Damned hotels: Where tourists died under strange circumstances

Some tourists are attracted to hotels because of their location and interior, while others are fascinated by the stories that take place inside them. Especially if they are associated with something mystical and paranormal. For example, the Cecil Hotel in Los Angeles has long been popular with travelers due to its “bloody” reputation. Murders have been committed here over the years, and one of the most recent, the 2013 death of Elisa Lam, remains unsolved. Fans of true crime and various conspiracy theories have specially booked a hotel here to see for themselves whether it is as scary as they say.

In this article, we decided to remember five cursed hotels on the world map where unexplained events occurred simultaneously.

Crescent Hotel, Arkansas

The Crescent Hotel is a legendary resort, where many Americans of different ages come every year. It has existed since 1886 and during its history even managed to become a college, but due to the lack of infrastructure around it, after a while it became a medical facility again. At the beginning of the last century, when a man named Norman Baker was appointed head physician of the sanatorium, inexplicable events began to occur here. Later they will say about him that he did not have any special skills or knowledge for this. Baker’s methods of treatment were questionable: for example, he suggested giving spring water to cancer patients and refused any drugs, including those used for anesthesia.

Moreover, there were rumors that Norman Baker was conducting creepy experiments on the fourth floor of the building, which was off-limits to everyone. It was called a psychiatric ward, and it was said that mentally ill people who scared other patients with their screams were kept there. But no one saw them during Baker’s time at work. According to the police, several hundred people died here. Under the pretext of treatment, various drugs were administered, experiments were conducted, operations were performed, and organs were dissected.

Stanley, Colorado

Surely you have heard the story of The Stanley Hotel. The fact is that it was here that the plot of Stephen King’s “The Shining” took place, where the action took place. The Stanley is a real hotel located in the mountains of Colorado. And although in the entire history of its existence there has not been a single fatal accident, guests have seen ghosts, heard voices and witnessed the movement of objects here more than once. The scariest place in the hotel is the fourth floor. It was here that the ghost of a small child was most often seen. Some couples staying at the hotel left early because they heard children laughing at night, although there were no children in the hotel at that time.

By the way, an interesting fact. Stephen King himself saw the ghost of a child here. “I dreamed that my three-year-old son was running along the corridors of the hotel. He looked over his shoulder, his eyes widened and he screamed,” King wrote. “He was being chased by a fire hose.” I woke up with difficulty, covered in sweat, almost falling out of bed. I got up, lit a cigarette, sat down in a chair by the window overlooking the Rocky Mountains, and by the time I finished smoking, I had already laid the foundation for a new book.”

By the way, the hotel is not afraid of black PR. Next to the Streamers Cafe on the ground floor of the hotel is a poster with recommended actions in case of a ghost in the phone photo. And in their free time, guests are offered to perform a spiritual ritual here.

Cecil, Los Angeles

The legendary Cecil in Los Angeles is the most famous mystical hotel in the world. And although during its construction the owners planned to make it the main pearl of the city, the Great Depression still made its own adjustments. As a result, this area of ​​​​Los Angeles became one of the most unsafe. And the hotel, despite its scale and potential, turned into a haven for maniacs, serial killers and robbers. For example, in 1985, the famous serial killer Richard Ramirez, nicknamed the Night Hunter, lived here. And in 1991 – the “Viennese Ripper” Jack Unterweger. But one of the most notorious tragic events occurred here in 2013.

Canadian student Elisa Lam stayed at the Cecil during a trip to the West Coast, but disappeared on January 31, a few days after checking in. A month after the girl disappeared, several hotel guests immediately reported the unpleasant smell and strange dark color of the tap water to the managers. The manager on duty called a locksmith. Four tanks with a volume of 9,000 liters were installed on the roof. The plumber began to open the tanks and saw Eliza’s body in one of them, half full of water.

It seems like a simple murder. However, soon after, the security camera footage from the elevator where the girl was seen before her death surfaced on the Internet. She pressed several buttons one by one in a chaotic sequence, as if she was looking for someone on each floor. There were speculations that she was in a relationship with her future killer. According to forensic evidence, Elisa Lam had been in a relationship with an unknown man shortly before her death. It turned out that Elisa Lam went to the 14th floor of the Cecil Hotel on the night of February 1, where she met a man she had just met, who would kill her within hours. However, these are only the investigation’s assumptions. The Elisa Lam case remains unsolved.

Hotel Chelsea, New York

The Chelsea Hotel is the epicenter of American culture. At one time, Madonna, Arthur Miller, Andy Warhol, Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen hung out here. By the way, the latter died almost immediately. After the Sex Pistols broke up in 1978, Sid and Nancy moved to Chelsea, where Sid wanted to recover and start music again. By the way, the plans were not destined to come true. He was no longer interested in creativity, so there was enough time for parties, illegal drugs and fights. On October 11, Nancy was found stabbed to death in the bathroom of her room. The knife belonged to Sid, who did not remember anything. The musician was arrested, but later released on bail; after a while he died of a drug overdose. No one ever found out whether Sid was involved in Nancy’s death or whether it was the work of one of his drug dealers.

But after Nancy’s death, the hotel became a real magnet for all Sex Pistols fans. Each of the fans dreamed of being in the room where the most famous murder in rock music at the time took place. The hotel existed until 2011 and then closed forever. “An era has passed,” all the tabloids wrote.

World’s Fair Hotel, Chicago

The World’s Fair Hotel was called Chicago’s Murder Castle. The building was built entirely of traps and was commissioned by one of the most famous criminals of the 19th century, Dr. Henry Howard Holmes. He loved killing so much that he decided to build a mansion for it. Originally, the building was a large shopping complex. Holmes constantly changed contractors during construction so that only he could understand the layout of the building.

There was a hotel on the same site where the murders took place. The entire second floor of the “castle” was expanded to three stories high, so that it was convenient to watch every move of the hotel guests. It was literally full of peepholes and secret passages. Some rooms actually had false walls that could be easily opened. Others were equipped with secret doors that led to an endless number of rooms from which the victims never returned.