THE HOTEL IN-SPECTRE Check in & Check Out!
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By Amanda R. Woomer (Spook-Eats)
et’s be honest: paranormal investigators need to be a bit crazy (some might say brave, mad, or stupid). It takes a lot of nerve to willingly enter an old jail, asylum, or hospital late at night, searching for shadows and ghostly voices. There is a heightened sense of awareness—you know exactly how a room is set up, how the energy feels, and what noises belong to the building and what might be… unexplained. You are wide awake and (ironically) never felt more alive when you are investigating the paranormal. But there is another way investigators can prove their chutzpah outside of the usual doom and gloom haunts. Check-in to a haunted hotel.
Not many people think of hotels when asked to come up with some of the most haunted locations out there. But many of these hotels are historic landmarks where hundreds and thousands of people have passed through over the years, no doubt leaving imprints and impressions on the energy of the location. But don’t just visit a haunted hotel. Check-in. Spend the night. Go to sleep. Yes, that’s right, GO TO SLEEP!! There is a vulnerability when you sleep. Unlike your usual paranormal investigation, your guard is down when you sleep, and you are no longer on edge. The number of tales that come from sleeping hotel guests is enough to give any investigator and ghost hunter the shivers… and those very tales should also be enough to get them to book a hotel room for just one night. Here are five of America’s most haunted rooms for you, remember: Check in, relax, open the mini-bar without breaking the seal, check out (the room) and don’t forget to get some BOOty sleep…. before you check out (of the room, in the morning))
THE CRESCENT HOTEL If you are into former hospitals turned spa and resort, then the Crescent Hotel is a perfect fit for you. Opened in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, in 1886, the wealthy and elite were drawn to the area by the supposed healing springs that bubbled up in the area. Over time, the hotel could not support itself, and it was transformed into the horrific Baker Cancer Clinic. Run by a charlatan named Norman Baker (who had absolutely no medical training), the hospital only lasted several years. However, remnants of those days (both physical and spiritual) can still be seen and felt today. The most haunted room in the grand hotel is Room 218, most famously known as Michael’s Room. It was here that a carpenter named (you guessed it!) Michael fell to his death. Today, both patrons and staff report strange sensations in the room as well as strange sights and sounds. Electronics like to turn on and off for no apparent reason. The water in the bathroom likes to come on by unseen hands, and doors will mysteriously slam shut on their own. People have also reported being violently shaken awake while they try to sleep in their beds. Michael’s Room is the most popular haunted room in the Crescent Hotel, so it is wise to book as far in advance as you can.
THE STANLEY HOTEL If hospitals aren’t quite your thing and you prefer historic locations with a literary connection, might I suggest the (in)famous Stanley Hotel, Colorado? It is possibly one of America’s most famous haunted hotels thanks to Stephen King, who was inspired to write The Shining after spending a night in room 217. According to stories, Room 217 is haunted by Mrs. Elizabeth Wilson, the former head maid from when the Stanley first opened in 1909. The story claims that Mrs. Wilson was lighting a gas lamp in Room 217 when a freak explosion happened, injuring the maid. Shockingly, Mrs. Wilson survived the accident and lived until 1950… the same year paranormal activity began to occur in Room 217. HAUNTED MAGAZINE
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