The scariest Halloween hotel stays across the country – including a Wyoming inn haunted by a ‘headless bride’

Halloween may be a few weeks away, but several hotels in the US are already full of ghosts and supernatural occurrences, according to those who have already dared to stay the night.

Employees and guests from around the world have claimed to have witnessed frightening things in these lodgings that seem too impossible to believe for years.

Some hotels come with terrifying backstories, while others seemingly had no problems… before an untimely death, of course. 

From alleged appearances of a headless bride to unexplained voices in a hotel that inspired ‘The Shining’, travelers looking for a unique but scary hotel stay can find one in states like Wyoming, California and Massachusetts. 

Here are all the hotels where things go bump in the night as you stay the night.

Old Faithful Inn

Over the years travelers who have visited the Old Faithful Inn at Yellowstone National Park have said they’ve encountered a headless bride, who some supernatural enthusiasts call ‘The Lady in White.’

According to the legend, a young woman married a man who would eventually become an awful husband.  

They spent their honeymoon in room 127 at the Wyoming Inn, but the couple argued frequently until one day, her husband left the hotel and never returned.

Hotel staff entered room 127 two days after the violent argument and found the bloody, decapitated Lady in White in the bathtub.

Her head was found days later in the Crow’s Nest – an area towering over the Old Faithful Inn lobby where an orchestra played music in the early 1900s.

Visitors have since claimed to have seen the headless bride in a flowery dress on several occasions, walking down the Crow’s Nest steps holding her head.

The Inn’s then-assistant manager George Bornemann also claimed to have seen the headless bride after hearing running in the hallway more than once while speaking with the Deseret News in 1991.

Queen Mary

The Queen Mary in Long Beach, California, is known for its wide variety of supernatural occurrences years after it was a luxury cruise line and World War II troopship.

Its final voyage was over 50 years ago, and since then, more than 100 spirits have reportedly haunted the hotel.

Some of these possible ghosts include employees, a lady in white and various children, according to the Queen Mary website.

In 1966, a woman staying on the ship reportedly claimed a man pulled off her covers while standing at the foot of her bed in stateroom B340 before disappearing.

Two employees also said they saw a guest sitting on a chair in the Mauretania room before fading into thin air in 1989.

Other alleged haunted areas include the now-abandoned first-class swimming pool, the Mayfair room that was once a beauty salon, a boiler room and a hatch door.

Travelers hoping to see the hotel’s possible hauntings without staying overnight can book a night tour of the Queen Mary online. 

Stanley Hotel

Various travelers and employees have insisted the Stanley Hotel in Colorado is the most haunted hotel in the US.

It’s also known mainly for it being the inspiration behind Stephen King’s 1977 novel ‘The Shining’.

King and his wife were the hotel’s only guests staying in room 217 in 1974 while he was writing the book, and the famed author allegedly had a nightmare of his son being chased through its halls with a firehose.

Since then, guests and workers have claimed to have seen shadowy figures and flickering lights, and some allegedly heard eerie laughter.

Some of the hotel rooms that have a high level of possible paranormal activity include rooms 401, 407, 418, 428, and 217.

Actor Jim Carrey stayed in 217 while Dumb and Dumberer was being filmed at the hotel, and ran out of the room half-naked and terrified in the middle of the night. 

Crescent Hotel and Spa

The Crescent Hotel and Spa in Arkansas was originally the Crescent College and Conservatory of Young Women.

However, it later became a cancer hospital run by Norman Baker – a doctor who claimed to have cured the disease, despite numerous patients dying in his care.

According to the hotel’s lore, those patients never left the hotel after their deaths, and visitors have since claimed to have seen a dark figure in its morgue while feeling chilly.

It’s alleged most haunted area is room 218, which is commonly called Michael’s Room.

Michael was an Irish stonemason who died in the 1880s, and since then, his spirit has knocked on a headboard, tied curtains into knots, and unlocked balcony doors.

‘When guests check in to the 1886 Crescent Hotel, the question most often asked when handed their key is “Is there a ghost in this room?” Well, during the month of October, Crescent front desk clerks can cheerfully answer “Yes!,”‘ Jack Moyer, vice president and general manager of the hotel, said back in 2016.

Rough Riders Hotel

The Rough Riders Hotel is not only the oldest hotel in North Dakota, but it’s also the home of a young boy’s ghost, according to legend.

Hotel guests have claimed to have seen the young boy in a room on the top floor of the hotel, or have heard him laughing.

The possible ghost boy also loves to flush toilets when he believes no one is around.

Despite the years of reported supernatural activities, the boy has not been identified, and it’s unclear how he met his untimely death. 

The Emily Morgan Hotel

The Emily Morgan Hotel in Texas is full of spooky claims of supernatural activity by staff members and guests alike.

The hotel was built in San Antonio, and more than 600 men were killed on that site during the Battle of the Alamo.

It was also a medical center that included a hospital, psychiatric ward, morgue and crematorium from 1924 to 1976.

One of the most famous alleged spirits is the vanishing nurse, who is said to wear 1920s to 1930s attire while standing in the hallways.

Other claims made over the years were made by guests and staff members who said there’s a hospital smell on the 14th floor, a stench of burning human skin in the basement, floating orbs and voices crying out in pain.

‘As a joke, I say out loud, “These ghosts are chill, maybe they want to come swimming with us.” Right as I said that the elevator stops,’ a Reddit user claimed in a 2020 post while in an elevator with her brother.

‘Me and him are both confused because no one pressed the button. I tell him “Someone is probably getting on.” The door opens to absolutely no one.’ 

The Marshall House

The Marshall House in Savannah, Georgia, was once a hospital for the Union during the Civil War and two yellow fever epidemics.

Once it was renovated in 1999, the hotel opened its doors to the public, who have since believed its history explains alleged unusual occurrences.

Travelers who’ve spent the night at the hotel claimed they’ve watched faucets turn on and off, toilets overflow and doorknobs wiggle.

It’s also full of what guests and employees say are ghost children who love to laugh and bounce marbles on the floor.

‘I have stayed in 414 on three trips and on two of the three I woke up in the middle of the night to a ghost nurse taking my temperature,’ a Reddit user claimed in a post two months ago.

Other Marshall House guests on Reddit claimed to have spotted a ‘ghost cat,’ and one person insisted every chair on the balcony had been moved to face their room. 

Hawthorne Hotel

Hawthorne Hotel in Salem, Massachusetts, has been considered a long-time haunted place, in part because it’s in the home of the Salem witch trials.

Over the years, hotel guests claimed they’ve heard mysterious noises, smelled unusual stenches and spotted ghosts.

One of the alleged spirits roaming the hotel is Bridget Bishop – the first woman executed during the Salem witch trials.

A traveler who stayed at the Hawthorne Hotel in 2012 recalled an alleged ‘odd’ experience after 11 pm while staying in Room 610 in a review on Tripadvisor.

‘There was a VERY loud sound in the room which made both of us sit straight up in bed. We thought someone had opened up the door, but no one was there,’ the guest wrote. 

‘The door was closed and no one was in the hallway. We looked around the room to see if something had fallen, but nothing had.’

Omni Parker House 

The Omni Parker House in Massachusetts is close to Boston Common, and its founder, Harvey Parker, reportedly roams the building.

One claim came from a mother and daughter staying in Room 1021, who believed Parker stood over the foot of a bed and asked, ‘Are you enjoying your stay.’  

Some of the earliest paranormal sightings were reported in the 1940s by guests who claimed there were orbs of light on the 9th and 10th floors.

However, Room 303 is considered to be one of the most terrifying rooms, and guests claimed to have smelled whisky, spotted dark shadows and heard laughing.

Walker Tribeca

As a luxe hotel destination, Walker Hotel Tribeca is not generally known to be terrifying, however those who are looking for a scare in New York City will still find it to be the top choice for a delightfully frightful stay, as the hotel partners with Blood Manor – widely regarded as the scariest haunted house in NYC.

Guests who opt for the Walker Hotel Tribeca’s Halloween package will receive costumes, candy from the famed Dylan’s Candy Bar, and VIP tickets to Blood Manor, which co-founder Jim Lorenzo insists is actually haunted, in a statement to Luxus Magazine.

‘We keep hearing stories of late-night screams of terror, flashes like an old-fashioned camera, shadows on windows,’ Lorenzo said.

‘The most disturbing report comes from a former employee who says she had a strange interaction with an actor in a Civil War uniform.’

Lorenzo added the employee ‘left and never returned’ after finding out none of the actors wore Civil War uniforms.