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For fans of horror movies and ghost tales, these haunted bedroom locations allow you to become part of the action. Will you enjoy a peaceful sleep, or will you be kept awake by things that go bump in the night?
10 Min Read | By Jessica Kadel
Last Modified 10 October 2024 First Added 23 October 2017
Do you thrive on the thrill of ghost stories and the chill of the supernatural? Are you the type to laugh at those who cower behind the sofa during a horror film? Does spending the night with ghosts and ghouls sound like an appealing holiday to you? If so, this article might be for you! To celebrate Halloween and get you in the spooky spirit, we’ve uncovered the most haunted bedrooms in the UK, where you can spend a night… if you dare.
Kicking off the list of haunted bedrooms is what paranormal investigator Tom Slemen named ‘the most haunted hotel in the UK’. This hotel was built in 1912, the year the Titanic went down, and one of the suites is an exact copy of the Titanic’s first-class smoking lounge. Notable sightings at this hotel include ghostly naval officers and a grey lady in a Victorian dress. According to hauntedrooms.co.uk, ‘a paranormal team who visited the hotel also reported hearing a growl or a disembodied voice, and one of their team also reported being violently sick during their stay.’
Image courtesy of haunted-britain.com
Since being built in 1145, the Ancient Ram Inn has built a reputation as one of the most haunted houses in the British Isles, thanks to the stories of child sacrifices, devil worship, and evil spirits that lurk around the inn. The current owner of the Ram Inn, John, has reported being grabbed and dragged across his room. He also found two child skeletons and broken daggers beneath the staircase.
Image courtesy of hastingshotels.com
Next on the list is the Ballygally Castle Hotel, based on the Antrim Coast, where Game of Thrones was filmed. This haunted castle is the setting for the story of Isobella Shaw, the former Lady of the Castle, during the early 17th century. Her husband reportedly locked her in the tower after she gave birth to their son. While attempting to escape and retrieve her child, Isobella fell to her death. Rumour has it that she still haunts the castle while searching for her son.
Based in Monmouthshire, the Skirrid Inn is said to be the oldest public house in Wales. Since its opening in 1110, it’s been a hive for many paranormal activities. One of the most notable ghosts is that of Judge Jeffreys, who was known as the hanging judge due to the number of executions he ordered, which took place at the inn. Guests of the Skirrid Inn have experienced glasses flying without being touched, the sound of soldiers in the courtyard and a feeling of being strangled. Unfortunately, you can’t stay here. However, the Skirrid Inn offers ghost hunts to those who are brave enough.
Talliston, located in Great Dunmow, has been labelled ‘Britain’s most extraordinary home’. It’s decorated with Scottish art-nouveau-style and features a haunted bedroom that eerily recreates the bedchamber of a seven-year-old Edwardian child. It features heavy curtains, books and, of course, toys. Guests staying at this haunted location have noted unexplained sounds during the night and bizarre smells.
Image courtesy of airbnb.co.uk
The Langham Hotel is known as the most haunted hotel in London, with at least five ghosts supposedly being spotted gliding through the walls. Among the many sightings, people have reported a German prince who jumped out of a window to his death. One of England’s cricket team, Stuart Broad, stayed in the hotel and said to the Daily Mail:
“It was so hot in the room I just couldn’t sleep. All of a sudden the taps in the bathroom came on for no reason. I turned the lights on, and the taps turned themselves off. Then when I turned the lights off again, the taps came on. It was very weird.”
Since being built in the 13th century, this haunted castle has had many ghostly visitors. The most notable was Sir Alexander Ramsay, who starved to death in 1342 and has since roamed the halls. Other ghosts include Lady Catherine, who also died from starvation. She was said to have starved herself in retaliation to her parents forbidding her from seeing the stable hand she loved. Lady Catherine is often seen floating around the dungeons of the castle.
Image courtesy of dalhousiecastle.co.uk
Located in the historic Roman city of Chester, this inn and pub is one of the most haunted locations in the UK. Built in 1622, it sits on the remains of a 13th-century structure. Guests have reported seeing several ghosts, including a young boy in a dark tunic, a Victorian woman and even Roman soldiers. The most haunted bedroom is room 6, where guests have experienced objects moving and the feeling of being watched. Walk in and enjoy a cold pint with haunted dolls on display, or stay in one of their haunted bedrooms overnight to experience the ghosts yourself with My Haunted Hotel.
Giving a clue to the spooky activity that goes on inside it, the aptly named Chillingham Castle is often called “Britain’s most haunted castle” and has hosted numerous ghost sightings. This 12th-century castle has been famed for its actions and battles throughout the years. The most famous of the sightings include a figure of a boy seen in the Blue Room, Lady Mary Berkeley herself and several prisoners from the dungeons. You can visit Chillingham Castle and experience the sights yourself if you’re looking for a thrill this Halloween.
Ettington Park is a spectacular neo-Gothic mansion six miles from Stratford-upon-Avon and can be seen in the 1963 film The Haunting. Dating back over 2,000 years, this manor has served many purposes, including being a nursing home, a camp of prisoners for World War II, and briefly a club. Today, it has a long reputation for being one of the most haunted hotels in the UK, with guests seeing an old woman in Victorian clothing walking around the conservatory entrance and a man and his beloved dog wandering the library.
If you want to see it from your own perspective, you can book a room at Ettington Park Hotel and wander the castle with Haunted Rooms.
Image from www.handpickedhotels.co.uk/ettingtonpark/
Many locations and haunted hotels in the UK allow you to visit and wander the grounds yourself, and many even offer the option to stay the night. Here are some more of the most haunted bedrooms that should be on your must-visits for Halloween:
Image courtesy of popsugar.com
Located in Jämtland County, Northern Sweden, the Borgvattnet Vicarage is one of Sweden’s most haunted houses. Built in 1876 as a place of residence for vicars, this house has had its fair share of paranormal activities. Sightings include an invisible force throwing laundry off of the washing line, women appearing and disappearing in the bedrooms and even an unseen force throwing a resident out of his chair.
The Borgvattnet Vicarage is currently a café and a guest house, which offers a certificate to those who manage to stay the entire night.
Across the pond lies the haunting story of the Villisca Axe Murder House in Iowa. In 1912, an entire family was brutally murdered in their home by an axe-wielding killer. Although the murderer was never captured, there has since been evidence suggesting the house is haunted by a dark spirit. If you’re feeling brave or simply foolish, you can currently rent the house out for a night at roughly £345 and attempt to sleep in the rooms where the murders took place.
There is no shortage of famously haunted places in the USA. If you’re planning a long-distance scare-cation, here are some more top spots:
Since 1211, this fortress has been at the centre of Romanian history. Home to royals and battled over in multiple wars, it is one of the most fascinating places in Europe, and that’s before we even mention Count Dracula. While the famous vampire is reported based on Vlad Tepes (also known as Vlad The Impaler), his castle was taken from a description of Bran Castle.
You can visit this gothic masterpiece all year round, but they also host several Dracula-themed events and even a special Halloween ghost tour and party.
This beautiful building in Java has an unfortunately ugly history. Built by the Dutch East Indies Railway Company in the early 1900s, its name means “a thousand doors”, referring to the labyrinth-like structure. Over the next 5 decades, it would be the home of the bloody actions of Dutch colonials and Japanese invaders during World War 2. The Indonesian government opened the buildings up to the public again in the 1990s, and a horror movie was filmed there in 2007.
Isla de las muñecas is one of the most unsettling locations on our list. The island is a floating garden home to Don Julian Santana for over fifty years. During his time there, Don Julian claimed he found a little girl who had drowned before he could save her. When a doll also washed up on the shore, he hung it up to honour her spirit.
For the next few decades, Don Julian added hundreds of dolls to the island, alleging that they were haunted by the souls of young girls who had died. While no one ever knew whether his story was true, the Island of the Dolls remains as a tourist attraction where you can see the (creepy) decorations and even add your own.
Perfect for the haunted season or adventurous thrill-seekers, a visit to these haunted locations in the UK and worldwide is a must! With stories that linger long after you’ve left, you’ll uncover the mysteries of the past. Most of these places welcome visitors; some even allow you to stay overnight in their haunted bedrooms to experience the ghosts at night. It’s a fantastic idea for a chilling Halloween trip or a casual getaway any time of the year. If you’re a paranormal enthusiast, ensure the spirits don’t follow you home afterwards.
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