Cool Down And Stay The Night With A Ghost

by Adam Longfellow
If you are tired of the summer heat, you may want to think ahead to something a bit cooler. Whether you are getting away this summer or planning for the fall, we found some places that just may chill you to the bone. Across the country and around the world, there are many places where you can stay the night alone, with a loved one or perhaps with someone of a ghostly nature. From bed and breakfasts in stately old buildings around New England to high-end ocean resort hotels in California, you can explore a bit of history and maybe even feel the past come back to you.

There are places in almost every state in the United States, in all different price ranges and levels of luxury. For one example, and perhaps one of the most haunted, there is the great Queen Mary Hotel in Long Beach, CA. This ocean liner, now permanently docked at the Port of Long Beach, was commissioned in 1936 and journeyed a thousand Atlantic crossings. Many incidents of strange rapping noises, moving objects, disembodied voices, and ghostly apparitions have been reported by staff, guests, and investigators on the docked ship. The First Class Swimming Pool, said to be the most haunted place aboard, is haunted by the ghosts of two women who drowned there. One is dressed in 1960s clothing and the other wears 1930s attire. The forlorn ghost of a little boy who fell overboard near the pool has also been sighted in the passageway.

In Washington D.C., there is a hotel with some classic haunting stories that appear to be linked to the inauguration of President Calvin Coolidge. Coolidge did not attend his own inaugural ball in 1925 because he was mourning the death of his 16-year-old son. Every year since 1937, on Jan. 20 (Inauguration Day) the lights in the Grand Ballroom flicker and dim at around 10 p.m., the time that the first guests were announced for Coolidge's inauguration. Hotel staff have past reported of finding a plate of exquisite hors d'oeuvres and a glass of fine wine in Grand Ballroom balcony. Neither item had been served at any function on that day. And one elevator refuses to move from the eighth floor to the lobby level until 10:15 p.m. -- the approximate time Coolidge would have arrived at the ball from his waiting room.

If smaller places are more to your interest, there is the bed and breakfast at the Farnsworth House Inn in Gettysburg, PA, one of the most haunted areas in America. The loss of life at Gettysburg was tremendous, and the entire area is steeped in heavy energy, and riddled with restless ghosts almost anywhere you go in town or around the countryside. The Farnsworth House Inn offers more than just a bed and some sleep. Several of the rooms are haunted with six actually being cited on their web site.

There is the unsolved mystery at the Lizzie Borden Bed And Breakfast in Massachusetts. Several ghosts and tragic stories abound at The Myrtles Plantation in Louisiana. The Stanley Hotel and Conference Center in Estes Park, Colorado is a popular one because Stephen King wrote part of "The Shining" while staying there. The ABC mini-series was also filmed there on location. Any ghosts you find there are friendly and probably the original owners playing piano or hanging out in the Billiard room. There aren't any evil spirits lurking about.

Looking for the best recommendations for one night or want to know where they can get a real fright? Ghost encounters are never for certain. In fact, most of these places only have a few documented events spread out over many years. And many of these seem to be from people who didn't know the stories or didn't believe in ghosts before something happened to them. It's more about the history, the imagination and what you think could happen while visiting. You just never know what may be around the next corner, in the shadows or what may wake you up at night.

If you are looking for something really different in this world, try spending some time at places with occasional visitors from another world. Plan ahead if you are looking to stay around the end of October as many of these places are busy or have special events for Halloween. Some of them wish the ghost would move on and others relish the added attention and business. Many of the larger hotels will not deal with reserving of a particular room tied to a ghost story, but you may get lucky. Or unlucky depending on your point of view.
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