Another spooky hotel stop on our road trip around Colorado was the Historic Stanley Estes Park Hotel. This hotel is one of three that has ties to Stephen King’s book, The Shining, a perfect place for those interested in haunted travel. Located in Estes Park, Colorado, The Stanley Hotel was built by Freelan Oscar Stanley in 1909.

Ghostly Inspiration

In 1974, Stephen King and his wife found themselves as the only guests at The Stanley Hotel that was preparing to close for the winter. After roaming the empty halls of the hotel and drinking at the hotel bar with a bartender named Grady, Stephen King went back to his room 217 and fell asleep. He had a nightmare of his small son running through the hallways being chased by a fire hose. Woken up by the nightmare, he lit a cigarette and wrote the outline for the book The Shining. If you own the book, make sure to bring it with you, as the atmosphere will allow you to really immerse yourself in the spooky material.

Stay the Night, if you Dare

While staying two nights at The Stanley Hotel, we had the opportunity to take the night tour. This tour included some history of the hotel but was mostly focused on the hotel’s paranormal activity. We learned that the fourth floor is the most active with a number of ghosts including one called the Cowboy. The adjacent concert hall also has a number of spirits, one being a young girl named Lucy, who we tried to entice with candy.

Overall The Stanley Hotel is a beautiful colonial revival building that was thankfully revived by some eerie storytelling. Make sure to stop by the Whiskey Bar at Cascades Restaurant and grab a redrum punch! Anywhere that has horror-inspired drinks and a spooky atmosphere, the Eerie Outings crew calls home. 👻

You can read about other haunted locations in the magazines provided in our pop-up picnics.

Book a stress-free spooky-themed pop-up picnic experience with Eerie Outings today.