8 Spooky Hotels In California Where Guests Claim They’ve Seen Ghosts

California’s historic hotels offer more than just luxury accommodations – some come with unexpected ghostly guests. From grand beachfront resorts to charming mountain inns, these establishments have collected countless stories of paranormal encounters over the decades. Whether you’re a ghost hunter or just curious about the supernatural, these 8 California hotels promise both comfortable stays and spine-tingling experiences that might leave you sleeping with the lights on.

1. Ahwahnee Hotel’s Yosemite Apparitions

Nestled among Yosemite’s towering granite cliffs, the grand Ahwahnee Hotel seems an unlikely place for ghosts. Yet this 1927 architectural masterpiece hosts numerous spectral guests, including the spirits of former employees who can’t seem to leave their posts. During World War II, the hotel served as a naval hospital. Guests on the third floor report encountering confused phantom patients in vintage military pajamas wandering the corridors. The mezzanine level features a spectral woman in vintage clothing who appears during formal events, dancing alone to music only she can hear before fading away like morning mist in Yosemite Valley.

2. Hollywood Roosevelt’s Star-Studded Hauntings

Marilyn Monroe’s restless spirit supposedly lingers in the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, particularly around a full-length mirror that once hung in her favorite suite. Hotel staff have witnessed her blonde reflection smiling back at them when no one was there. Actor Montgomery Clift reportedly haunts room 928, where he practiced trumpet lines for ‘From Here to Eternity.’ Guests have felt someone sitting on their bed or heard trumpet notes playing softly at night. The hotel embraces its supernatural reputation, drawing thrill-seekers and film buffs alike to experience Hollywood’s golden-age ghosts.

3. Queen Mary’s Watery Graves

Once a luxury ocean liner, now a floating hotel in Long Beach, the Queen Mary might be America’s most haunted hotel. During her sailing days, 49 people reportedly died aboard – their spirits never disembarked. The ghost of a young girl who drowned in the ship’s pool still splashes and giggles in the empty swimming area. In the engine room, a sailor crushed to death during a drill appears to visitors. The ship’s most active area is reportedly B Deck, where knocking sounds, phantom footsteps, and disembodied voices regularly disturb guests trying to sleep.

4. Claremont Hotel’s Playful Child Ghost

“Room 422 please!” Those words might send shivers down the spine of Claremont Hotel staff. This elegant Berkeley landmark, built in 1915, harbors the spirit of a six-year-old girl who perished in a fire that ravaged the original structure. Unlike many hotel hauntings, this child ghost seems playful rather than malevolent. Guests report hearing children’s laughter when no children are present and feeling small hands tugging at their clothes. The fourth floor remains the paranormal hotspot, with reports of elevators stopping there without being summoned and doors opening to empty hallways.

5. Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn’s Victorian Lady

Victoria never checked out of the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn. Built atop ancient thermal springs sacred to Native Americans, this 1927 Spanish-style resort attracts both living guests and spectral residents. Victoria, dressed in period clothing from the early 1900s, appears most often in the hotel’s Heritage Room. She’s known for her pleasant demeanor, often smiling at startled guests before vanishing. Staff members have grown accustomed to unexplained footsteps and doors that open and close on their own. The thermal waters beneath the property are said to amplify supernatural energy, making this one of California’s most consistently active haunted hotels.

6. Hotel del Coronado’s Heartbroken Spirit

The elegant beachfront Hotel del Coronado harbors the melancholy spirit of Kate Morgan, who checked into room 3327 in 1892 but never checked out alive. Found dead on the hotel steps days later, her mysterious passing was ruled a suicide. Modern guests report flickering lights, unexplained cold spots, and items moving on their own in her former room. Some have awakened to find the ghostly figure of a young woman in Victorian dress standing at the foot of their bed, her sad eyes seemingly searching for something—or someone—forever lost.

7. Glen Tavern Inn’s Prohibition Phantoms

Built in 1911, Santa Paula’s Glen Tavern Inn hides dark secrets from its days as a Prohibition-era speakeasy and gambling den. The third floor, once a brothel, buzzes with paranormal activity. A spectral cowboy named Calvin tips his hat to female guests before disappearing into walls. Room 307 hosts the ghost of a prostitute named Rose, murdered there in the 1930s. Visitors report hearing her crying or feeling someone stroking their hair while they sleep. The hotel gained national attention after appearing on ghost-hunting television shows, with paranormal investigators capturing EVPs and unexplained shadow figures on camera.

8. Chateau Marmont’s Celebrity Specter

Hollywood’s legendary Chateau Marmont gained supernatural notoriety after comedian John Belushi’s 1982 drug overdose in Bungalow 3. Staff and guests have reported strange phenomena in and around his former quarters ever since. A housekeeper once fled the bungalow after seeing Belushi’s ghost sitting on the sofa. Other visitors have felt sudden cold spots and inexplicable feelings of sadness upon entering. One guest claimed their toddler laughed and waved at an empty corner, saying, “Funny man making faces!” The hotel’s history of celebrity debauchery seems to have imprinted itself energetically, with Belushi’s spirit the most famous resident who never left.