7 Haunted Hotels Hosting Ghost Tours for Halloween
by Briana Bonfiglio
For a stay with some spooky history this Halloween, look no further than these famously haunted hotels. They all host tours, most of them year-round and not only in October, but the fall season offers the perfect backdrop for visiting these storied establishments.
- 1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa
- The Blennerhassett Hotel & Spa
- The Historic Lizzie Borden House
- The Mizpah Hotel
- The Stanley Hotel
- The Queen Mary
- Victoria’s Black Swan Inn
1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa (Eureka Springs, Arizona)
1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa leans heavily into its haunted past, hosting five different tours that explore the spirits within its walls. In the 1930s, the building housed an experimental cancer hospital where a man named Norman Baker posed as a doctor and scammed unsuspecting families of money. Now, guests and staff of the hotel have claimed to see the apparitions of “Dr. Baker,” his patients, and nurses.
Ghost tours include the basic Crescent Hotel Ghost Tour, a Kids Ghost Tour for ages 5 to 12, an expanded tour with paranormal experts, a midnight investigation tour, and the Basin Park Hotel Paranormal Investigation, where guests are given paranormal detection tools for a real ghost hunting experience.
The hotel itself is a 72-room Victorian-style property and mountaintop spa resort with a range of accommodations from standard rooms to large suites, cottages, and a penthouse. Guests can even stay in “Michael’s Room,” which is said to be the most paranormally active.
The Blennerhassett Hotel & Spa (Parkersburg, West Virginia)
There have been many reports of ghost sightings and other mysterious happenings throughout the Blennerhassett Hotel & Spa. To explore these spooky incidents with guests, the hotel started offering monthly ghost tours with a professional paranormal investigator.
The two-part tours take place the third Friday of each month. They start in the Blennerhassett Library, then continue on the hotel’s second floor. Each tour is different from the last, with unique, real-time readings of EMF frequencies, voice recordings, and more. To book the experience, call the hotel and ask for the Haunted Blennerhassett Tours Package, which sells out fast and is for ages 16 and up.
The Blennerhassett Hotel & Spa also offers non-haunted, historic tours of the property. The hotel has a range of stately, European-style rooms and suites, a spacious atrium, restaurant and lounge, and fitness center.
The Historic Lizzie Borden House (Fall River, Massachusetts)
Lizzie Borden House is home to the unsolved 1892 murders of Andrew and Abby Borden. Some say their young daughter, Lizzie, committed the murders, but she was acquitted, and the rest is a mystery. The house was preserved and is now a haunted attraction for those who dare spend the night or take a ghost tour.
U.S. Ghost Adventures operates daily, 90-minute tours of Lizzie Borden House’s bedrooms. There are also nightly, two-hour ghost hunts on the first floor and basement, and outdoor ghost tours available. Lizzie Borden House is a great pit stop on the way to Salem, just under a two-hour drive from the famed witchy destination.
The building has two suites and four different rooms available for bookings. There are also event packages available to reserve the entire house. Overnight guests must vacate the house from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. to accommodate for the tours.
The Mizpah Hotel (Tonopah, Nevada)
Legends of the Lady in Red and a group of miner thieves still haunt The Mizpah Hotel to this day. Guests can learn more about these ghostly stories when they embark on one of the hotel’s paranormal tours.
There are a few options: If a guest is staying overnight at the hotel, they can book The Ghosted Package. This includes a guided tour complete with EMF readers, dowsing rods, and other paranormal tools. Visitors can also book 2-hour private ghost tours.
The Mizpah Hotel was built in 1907. It closed in 1999 but was restored and reopened in 2011. The Lady in Red Suite is available for those who want a full haunted experience. The hotel also offers the Wagon Suite and the Junior Suite, as well as three American-style dining options.
The Stanley Hotel (Estes Park, Colorado)
The Stanley Hotel is best known for inspiring Stephen King’s famous horror novel The Shining. Since its publication in 1977, paranormal activity has been reported on the property. The hotel now celebrates its spooky ties with ghost tours and events.
The most popular is The Shining Tour, which includes a visit to the Shining Suite, a glimpse of memorabilia from the film, and a peek at the recreated bathroom from the film. The hotel also hosts the Stanley Night Tour which is more of a ghost tour, exploring the building’s “dark corners,” and the Frozen Dead Guy Tour. There’s a non-spooky historic tour, too.
The hotel is on an estate near Rocky Mountain National Park. Its “spirited rooms” – the Stephen King Suite 271 and the Ghost Hunter Favorite Rooms 401, 407, or 428 – are highly requested. In addition to tours, the hotel hosts horror trivia nights, spooky concerts, and other themed events.
The Queen Mary (Long Beach, California)
The Queen Mary was the most haunted ship at sea; as legend has it, dozens died on board and still haunt its halls to this day. The Cunard vessel was also the most stately, sophisticated cruise ship when it sailed out of Southampton, England from 1934 to 1967. It was then docked in Long Beach, California, and became a hotel and event space.
The hotel now leans heavily into its haunted history, offering an array of ghost tours and overnight stays inside some of the most paranormally active rooms. These include the one-hour Haunted Encounters Tour and the two-hour Paranormal Ship Walk Tour.
Guests can stay in one of the 200 original Art Deco staterooms and suites. There are also several restaurants on board and frequent programming and events planned – both spooky and non-spooky. The latest is a three-hour VIP tour guided by a ship officer.
Victoria’s Black Swan Inn (San Antonio, Texas)
This quaint, historic hotel was built in 1867 on the site of the 1842 Battle of Salado. Many died in the bloody battle – more than 80 Mexican soldiers and just one Texan soldier. These spirits and others have been spotted around the property.
Victoria’s Black Swan Inn offers ghost tours and paranormal investigations led by experts The Curious Twins. There are a few options: The Haunted Home Tour is hosted every first and third Saturday of the month, the Haunted Cocktail Tour is every first Friday of the month, and the Haunted Supper Tour package is by reservation only. Guests can also schedule private tours and investigations.
The hotel will be the location for the 7th Annual Paranormal Fest on Sept. 21 and the Dark Circus Market & Festival on Oct. 19. It’s also known as a wedding venue and site for local farmers markets.
