We stayed at the Queen Mary while we were in Long Beach for Midsummer Scream at the nearby convention center. We explored it a little more and got a few more stories.
You can check out our original review here.
Queen Mary Hotel (update)
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Tag Archives: Hotel
Delta King
The Delta King is a hotel converted from an old river boat. Located on the Sacramento River in Old Town, the hotel includes a restaurant, the Pilothouse, and banquet, conference, and meeting rooms.
Ghost Stories
The main ghost said to haunt the Delta King is that of a little girl. She appears to be about 9 to 10 years old with dirty blonde hair who wears a full length dress. We were told by several crew members that she is only seen by men. She mostly manifests as giggling heard in the hallways or as footprints in the morning dew on the deck of the boat. One waiter on the boat saw the little girl by the dry storage room that was once the boiler/engine room. He saw her bouncing a ball, but when he looked back she was gone. The explanation for her death and haunting given to us by the employees was that she was raped and murdered by a crew-member. The staff that we talked to mentioned that the girl has a name, but she could not remember it.
Another spirit that still lingers aboard the Delta King is that of a man. He appears wearing a light shirt, dark pants, and some sort of hat. He has been seen walking along the lobby wall like he is going to the office door, but he doesn’t go through; he turns and walks away.
Other manifestations that have not been attributed to a specific spirit include the random breaking of unattended glasses in the lounge. A staff member we interviewed told us about a time when she found a chair in the elevator that belonged in the theater which was locked at the time.
Some strange occurrences happened in our stay. While we were talking to staff members in the lounge a glass cracked in the hands of one of them when she put ice in it. The glass was not warm when she did this.
While we were having breakfast in the Pilothouse Restaurant a menu tilted, fell over, and knocked into a glass which broke. The wait staff came over to clean and reset the table and the same menu tipped again, and broke yet another glass.
A menu tilted & fell, knocking over a glass which broke. The staff cleaned it up, reset the table. The same menu fell, knocked over the new glass and it broke too.
Our full camera battery also drained over the course of one night.
Our Review
The rooms are small, but comfortable. The restaurant was very good, and the location amidst old town and near the train museum is convenient. The parking situation was not the greatest, however. There was supposed to be a valet, but both when we arrived and left there was no one there. Cars are squeezed together in a very small area. Luckily enough we were not packed in too tightly when it was time for us to leave..
Official Website of the Delta King
Benson Hotel
About The Benson Hotel
Simon Benson, a local lumber magnate, had a vision of building a world-class hotel in Portland Oregon. He commisioned a prominent area architect, Albert E. Doyle, to design this vision. The lobby of the hotel was lavishly appointed with imported italian marble and russian walnut. The hotel was originally opened in 1913 as an annex to the Oregon Hotel, but after some financial problems Benson took over management, and the hotel was renamed. In 1959 an 175 room extension was built on the site of the former Hotel Oregon, almost doubling the number of guestrooms.
The hotel has gone through many management changes; the first was in 1919 when Simon Benson sold the hotel after he had proven that it could turn a profit. It has changed hands many times since then, and it is currently owned by Coast Hotels and Resorts.
The whole hotel was extensively renovated and modernized in 1980 at the cost of three million dollars. Five concealed doors were added at the time of this removation. There are two in the restaurant, one behind the front desk, one for the concierge, and one for the hotel manager’s office.
The hotel’s elegant restaurant, the London Grill, was opened in 1955 and occupies the basement. One of the hotel’s secret doors leads to a small private dining room that doubles as a wine cellar. The room conviniently enough, is called the Wine Cellar, and can be reserved for private parties of up to twelve people.
There are a couple of ghosts that are said to haunt the benson. An elegantly dressed man is sometimes seen on the lobby’s grand staircase, and the ghost of a woman in white has also been seen wandering the halls. The activity seems to peak when the hotel is undergoing renovation or modernization. Our waiter for dinner at the London Grill, who had worked there for 28 years, had never personally experienced any phenomena, but did mention that several guests had mentioned encountering the supernatural. Unfortunately, he could not give any specific examples of stories from guests..
We thouroughly enjoyed our stay at the Benson. We were torn between staying here or at the Heathman Hotel down the street. Ultimately we went with the less expensive of the two options to help our bank account, but were wonderfully satisfied. The Benson was not only the less expensive, but was also more classy and elegant. We ate dinner and breakfast at the London Grill. Both the service and the food were phenomenal. The breakfast buffet was excelent. We could hardly believe the vast amount of food that was spread out for the patrons.
Heathman Hotel
About The Heathman Hotel
The Heathman Hotel was originally opened in late 1927 as the New Heathman Hotel by George Heathman Jr. The hotel was the centerpiece of Portland’s entertainment district. When residents moved from the city center to the suburbs following World War II, Portland’s Great White Way went into decline. Bouyed by the construction of the nearby Portland Center for the Performing arts and the revitalized former Portland Theater, now known as the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, the hotel underwent a $16 million renovation in the middle 80s. The building has come full circle; once again becoming a modern presitigious hotel in the midst of Portland’s bustling entertainment mecca.
When the hotel was modernized, it was truly modernized. Contemporary design and modern artwork was incorporated into the buildings historic facade.
The Heathman is said to be haunted by the ghost of someone who committed suicide by jumping out of room 1003. While the concentration of ghostly activity is said to come from room 703, all of the rooms that the person past on their way down are said to be haunted. Some of the manifestations include: cleans towels being used when no one was in the room, full glasses of water becoming empty, and desks and chairs being moved.
While we did not stay or eat at the Heathman during our visit, we did explore it and listened to the live music, we did not enjoy it as much as the Benson Hotel down the street. The lobby felt closed in, and while we do enjoy elements of modern design, the lobby felt sterile and uninviting.
Hotel Oregon
About The Hotel Oregon
The Hotel Oregon, currently operated by McMenamins, was originally opened in 1905 as the Hotel Elberton. Once bustling, the building went into a steady decline until the building was renovated in 1998 and the fourth and top 
floor was finally finished. The building’s rich history is documented in artwork on the walls. The hotel hosts an annual UFO convention each may due to the 1950 UFO sightings and photographs in the town by a local farmer. The hotel has 42 European style rooms, two bars, and a restaurant. The walls are decorated with art celebrating not only the buildings history and former occupants, but the town of McMinville’s famous UFO sighting in 1950.
The ghost of the Hotel Oregon is known as John and is said to probably be a long term resident of the hotel that died. Cold spots have been felt on the first two floors and in the cellar bar.
None of the employees with whom we talked had any personal experiences. One did mention that the doors to “Matties” room (a conference room) would lock and unlock themselves, and that the cellar was creepy. We investigated the conference room, but we were unable to explore the cellar.
While we were investigating the fourth floor before dinner, my wife distinctly detected the smell of lavender, but I did not.
The Hotel Oregon, like many McMenamins hotels, does not have bathrooms in most guest rooms, has multiple places to imbibe libations, has numerous murals and canvas paintings adorning the walls. The rooftop pub afforded wonderful views of the area, and was a nice place to get a drink at the end of the day. It was a little cold up 
there, even in July, but well worth the visit. We enjoyed our steak and salmon dinners in the main restaurant. We went up to the Rooftop bar for drinks and deserts afterwards, which was very nice. We were unable to visit the Cellar Bar because it was not open on the days that we were there (it was only open for the weekends.)
White Eagle Tavern
About The White Eagle Tavern
The white eagle tavern is a small bar and hotel in an industrial neighborhood in North Portland. It was opened in 1905 by polish imigrants and catered to the eastern Europeans who worked in the local docks and factories. The second floor of the building was once used as a brothel along with the basement. Starting in the 1970s the tavern began its live music tradition, earning it the nickname Rock n’ Roll Hotel. The modern White Eagle Tavern continues this tradition. The Hotel is convinient to the Arena and the Convention Center.
There are reports from various sources of two different ghosts that haunt the building. Rose, a prostitute who was killed by a jelous customer/lover, and Sam, a resident who died in room 2, “Midnight in Paris.”. None of the employees who worked there when we visited had any interesting ghostly experiences. We stayed in “Midnight in Paris” during our trip, but did not encounter anything otherworldly ourselves.
With only eleven rooms and no night staff, I would hardly consider this to be a “hotel,” which is not to say I did not enjoy the stay or that I would not stay there again. It, like most McMennamins, does not have private bathrooms or showers, so if that is something that you value in accomadations, this hotel is not for you. The stay was pleasant, and the food was typical McMennamins. I really enjoyed the White Eagle Burger which is signature to this McMennamins, although some of the others do have it under a different name. The menu is filled mostly with “Pub Food,” but it is very good quality for that. The staff was very friendly, and it did have a nice feel. The music the night that we stayed there was two DJs mixing Reggae, not exactly what I would call a continuation of the venues reputation for “live” nighly music, and despite the music being played in the tavern below us, I was able to sleep soundly. Parking is a bit of an issue, the lot immediately next door is not a parking lot for the hotel, and the one that it does have seems to fill up very quickly. We found a metered spot on the street that was not enforced due to the Independence Day holiday.
Hotel San Carlos
About Hotel San Carlos
The Hotel San Carlos was built in 1927 on the former site of the first school in Phoenix Arizona. A very modern hotel for its time with air conditioning througout, the Hotel San Carlos was the hotel for tourists from the east, one of the few places to be “seen” for Phoenix socialites, and a refuge for movie stars from the golden age of Hollywood. The hotel was updated in 1955 when the swimming pool was added to the sun deck amung other improvements. It was added to the historic hotels of America during the 1990s, and the San Carlos Hollywood Walk of Fame was added to the streets outside.
Ghost Stories
Shortly after the hotel was opened, Leone Jensen commited suicide by jumping off of the roof of the seven story hotel. She had lost the affection of a bell boy at a nearby hotel. Since then a ghostly image has been reportedly seen throughout the hotel along with unexplained breezes.
My wife and I had some odd experiences during our stay that my wife felt were odd. After we checked in, the elevator stopped at every floor on our way to our room. She thought that that was odd, but could easily be explained away. On Friday the 13th while on the 7th floor, my wife felt the hallway move like there was some kind of mild earthquake, but I did not feel anything.
We also received some reports from other guests we encountered while wandering through the hallways. One couple mentioned an odd occurance that happened to them on a previous trip when they were staying in room 716. They were sleeping when the sound of objects falling off the table woke them up. When they looked towards the source of the noise, they witnessed their key-card slide off of the table and onto the floor. The large group that was staying in room 720, the room where most of the strange occurances happen, told us that there is something odd about the small rooms at the end of the hall on the second floor, beyond the room with the couches. They also reported that was a haunting in the area of the thrid floor pool, but we did not get any specifics. They were planning on holding a seance later in the evening, but we did not see them again to get their results.
One of the desk clerks, Carlene, told us that two maids had quit over experiences they had while working there. One saw a figure dressed in flowing white near the stairs on the second floor on two seperate occaisions, and the other just kept saying “red eyes” repeatedly in Spanish.
Our Review
It was very interesting being at the hotel on friday the 13th, especially due to the number of other “ghost hunters” that there were at the hotel for that occaision. Unfortunately a lot of them felt that it was appropriate to get drunk and hold then hold a seance. We got some good stories from the night security guard when he happened by us and another couple as we were exploring the halls late on the evening of the 13th. While he did not persoanally believe in ghosts, he told us a story about a time he was almost convinced. The story ended with the real world explanation for the events that had freaked him out, but it was a very entertaining yarn. The hotel’s amenities were unfortunately not worth the cost. The security guard even made mention of people complaining about the cost versus what you get. He explained that the price goes towards helping to keep the old hotel around, and while that is a good benefit, we’ve stayed in other old hotels that did not have the hot water and other ameneties issues we had here. Its location in downtown Phoenix was convinient, and our stay was on the whole pleasant.
Hotel Vendome
Hotel Vendome
The Hotel Vendome is a small hotel in the town of Prescott, Arizona. It was built in 1917. It is situated very close to Prescott’s “Famous Whiskey Row.”
Room 16 is haunted by the ghosts of Abby Byr and her cat. The story goes that Abby Byr, her husband, and her cat, Noble, were allowed to stay in the room 16 of the hotel for free (or were simply guests at the hotel). After her husband left her there, Abby and Noble both died of starvation in 1921. In some stories on the web Abby is a former owner of the hotel. Regardless, the room is now decorated with the gifts that guests staying at the hotel leave for Abby and Noble. According to the manager who was on duty when we arrived, some guests even send their gifts to the room in advance of their stay so that it is waiting in the room when they arrive.
The Hotel Vendome was a nice small historic hotel. The manager was nice enough to let us explore room 16 because no one was staying in it. There were a lot of cat themed nic-nacks, but no ghostly activity. My wife did have the sensation of smelling perfume near the room, and the following morning swore that she smelled tomato soup coming from the room, but that was it.
Hassayampa Inn
About The Hassayampa Inn
The Hassayampa was built in 1927 as a luxury hotel in the town of Prescott Arizona. The hotel has been extensively modernized, but the lobby had a more traditonal feel. The name is a Yavapai indian word for “upside down river.” The Hassayampa river is mostly subterranian.
The Hassayampa inn is said to be haunted by the ghost of Faith, a woman who killed herself in the hotel. Apparantly, Faith and her newlywed husband checked in to the hotel. Her husband left to go buy cigarettes and never returned. After three days of waiting for her husband to return, a distraught Faith hanged herself in her room. According to Jeffrey, an employee of the Hotel Vendome who had worked at the Hassayampa previously, a maid emplyed at the Hassayampa saw Faith and then quit. She had worked there for three years before the sighting. Dean, who was working in the lounge of the Hassayampa, told us that he will not sleep in room 426. That is faiths room. She supposedly will give foot massages to women, but gives men nightmares. Dean also told us that there is a six year old asian boy who haunts the laundry room and will tug on women’s shirts. Another ghost of the Hassayampa is the “Nightwatchman,” a man dressed in old western attire. He was spotted by Allison, the manager of the Peacock Room. He was described as having broad shoulders and wearing and old style brown overcoat.
While we did not actually stay in the hotel, we had breakfast in the peacock room and spoke to several employees both during breakfast and the night before. The food was good and the atmosphere of the hotel was nice.
Luxor
About Luxor Las Vegas
The Luxor is perhaps the most unique hotel in Las Vegas. Modeled after the famed pyramids of Egypt, the Luxor is 350 feet high. The hollow interior creates the world’s largest atrium. Construction began in 1991 and was completed in 1993. Two small ziggurat shaped towers were added to the sight later. It is connected by walkways to the Excalibur (to the north) and the Mandalay Bay (to the south). There is also a free shuttle that links the three hotels as well.
Ghost Stories
There are many ghost stories and legends linked to the Luxor hotel. it is said that as many as seven and a few as two construction workers died when a wall fell on them when the building was being constructed. These deaths may account for the hauntings reprted in the tunnels of the old river ride that used to circle the bottom floor of the casino. There have supposedly been two suiced deaths from people jumping into the atrium from the walkways around the interior. One of these was said to have jumped from the 26th floor and landed in the location of the old buffet. (which is now the area where the food court is.) According to the Haunted Vegas Tour, this person was a prostitute with aids. The hotel was so worried about contamination that they tore out the entirety of the old buffet. This woman is said to manifest by flowing on the backs of the nexts of people walking around the 26th floor (I have found some websites that claim that a ghost that does this haunts the 26th floor of the Excalibur hotel instead). A man was said to have jumped from the 10th floor and landing on the express check out counter (the check out counter has since been moved. The old location was on the side of the Mandalay Bay).
Our Review
He Says:
I have stayed in the pyramid once and in the towers once, and I gotta say I loved staying in the tower. Hearing the sound of the casino as soon as you open your door, and the view from the balcony was neat. Of course, that was back when you could actually put coins into slot machines. I miss the coins. Now there is no more sound of the jingling coins as they fall into the hopper. Oh well. One of my favorite casinos on the trip. I would definately stay there again if I wasn’t so busy trying to stay at different hotels every time I visit. As a word of caution, be careful when leaning against the railing of the moving sidewalks connecting the Luxor to the Excalibur. I got grease all over the butt of my new khaki pants when I did just that traveling from the Excalibur to the Luxor. The Excalibur was kind enough to pay me $30 for the trouble.
She Says:
The best thing about this casino is that when you walk out of your room, you can hear the “ching ching ching” of the slots. The sound just shouts out: Yes. You are here. You are in Vegas. The rooms are well-decorated in egyptian theme, and ALWAYS get a room in the pyramid. You would really be missing out on the full experence of the Luxor if you don’t! I also highly recommned the Pyramid Cafe. I have eaten there many times over the years and they have always served great food!!!.