You might want to sleep with a night-light on at these haunted hotels in Savannah, Georgia.
Savannah, Georgia, is home to some 145,000 living people, and at least double that population if you count the ghosts. The southern city has long been heralded as one of the most haunted places in both the U.S. and the world, thanks to the high number of spirit sightings reported here. It’s a destination with a long and checkered past — including two wars, a devastating slave trade, and tragedies that range from pirate invasions to fires and epidemics. This gives the place plenty of reasons to have lingering spirits, and many of them are said to make themselves known in the city’s historic hotels. If you’re looking for a potential in-person sighting, try staying in one of Savannah’s five most haunted hotels. They might just deliver the fright of your life.
The Marshall House
The Marshall House has been a part of the history of Savannah since 1851. According to the hotel, its building served as a “hospital during the Yellow Fever Epidemics in the mid-1800s, and as a Union hospital during the final months of the Civil War.” In 1957, The Marshall House was closed, and the second, third, and fourth floors were left abandoned. It wasn’t until 1999 that the hotel received a face-lift and opened to the public once again. However, all that history left room for apparitions to settle in. The hotel’s fourth floor is said to be particularly haunted, with guests reporting everything from footsteps and doors closing on their own to children running through the halls. If you’re looking to up your chances of seeing a ghost, try staying in room 414, where many of the sightings occur.
The Kehoe House
The Kehoe House, built in 1892 by William Kehoe, is a delightful Savannah hotel that comes with stellar amenities like a cooked-to-order breakfast, complimentary wine and hors d’oeuvres, homemade cookies, and, oh yeah, a few ghosts who may follow you around for your entire stay. The house — which, with its appropriately spooky 13 guest rooms, has been called one of the most haunted places in the world — once served as a funeral home, providing a perfect resting point for ghosts between this world and the next. Moreover, there’s also the legend of the Kehoe twins. The hotel shared on its website, “The Kehoe family consisted of 10 children and rumor has it that two of them died in the house.” Although this tale is completely unsubstantiated, it is often repeated on Savannah’s haunted pub crawls and ghost tours. The good news is, there are few reports of the ghost children attempting to interact with guests. Rather, guests often report hearing the sound of children playing, which could be considered an adorable ghost thing to do, right?
17Hundred90 Inn
The 17Hundred90 Inn is beloved among ghost hunters looking for both a place to stay and a refreshing pint. According to Ghost City Tours, the inn consists of what were once three separate buildings, all built in the 1800s — and it’s a popular destination for haunted pub crawls. The tour company adds, “It doesn’t matter which part of the 17Hundred90 you find yourself in. The possibility of having a ghostly run-in is high.” The inn’s primary ghost is a woman named “Anne,” who has been seen roaming its halls (and, more specifically, room 204) for years. As legend has it, Anne lived in the building and suffered some type of loss, which left her in perpetual tears that guests can still hear today. Consequently, there are also reports of Anne interacting with items left in the room by guests — she’s said to have a habit of moving things from one spot to another.
Olde Harbour Inn
The riverside Olde Harbour Inn is upfront about its best-known shadowy figure. The historic inn explains the story of “Hank,” its most famous ghost, on its website, stating: “Guests have reported smelling cigar smoke when no smokers were present, experiencing things moving around, coins dropping on the floor, and other spooky shenanigans.” No one really knows where the spirit came from, though some say he may have been a worker who died in a fire in the building’s early history. It’s worth noting that there’s no evidence “Hank” was the name of a real person; it’s more likely to have been a nickname given by the staff to this apparently friendly ghost. There are plenty of non-phantasmic reasons to stay at this Savannah hotel, though, including its cozy suites with wood floors and the ice cream treats that can be delivered straight to your room — just save a lick for Hank.
Eliza Thompson House
There’s just something about these 19th-century inns that seems to attract all sorts of spirits. The Eliza Thompson House was the first home constructed on Jones Street — meaning it’s had plenty of time to attract ghosts. According to the hotel, the place has a host of resident haunts, including Confederate soldiers who’ve been spotted in an upstairs window and a young girl who’s supposedly been seen in a hallway decked in a white dress. “Whether it’s actually haunted or not, we think this 1847 home is the perfect place to capture the spirit of haunted Savannah, and enjoy some of the spooky fun Savannah celebrates,” the hotel’s website says. Like the others on this list, however, this hotel is worth a stay even for nonbelievers, thanks to its historically accurate rooms, chef-prepared breakfasts, afternoon wine receptions, and overall grandeur.
