Hotels Have Dark Histories
Unfortunately, hotels have often been sites of tragedy and mystery—and these real-life horror stories are proof.
Elisa Lam
Located in Los Angeles, California, the Cecil Hotel has experienced its fair of darkness. However, the most memorable mystery has to be the disappearance of Elisa Lam.
Jim Winstead, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
A Devastating Ending
Elisa Lam was a 21-year-old college student from Canada. In 2013, she vanished... only to be found three weeks later.
Found In A Unbelievable Place
Sadly, hotel employees discovered Lam's body in a shocking place—the water tank on the roof. Authorities stated that her drowning was an accident—but not everyone believes this story.
under_volcano, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Strange CCTV Footage
The CCTV footage of Elisa Lam is undoubtedly suspect. She can be seen in the hotel elevator, exhibiting odd behavior. But that wasn't even the strangest part.
She Didn't Have A Key
You see, the water tank could only be accessed by someone who had the key to the roof. Only hotel employees had this key. So had did Elisa Lam get access to the water tank that ended her life?
vagueonthehow, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
Madeleine McCann
The McCann family was enjoying a vacation in Portugal when tragedy struck. On May 3, 2006, three-year-old Madeline McCann vanished from her hotel room at the Luz Ocean Club resort.
Bengt Nyman, CC BY-SA 4.0 , via Wikimedia Commons
Disappeared From Her Hotel Room
On that fateful night, Madeleine and her two siblings remained in the hotel room while her parents went out for dinner with their friends. Throughout the evening, her parents checked in on them regularly—but at one point, Madeleine's mother made a chilling discovery. Madeleine was gone.
A Long Nightmare
Madeleine's disappearance stretched into a long nightmare. For the next 11 years, all manner of authorities became involved in her strange case: private detectives, the Portuguese authorities, and Scotland Yard.
Her Case Inspired A Documentary Series
Madeleine McCann's case even inspired the Netflix documentary series, The Disappearance of Madeleine McCann. Though there have been a few fresh leads, her disappearance is still a mystery.
Netflix, The Disappearance of Madeleine McCann (2019)
Rose Burkert And Roger Atkison
The sad ends of Rose Burket and Roger Atkinson date back to September, 1980. Due to a last-minute cancellation, they couple managed to snag the very last room the hotel had to offer. But this was no stroke of luck.
Chanilim714, CC BY-SA 3.0 , Wikimedia Commons
The Housekeeper Found Them
Burket and Atkinson were at the Amana Holiday Inn, close to Williamsburg, Iowa. But the morning after booking their room, the housekeeper stumbled upon a grisly sight.
They Met Mysterious Ends
The housekeeper found the bodies of Burket and Atkinson. Someone had clearly taken their lives. And the details surrounding this devastating scene sparked a mystery.
They Left Behind A Message
For one, whoever responsible for this atrocity wrote a word on the bathroom mirror with a bar of sap: "this." They also placed the victims' feet on top of a desk.
A Strange Coincidence
In an unnerving coincidence, there was also a mortician convention happening, so many visitors were actually staying at the same Inn.
The Case Ran Cold
Following the loss of Rose Burket and Roger Atkinson, the rumor mill began working overtime. One theory is that Atkinson's uncle was the guilty party, as he had recently escaped a mental health center in Nebraska.
Still, the case has since run cold.
Claudia Kirschhoch
A 29-year-old journalist named Claudia Kirschhoch was supposed to go to Havana, Cuba for a business trip—but when it was cancelled, she ended up staying in Negril, Jamaica at the Sandals Beaches Resort.
Just The Clothes On Her Back
During her stay at the resort, Kirschhoch sadly disappeared. There was nothing missing from her hotel room—only the clothes she'd been wearing. However there was some suspicious evidence surrounding her case.
She Made A Friend
You see, Kirschhoch had become close to one of the bartenders—Anthony Grant. Four days after she went missing, Grant took a sick day. What's more?
She Left Traces Behind
During the investigation, traces of Kirschhoch were actually discovered in Grant's car. However, the authorities didn't apprehend him as a suspect.
Her case was never solved.
Jessica Kinsey
In 1995, Jessica Kinsey went missing from a Dollar Inn, located in Cloverdale, Indiana. She was only 14 years old.
Chris Flook, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
She Left With Two Men
Kinsey had gone to visit a friend, but ended up leaving the state with two men: Jimmy Hopkins and his friend Mark Henderson.
She Stayed One Night
Henderson drove to the Inn and booked two rooms: one for himself and one for Kinsey and Hopkins. During the night, Henderson heard disruptive noises coming from Kinsey and Hopkins' room and reportedly checked on them.
However, the next morning, both Hopkins and Kinsey left the Inn.
He Returned Without Her
Apparently, Hopkins drove away with Kinsey. He ended up in California and Tennesee, and eventually made his way back to Missouri—which was where Kinsey originally came from. However, when he returned, he returned alone.
Sarah Minor, Wikimedia Commons
His Story Didn't Make Sense
Jimmy Hopkins shared different information about Jessica Kinsey to her family and the authorities. According to him, Kinsey had run off with a man named Capone. He also provided an address for a hotel that wasn't even real.
Though Hopkins may seem like a suspicious character in this mystery, he was never charged.
Room 871
Reportedly, the 2008 scandal involving the New York Governor Eliot Spitzer took place at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington D.C.—or more specifically—in Room 871.
Timothy Krause, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
A Missing Number
This mystery has nothing to do with the scandal—and everything to do with room number. You see, the number itself mysteriously disappeared.
Almonroth, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
The Culprit Roams Free
After this confusing incident, hotel employees had no choice but to nail the a new suite number in place. The identity of the culprit who snatched the room number was never discovered.
Danny Casolaro
Danny Casolaro was an investigative journalist, whose work may have gotten him into some serious trouble.
Netflix, American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders (2024)
The Octopus
You see, Casolaro had been working on a story that he code-named "the Octopus"—and it's sensitive information would expose some very powerful government officials. He may have paid the ultimate price for his journalism.
Netflix, American Conspiracy: The Octopus Murders (2024)
A Mysterious Demise
In West Virginia, the body of Danny Casolaro was found in a hotel room. He had been planning on meeting a source.
Though the authorities believed Danny Casolaro took his own life, his family suspected it was foul play.
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