Beth Sawicki
It’s one thing to visit a Halloween haunted house, but spending time in a building with a real spook is another experience entirely.
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And if you get the opportunity to stay the night in such a place — well, would you be up for it?
Here are seven of the spookiest haunted hotels and homes in America that are rife with paranormal activity, ghost sightings, ghost stories, and real life resident ghosts that allow overnight stays. Think you could hang in some of the most haunted places in the United States this Halloween season? Sweet dreams.
1. 17Hundred90 Inn & Restaurant
Location: Savannah, Georgia
Ghosts: Several, including “Anne,” a young woman who supposedly threw herself from a second floor balcony. (She haunts room 204, so be sure to request it if you’re looking for scares!)
More information: 17hundred90.com
2. Burn Brae Mansion
Location: Glen Spey, New York
Ghosts: Several, including a woman in white, a man in overalls, and an elderly couple who appear in the front yard. Owners and guests have also reported doors opening and slamming on their own, sounds of young girls and boys playing, animal noises, organ music, and the smell of baking when no one is in the kitchen.
More information: burnbraemansion.com
3. Lizzie Borden Bed and Breakfast Museum
Location: Fall River, Massachusetts
Ghosts: Lizzie Borden took an axe… You probably already know this famous Victorian story of how the eponymous Sunday school teacher was accused of hacking her father and stepmother to death in their home. (She stood trial and was acquitted.) The ghosts of all three members of the Borden family have been spotted in their home by ghost hunters, as have the spirits of Borden family maid Maggie Sullivan and her cat. You can take a ghost tour or stay the night.
More information: lizzie-borden.com
4. Magnolia Mansion
Location: New Orleans, Louisiana
Ghosts: Several, including a number of children and a man who awakens people sleeping in the Vampire Lovers’ Lair, the hotel’s most haunted room.
More information: magnoliamansion.com
5. Queen Anne Hotel
Location: San Francisco, California
Ghosts: Mary Lake, who by all accounts is a friendly spirit; she’s been known to hang up guests’ clothes and tuck people in at night. According to paranormal investigations, the hotel’s fourth floor is a paranormal hotspot, particularly room 410.
More information: queenanne.com
6. Villisca Axe Murder House
Location: Villisca, Iowa
Ghosts: In June 1912, eight people were bludgeoned to death with an axe inside the house. The murders were never solved, and it seems the victims, who included six children, haven’t left the home according to paranormal investigators.
More information: villiscaiowa.com
Honorable Mentions:
The Stanley Hotel of The Shining fame.
Gettysburg… just anywhere in Gettysburg, the entire place is basically a ghost town, as in it’s a town filled with ghosts.
The White House, though you might have to be elected president to stay there.
