Real Haunts

The Redmont Hotel in Birmingham, Alabama first opened in 1925. At the time, it was unusual for a hotel to have private baths for every room, and the Redmont was ahead of the curve. It was acquired in 1938 by renowned businessman Clifford Stiles, who converted the top floor into a private apartment for himself and would become one of the hotel’s most notable ghosts.

Clifford Stiles wouldn’t be the only man to inhabit the penthouse and later haunt the hotel. Hank Williams spent the last night of his life in the old apartment before his tragic and unexpected death in a car accident while on tour in 1952. Guests report seeing his specter wandering through the upper floors of the hotel.

A woman in white also wanders through the hotel, and rumors hint that she may have died in one of the rooms. The spirit of a dog lingers on in the hallways, and strange orbs show up in photographs taken inside the hotel. Guests have reported feeling a strange presence, occasionally accompanied by the sound of disembodied footsteps through the corridors.

Hotel staff won’t recommend any specific rooms for guests looking for a paranormal thrill, but something spooky is sure to happen during any stay with the plethora of extra inhabitants.

Is the Pickwick Hotel Haunted?

The Hotel Highland, formerly known as the Pickwick Hotel, was previously the Pickwick Club. Before that, it was a medical building that served surgeons and dentists from the early 1930’s to the 1980’s.

During the renovation, people began to see a ghostly nurse still making her rounds on the top floors. While the nurse keeps her rounds on the eighth floor, sometimes the elevator mysteriously moves to the eighth floor when no one has called for it. Reportedly, one guest on the eighth floor was told to leave the hotel by an unfriendly, disembodied male voice.

That’s not the only haunted floor in this hotel. Guests have reported many ghostly figures in their rooms. At the reservation desk, there’s been the sounds of a ball bouncing and small girl laughing. Often, people see her playing jacks near the desk. On the fourth and fifth floors, ghosts have been sighted. Two ghostly women were seen on the fourth floor while the fifth floor has, what’s been called, a friendly female spirit.

The basement of the medical building housed a morgue. In the hotel, this space is used for a gym, and guests have reported weird feelings while working out down there. The room would become freezing cold and a soft breeze would pass with the lingering scent of flowers.

Daytona Beach, Florida for many brings up thoughts of white sandy beaches, incredible waves, Spring Break trips, relaxation, and even delicious seafood. In such a warm, and fun loving seaside town there indeed lies one such resort hotel that is home to some rather chilling, yet to be explained, paranormal activity.

Is The Plaza Resort and Spa Haunted?

Just off Florida’s historic A1A route in Daytona Beach, is the historic Plaza Resort and Spa. Over a century old, the Plaza has gone through many changes and seen thousands of guests, some of which paranormal investigators think have never fully left. Opening after a fire destroyed the previous incarnation, the Plaza was opened in 1911. With grandiose ballrooms and a perfect view of the shoreline, the Plaza was host to many events catering to North Florida’s elite. The hotel has been in business for many years and while there have been accidental deaths on site, nothing seemed out of the ordinary until 2013, when a hotel surveillance video quickly went viral.

Ghost captured on hotel security camera?

The hotel’s chief security officer was watching routine surveillance camera footage of the property when something most unusual caught his eye. In the bar area, a misty white apparition began to float in and around the tables and chairs with precision, often starting and stopping. Alert to the footage, an officer was dispatched while the security chief watched in real time footage as the white apparition floated behind the bar and disappeared. The responding officer was so rattled by the experience that he not only claimed to have felt something but he also flat out refused to ever enter the bar area again.

The incident in the bar is not the only time the chief security officer has supposedly had a run in with something of a supernatural inclination. He has had personal encounters with the sometimes unseen apparition that chooses to loudly rattle keys, create vicious cold spots in the middle of known heat wave, and even repetitiously giggle.

Ghosts of the Plaza Resort and Spa

Throughout the hallways and ballrooms, both guests and hotel employees have had strange occurrences that none of them could ever explain. One of the most peculiar behaviors is the opening and closing of doors. Guests have reported being in their rooms and not only will the closet doors open and seemingly close at will, but the door to the room itself will as well. One guest even went so far as to report that his front door opened up on its own and he dashed into the hall to see a dark gray apparition floating down the hall. The chief security officer even went for a routine inspection to a room and unlocked it but the door would not budge as something violently resisted against him from the other side. After budging very hard, he gained entry only to discover the room completely empty inside.

The specter from the surveillance footage proves that there is, in fact, a bump in the night and then some at this beachfront resort. The Plaza Resort and Spa still does fantastic business on the Atlantic coast and reservations are highly encouraged if contemplating a potentially paranormal stay.

The Haunted Tutwiler Hotel

Guests of the Tutwiler Hotel have reported someone knocking on their door. When they open the door, there’s no one there or in the hall outside the door. The sixth floor seems to have more reported encounters with the ghost that the staff has dubbed “The Knocker.” The hotel’s bartender has had his own spooky experiences. One night, he turned off all the lights only to find that something quickly turned them on after him. After five attempts to turn off the lights, he gave up and went home. This happened for five nights in a row. One night, a full course meal and wine were found on a table that nobody claims to have served. It’s as if a ghostly guest did not want to leave.

One of the ghosts haunting the hotel is thought to be the original owner; Japeth Rawls. He seems to be hovering and overseeing the activities of the hotel’s employees. One employee said that he was supposed to hang window treatments, but one kept falling. When he tried to rehang it, he was hit with a board in the room. He decided that Mr. Rawls didn’t like that window treatment. Many of the spirits in the hotel seem to be children as reported by guests and staff. On the second and third floors, guests have heard doors opening and closing as well as footsteps in the corridor.