Colorado is not short on old hotels and that means it is not short on haunted hotels. Every town and city seems to boast at least one of these establishments. Indeed, some have even acted as hospitals, like Hotel Colorado in Glenwood Springs during WWII.

Ghostly experiences are not promised, and in fact, many people stay at haunted hotels and no apparitions make an appearance. However, just knowing the stories about a place can make a stay more memorable and less ordinary.

Photo from hotelcolorado.com – Hotel Colorado, Glenwood Springs, Colo.

With a handful of personal experiences and the help of members of the Colorado Ghost Hunters group on Facebook, here are three haunted hotels in colorful Colorado.

Hotel Colorado, Glenwood Springs, Colorado

One of the most majestic buildings in Colorado, this hotel towers over the town of Glenwood Springs in the western part of the state. Built in 1893, Hotel Colorado has hosted dignitaries of all sorts including presidents Taft and Teddy Roosevelt, and the Unsinkable Molly Brown. Some guests have been more infamous than dignified, like Chicago gangster, Diamond Jack Alterie.

From 1943 to the end of World War II, it acted as the US Navy Convalescent Hospital.

Decommissioned in 1946, 6,500 patients stayed there, and there is something about hotels turned hospitals turned hotels that makes them even more susceptible to paranormal activity. Probably because by its very nature, a hospital is not only a place of healing but also of death.

Personally, I have stayed at Hotel Colorado several times. It’s my husband’s favorite hotel in the state. Checking in feels like stepping into a different time, which lends itself to the belief that ghosts could indeed walk these wide hallways and drift around the opulent dining room.

Though ghost stories abound at Hotel Colorado, especially those involving ghostly children and the smell of cigar smoke, I have only had one strange experience at the hotel. I was fast asleep, next to Ryan, when I awoke to what felt like someone sitting on the end of the bed. The sensation was so real that I dared not open my eyes for fear of seeing something or someone sitting on the end of the bed.

Eventually, the feeling went away, but I do count it among one of the oddest things that have happened in my life. Of course, it has not pr

Photo from stanleyhotel.com – Stanley Hotel, Estes Park, Colo.

evented me from staying at Hotel Colorado again and again. After all, the place is gorgeous and truly one-of-a-kind.

The Stanley Hotel, Estes Park, Colorado

Built in the early 1900s, this is perhaps Colorado’s most famous haunted hotel. The story goes that the author Stephen King stayed at the hotel in the 1970s when the hotel was in a state of disarray from lack of investment and care.

King’s stay at The Stanley Hotel inspired his book, “The Shining,” about a family trapped at a haunted hotel in the winter. King’s stay was fortuitous for the hotel, as the book and subsequent movie helped the property gain enormous popularity, and perhaps even spared it from the wrecking ball.

The Stanley Hotel remains a popular destination for Stephen King fans and ghost aficionados from around the globe. The hotel does not hesitate to capitalize on its fame and hosts guided ghost tours year-round to guests and visitors.

There are many ghost stories here, including one about finding one’s clothing folded neatly when the same articles of clothing had been strewn around the room the night before. It’s also quite common to hear children playing in unoccupied rooms around the property.

Guests can book specific rooms at The Stanley Hotel, including where Stephen King stayed,

Room 217, along with others that are deemed more “spirited” than others. Not surprisingly, these rooms fill up fast during the Halloween season.

Hand Hotel Bed & Breakfast, Fairplay, Colorado

This may be the most haunted hotel in all of Colorado, with each room said to have its very own ghostly presence. For instance, Grandma’s Room features a rocking chair that occasionally rocks with no one sitting in it; no one that can be seen that is.

Photo from undercover.com – Hand Hotel Bed & Breakfast, Fairplay, Colo.

Built in 1932 by the Hand family, fifty years later the building had fallen into ruin. Sunlight streamed through holes in the roof, but it was saved in 1987, renovated and it has been a running hotel ever since.

The ghost stories at Hand Hotel Bed & Breakfast are many, and the property has been visited by official ghost hunters over the years. Stories range from the lighthearted like messed beds after housekeeping has made them to the much more sinister. Two sister ghosts, said to have died during a smallpox epidemic in Fairplay, roam the halls and turn on and off the pilot light in the kitchen.

The basement is a constant source of paranormal activity and a favorite of ghost hunters. It is said to be haunted by a demonic dog and more child ghosts who do not have good intentions for those who visit their basement haunt. Thankfully, the ghosts in guest rooms are basically friendly.

I stayed at the Hand Hotel many years ago. While I did not experience any unexplained happenings, we were booked in a room just beyond Grandma’s Room, and this meant we had to walk by its open door several times a day. I would run past the room without looking inside because I did not want to witness that famous rocking chair rock independently of any human intervention.

Whether you’re planning a getaway to soak in the hot springs in Glenwood Springs, curl up with a good book this winter in Estes Park, or relax in the wilds of Fairplay’s South Park region, these hotels await, and so do their ghosts.