Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel (Los Angeles, California)
From Urban Daddy: “Half the hotels in Los Angeles claim to be haunted by the ghost of Marilyn Monroe, but this is the only one with a view of the Tropicana Bar and Pool. Bonus: the spirit of Monty Clift is known to hold court around Room 928. And nothing is scarier than undead method actors…”
Hotel Monteleone (New Orleans, Louisiana)
From Urban Daddy: “According to legend, the spirit of a lost child haunts the 14th floor (actually the 13th). Locked doors open on their own. Elevators stop at nonexistent floors. Mints mysteriously show up on pillows. Okay, that’s probably housekeeping.” I’m impressed that the hotel is so proud of their hauntings that they even have a page dedicated to them on their website. Bravo! (Thanks to Anne for the suggestion.)
Driskill Hotel (Austin, Texas)
An allegedly quite haunted hotel in Austin. From Urban Daddy: “Thanks to the ‘suicide brides’ urban legend—two women allegedly committed suicide in the same bathroom 20 years apart to the day—room 525 had been closed and bricked up for years. But now, it’s open for Halloween season—you know, if you’re feeling romantic.” Thanks to Anne for the suggestion.
Here’s some more information on the alleged hauntings of the hotel: Austin Ghost Tours.
Old Prison of Trois-Rivières (Trois-Rivières, Québec, Canada)
Jean Pascal Leblanc writes to tell me of this delightful little prison: “In the city of Trois-Rivières, Québec. the museum there makes it possible to stay a night in the old local jail. It was the longest opened jail in North America – closed in 1986, it opened before Canadian confederation in like 1822. It still has piss odors in the basement, where the ‘recalcitrant’ were. A tour is guided by an old criminal of the Canadian justice system.” I shall have to book a stay someday!
Ottawa Jail Hostel (Ottawa, Ontario, Canada)
Okay, who can possibly resist spending the night in an old jailhouse? Not I! Here’s the description from the website: “Centrally located in Canada’s capital, HI – Ottawa Jail is sure to deliver a unique overnight experience. Formerly a prison and the site of Canada’s last public hanging, this historical landmark retains much of its original character. Sleep in a former jail cell, and visit death row and the gallows during a Jail Tour. Check out The Hostel Shop, the one-stop shop for all of your travelling needs.” Thanks to Heather for sending the link!
The Stanley Hotel (Estes Park, Colorado)
This is famous as the hotel that inspired Stephen King’s The Shining, when he was staying in suite 217, and it’s also supposedly haunted. Oh, and don’t miss the ghost tour which takes around the most haunted and/or fascinating parts of the hotel, including the underground tunnel. Fun!
Crescent Hotel (Eureka Springs, Arkansas)
Katie recommends this hotel: “It’s supposed to be one of the most haunted buildings in the States. They have regular ghost-hunting tours and suchlike. There’s also a lovely morgue in the basement from its days as a hospital that killed its patients — rip away the plaster in the walls and you can see bones. (More information here.) Unfortunately, I was only in the hotel for a few minutes, so I didn’t get the chance to see much. It’s also, sadly, very difficult to get into the basement to see the morgue and asylum (some of the hospital’s patients also went insane; the quack doctor’s cures affected their brains, so he basically tied them down until they flailed themselves to death). Hospital with a crazy doctor, haunted hotel, insane asylum, and morgue, all in one building? Morbidophile’s dream!”