Halloween is proof that we should never have made it far as a society.
Every animal on earth is instinctively wired to feel fear and get the hell out of there. Humans, on the other hand, welcome the likes of Freddy Krueger into our living rooms under the guise of entertainment. Don’t forget our seasonal tendency to not only talk to strangers but send our children to their homes for candy.
All the same we’re embracing the Halloween spirit, and swapping valets for vampires, sea views for slashers, and upgrades for the undead. Here are the spookiest stays in the world.
Our top picks: The World’s Spookiest Stays
The Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel
Hollywood, California
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To ease you into the scary stays, we’ll offer you some high-end luxury with your initial haunting. The Hollywood Roosevelt was once the toast of LA, hosting the inaugural Oscars ceremony and welcoming the silver-screen elite into its stunning rooms.
It’s still a wonderful hotel today, but it’s also known as one of the most haunted spots in the country. It’s said that Marilyn Monroe herself appears in the mirror of the room she lived in as a burgeoning actress in Hollywood. Actor Montgomery Clift, who died in a car crash nearby, is also said to fiddle with the thermostat in his favorite room. So if things get chilly, just ask Monty to relax.
The Haunted Bedroom
Talliston, Scotland |
What sounds more fun than spending the night in the haunted Edwardian bedroom of a seven-year-old girl? Thankfully, this nightmarish stay is a recreation, but the attention to detail is unrivaled. Seriously, just check the reviews. The owner spent years transforming an otherwise typical British home into an era-defying experience. The haunted bedroom is one of several painstakingly designed rooms to choose from. |
The Clown Motel
Tonopah, Nevada
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Bad things happen in the middle of nowhere. Bad things happen in motels. Imagine how scary a motel in the middle of nowhere is when it’s covered from head to toe in clowns.
The place literally advertises itself as the scariest motel in the US, theming many of its rooms after famous scary clowns, like Pennywise from It, Art from the Terrifier, and an array of other nightmarish red-nosed familiars. Have a listen to the creepy country song that plays when you open the website. Go on.
Our Other Top Picks
Love Dracula but can’t get to Romania? Try his swanky pad in NY
Stay (and eat some BBQ) at the gas station from The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
Spend a night on the campus of an abandoned mental asylum in Georgia
This immersive overnight murder-mystery experience takes things to a new level
Stephen King was inspired to write the Shining after staying at this eerie Colorado hotel
by travelers, for travelers.