These ten historic hotels are associated with reported ghost stories, not verified hauntings. Their real histories and visitor experiences—from guided tours to seasonal events—help explain why the legends endure. The selection follows Historic Hotels of America’s 2026 feature; it is not a ranking of the most haunted hotels.
Arkansas and Louisiana
1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa — Eureka Springs, Arkansas
At the Crescent, guides and guests tell stories about Theodora, a former patient said to rearrange visitors’ belongings, and Norman Baker, who falsely claimed medical credentials and operated a cancer hospital in the building during the 1930s. The hotel offers several ghost-tour formats, including a midnight investigation with paranormal equipment. These are accounts shared as part of the hotel’s lore, not verified evidence of paranormal activity. Historic Hotels of America’s 2026 feature describes the stories and tours.
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Hotel Monteleone — New Orleans, Louisiana
The hotel’s lore includes Maurice, a child said to have died there in the 1890s and later appeared to his mother. Other reported encounters are associated with the 14th floor, while a housekeeper remembered in the stories as “Mrs. Clean” is another familiar figure. These accounts are part of the hotel’s folklore as recounted by Historic Hotels of America; the feature does not establish them as documented events.
Georgia and Ohio
Jekyll Island Club Resort — Jekyll Island, Georgia
Stories at this historic resort include a former president seen on the veranda, a woman in a blue dress, and a bellman in period clothing. Cigar smoke is also associated in the lore with J.P. Morgan’s stays. The resort offers history tours with a seasonal ghost-story angle, giving visitors a way to encounter both the place’s past and the tales told about it.
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The Lafayette Hotel — Marietta, Ohio
Reports linked to the Lafayette include footsteps, cold spots and figures in period clothing, especially on the third floor. Other stories around the building are described as playful. Paranormal investigators reportedly hold an annual overnight event on the third floor. Historic Hotels of America presents these as reported experiences, rather than findings that establish a haunting.
Missouri and Massachusetts
The Royal Sonesta Chase Park Plaza St. Louis — St. Louis, Missouri
The hotel’s “Bride” legend tells of a bride who died after falling from a 19th-floor terrace on her wedding night; later ghost reports are especially associated with the third floor. The feature recounts the story but does not establish its historical details as verified fact, so the bride’s death and the subsequent supernatural claims should not be treated as confirmed history.
Hawthorne Hotel — Salem, Massachusetts
Stories associated with the Hawthorne include a ghostly woman, furniture that reportedly moves, and unexplained noises. Accounts often point to rooms 325 and 612. A séance held in 1990 and a 2007 visit by the television program Ghost Hunters are also part of the hotel’s paranormal lore; neither event, on its own, proves a haunting.
California
Hotel del Coronado — Coronado, California
The best-known story centers on Kate Morgan, who died at the hotel in 1892. That historical death is distinct from later reports by visitors and employees of unexplained lights, sounds, movement and temperature changes in the room associated with her. The hotel recounts Morgan’s death and the later reports separately in its account of Kate Morgan’s story.
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Rank #3
The hotel also describes a 1992 assessment by Christopher Chacon involving 1,100 confidential interviews and almost 10,000 hours of continuous on-site assessment. The hotel says some phenomena could not be scientifically explained. That is the hotel’s account of an investigation, not proof that a ghost was present. Details are on its Paranormal Investigation page.
The Queen Mary — Long Beach, California
On the former ocean liner, ghost stories are tied to Watertight Door 13, Stateroom B340, a Lady in White and the first-class swimming pool. The ship offers guided paranormal tours and seasonal haunted experiences, according to Historic Hotels of America’s 2026 feature.
Rank #4
Texas
The Gunter Hotel San Antonio Riverwalk — San Antonio, Texas
Room 636 is the focus of reports describing cold spots, flickering lights, whispers, footsteps, moved objects and a shadowy figure. Other accounts are associated with hallways and the ballroom. These are stories attributed to guests and staff in Historic Hotels of America’s feature, not documented paranormal findings.
The Emily Morgan San Antonio — San Antonio, Texas
The Emily Morgan’s former medical uses shape the setting for stories of activity on several floors. Guests have reportedly described doors and lights behaving unexpectedly and apparitions of nurses. The hotel’s history gives the tales a particular atmosphere, but the reported experiences remain claims rather than verified events.
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What to know before planning a visit
Ghost stories can be part of a hotel’s identity and visitor programming without being established as fact. Historic Hotels of America’s feature identifies these properties and recounts the legends associated with them; it does not make this list an objective ranking or verify the reported encounters. Tour schedules, seasonal events and room availability can change, so check directly with the property before making plans.
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