that turn on and off at random.

3 – Ballygally Castle Hotel,

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  • Built in 1625, Northern Ireland’s Ballygally Castle sounds placid, but has a lurid and frightening history.
  • Former resider, Lady Isobella Shaw is said to have been imprisoned in the turret room by her husband, Lord James Shaw, immediately after she gave birth to their son. Starving to death, she attempted to escape out the window and fell to her death. It’s believed her ghost has wandered the castle for more than 400 years in search of the son who was taken from her.
  • The property has since exchanged ownership and eventually became a hotel.
  • Lady Isobel is still a very active presence in the castle, appearing frequently and knocking on guests’ doors at odd hours. James might also be present, as it is rumoured he was poisoned in the castle.
  • Another spirit, one Madame Nixon, has been seen in an elegant dress, and the mischievous laughter of children can sometimes be heard echoing through the hallways.

2 – The Crescent Hotel and Spa,

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  • Built in 1886, this extravagant property in Arkansas claims to be the most haunted hotel in the United States. Originally a luxury hotel and spa, it went bankrupt and re-opened as a conservatory for young women. It later became a fake cancer hospital.
  • Founder Dr Norman Baker, a man with no medical training, used the hospital as a front to experiment on humans – alive and He dispensed useless treatments to the living while raking in dough from their families. He was eventually jailed for fraud.
  • Now, his experiments haunt the grounds, and the spirits 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.
  • A ghost tour includes a midnight visit to the morgue.

1 – Stanley Hotel,

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  • Colorado’s Stanley Hotel was opened by F O Stanley, the inventor of America’s Stanley Steamer automobiles in 1907. Paranormal activity has been a part of the hotel’s history ever since, and it is widely considered the most haunted hotel in America.
  • The ghost of Elisabeth Wilson, a former housekeeper who died at the hotel in 1911, is said to linger in Room 217, assisting guests by unpacking and storing away their belongings.
  • The creepy sounds of children running and giggling are also regularly reported on the fourth floor, especially around the dreaded room 418. The ghosts of Mr Stanley and his wife are also said to pass through the lobby, with Mrs Stanley sometimes playing her piano in the music room.
  • Stephen King was so freaked out by this hotel that he wrote The Shining based on his experience there.

The Stanley Hotel owns its infamy by offering ghost tours and playing Kubrick’s film version of The Shining on an infinite loop. It also has a resident psychic, Madame Vera.

 

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