Haunted hotels around the world

VACATIONS are usually fun, and most people look forward to taking a break from everyday life. While some may enjoy frolicking on a beach or exploring a new city, there are those who love a more thrilling adventure. For those looking for a haunting experience, these famous hotels have spirits ready to give just that.

Stanley Hotel, Estes Park, Colorado, the US

The Stanley Hotel is known as much for its Georgian architecture as it is for being the inspiration for Stephen King’s classic The Shining, which was made into a film by Stanley Kubrick.

Inventor Freelan Oscar Stanley opened the hotel in 1909. According to its official website, construction of the main building started in 1907, using steel support beams and timber cut from what is now Rocky Mountain National Park.

Stanley, who died in 1940,  and his wife, Flora, are said to be walking around the hotel and can be heard playing the piano in the music room. One of the most sought-after rooms is Room 217, where a housekeeper is said to have been electrocuted during a lightning storm in 1911. Though she survived, many paranormal activities have since occurred in the room.

King and his wife spent a night in Room 217 in 1974 as the hotel’s only guests, according to reports, the night before it closed for the winter.

The hotel offers several ghost tours, such as The Night Ghost tour where visitors are taken to the most haunted spaces in the hotel and Stanley Paranormal Investigations, an adults-only tour that visits some of the most active locations on the property with the hotel’s expert paranormal investigation team.

Bourbon Orleans Hotel, New Orleans, Louisiana, the US

With architecture that embodies the rich history, culture and mystery of New Orleans, the hotel started its life as the Orleans Ballroom. Built by entrepreneur John Davis in 1817, the building was sold to the First Order of Negro Catholic Nuns and used as a convent, orphanage and school.

The sisters stayed for 83 years until the need for more space pushed them to sell the building in 1964. It was bought by a local developer and turned into the Bourbon Orleans Hotel.

Tales of ghostly sightings have made the hotel the most haunted one in New Orleans. The sightings include that of ghostly children believed to be victims of the Yellow Fever epidemic that struck New Orleans during the time the building was a convent.

One frequent tale is of a little child rolling her ball down the sixth-floor corridor, her little footsteps echoing down in the hallway. A nun reportedly committed suicide in Room 644. To this day, the Sisters of the Holy Family refuse to discuss the suicide.

1886 Crescent Hotel and Spa, Eureka Springs, Arkansas, the US

The hotel sits above the Victorian village of Eureka Springs. It was built by the Eureka Springs Improvement Co and the Frisco Railroad, and designed by Missouri architect Isaac L. Taylor.

According to the website, Legends of America, construction began in 1884 by stonemasons brought in from Ireland. Featuring an eclectic array of architectural styles, the masons built 45cm-thick walls, overhanging balconies, towers and a massive stone fireplace in the lobby. The construction cost was US$294,000 — very high for the time — due to the luxurious decorations and amenities. The hotel opened on May 20, 1886.

By 1908, the hotel had closed and reopened as the Crescent College and Conservatory for Young Women. The college closed in 1934 because of the Great Depression.

In 1937, Norman Baker bought the building and opened the Baker Cancer Hospital. Unknown to many at the time, Baker was a con man with no medical training. Some of his patients suffered excruciating deaths. Eventually, he was convicted and the “hospital” was shut down.

The building changed hands several more times before it was bought by Marty and Elise Roenigk in 1997. They spent US$5 million to restore it to its former glory and it is now one of the most visited hotels in the South. It is also known as one of the most haunted hotels in the US.

Among the ghostly visitors are Michael, an Irish stonemason who fell to his death while building the hotel; Theodora, a cancer patient in Baker’s hospital days who needs help to find her room key; a nurse, who is often seen pushing a gurney on the third floor; and even the infamous Norman Baker himself is known to frequent the old recreation room in the basement and near the first-floor stairway.

The ghost tours include a midnight visit to the morgue and The Psychomanteum, an ancient Greek deprivation chamber where one can connect with the spirits of the dead.

Russell Hotel, Sydney, Australia

The Russell Hotel’s history dates back to 1790, when a portable hospital was erected on the site.  This was demolished in 1887 and the three-storey building with brick and stone walls known as the Port Jackson Hotel was built.

In 1900, Sydney was struck by the bubonic plague and the hotel was used as a hospital during this time. Three people died from the disease.

The hotel is said to have served as a hostel for sailors who docked at Sydney Harbour. It is also rumoured to have been a brothel.

The building changed hands several times and was extended between 1910 and 1920. After decades as a rooming house, the building was restored in 1981, and became the hotel it is today.

Room 8 is said to be haunted by the spirit of a murdered sailor who has the habit of staring at the occupants while they are asleep. Other ghostly events include the unexplained sound of footsteps on creaky floorboards.

Lizzie Borden Bed and Breakfast, Fall River, Massachusetts, the US

Have you ever heard the old poem that goes “Lizzie Borden took an axe, gave her mother 40 whacks. When she saw what she had done, she gave her father 41”?

The poem is based on the murder of Andrew Jackson Borden and his wife, Abby Durfee Gray Borden, in Fall River, Massachusetts in 1892. It was widely believed that the murderer was Andrew’s daughter, Lizzie, who was said to be upset with her father for remarrying. She also believed that her stepmother was after her father’s money.

The bodies of Andrew and Abby were found in the Borden home. According to the coroner, Abby took 19 blows and Andrew 10. Lizzie was charged with their murders, but was acquitted. The crime was never solved.

Lizzie and her sister inherited their father’s wealth and Lizzie lived out her days comfortably in Fall River. She died from pneumonia at age 67.

The Borden house, where the murder took place, is now a bed and breakfast and a museum. Guided tours of the house are offered. Paranormal activities include a foul scent appearing in the middle of the night and beds shaking violently.

RMS Queen Mary, Long Beach, California, the US

Construction of the 300m Queen Mary started in 1930, at Clydebank, Scotland, but was held up from 1931 to 1934 due to the Great Depression. She finally made her maiden voyage on May 27, 1936.

According to its website, Queen Mary left Southampton at 4.33pm and arrived in Cherbourgh, France at 8.47pm. She then departed at 12.39am the following day, arriving in New York at 4.20pm on June 1, 1936. On Aug 30, 1939, the ship made its final pre-war peacetime voyage. On board were 2,552 passengers, including actor Bob Hope and his wife, and gold bullion worth millions.

When WWII broke out, Queen Mary journeyed to Sydney, Australia, to be fitted as a troopship. She made her first voyage as a troop transport on May 5, 1940, carrying 5,500 troops from Sydney to Gourock, Scotland. She was known as the Grey Ghost during this time.

Queen Mary transported more than 16,000 troops on a single journey at 30 knots (55kph), the largest and fastest troopship to sail during the war. She didn’t escape the war unscathed; her hull was damaged and she collided with British light cruiser Curacoa in 1942.

At the end of the war, she was restored to her original glory after 10 months of retrofitting. For the next two decades, the ship functioned as a world-class ocean liner. However, with the rise in air travel, her days were numbered.

On Oct 31, 1967, Queen Mary departed on her final cruise, arriving in Long Beach, California, on Dec 9. She has called Southern California her home ever since. The ship is now a floating hotel and an event and wedding venue.

The ship has reportedly seen 49 deaths on board, so it’s no surprise she has a reputation for being haunted. Among the spirits that roam her hallways and decks are a sailor who died in the engine room; a woman in a white evening gown who dances in the former first-class lounge; a little girl named Jackie who drowned in the pool; and an 18-year-old crew member who was crushed to death in the engine room.

The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, Los Angeles, California, the US

Opened in 1927, the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel has a history as colourful and glamorous as Hollywood itself. Named after US president Teddy Roosevelt and financed by a group of people including Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford and Sid Grauman, the hotel was built in the Spanish colonial revival style and cost US$2.5 million.

The hotel’s love affair with Hollywood began almost immediately. It hosted the inaugural Academy Awards in 1929 in the Blossom Room. The hotel has welcomed Hollywood legends — from its golden age to today’s superstars, including Clark Gable, Shirley Temple, Carol Lombard, Prince, Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie.

The late Marilyn Monroe and Montgomery Clift also stayed at the hotel and, apparently, still come back for visits. Monroe stayed in Room 229 for a couple of years early in her career, and it’s rumoured that her first magazine photos were taken at the hotel’s pool. Clift was a guest in Room 928 for three months while filming From Here to Eternity in 1952.

Monroe is said to haunt her old room and has reportedly been spotted looking at herself in the mirror. Sounds of the trumpet can be heard coming out of Clift’s room and his spirit is known to tap guests on the shoulder. A man in a tuxedo and one in a white suit reportedly haunt the Blossom Room. Also rumoured is a “cold spot” (75cm in diameter) in the Blossom Room where the temperature is 10° cooler than other spots.

Away from ghostly events, check out some properties in Puchong by tapping here.

This article first appeared in City & Country, a pullout of The Edge Malaysia Weekly, on Dec Jan 4, 2016. Subscribe here for your personal copy.