Halloween comes around once a year, but at some properties throughout the South, spirits roam year-round.
For a "hauntingly" good time and the possibility of a supernatural experience, check in at any one of the 21 properties.
St. Louis, Missouri
What once served as the home for the Lemps, the country's first beer brewers, is now considered one of the most haunted structures in the country. Take the ghost tour to learn the beer barons' tragedies..
Eureka Springs, Arkansas
If these walls could talk, you would get an earful about the property's storied history as it served separately as a hotel, a college, and a hospital run by a quack. As "America's Most Haunted" hotel, 1886 Crescent Hotel has plenty of ghost stories and offers a ghost tour where guests can learn more about "The Ghost in the Morgue," among others.
Galveston, Texas
At over 110 years old, "The Queen of the Gulf" has its share of spirits such as the "Ghost Bride," who ended her life when she heard that her betrothed's ship had sunk. (In a cruel twist of fate, he showed up alive at the hotel a few days later.) It is said her spirit still roams part of the property.
Learn about the guests who've stayed well past Grand Galvez's check-out time on a 90-minute tour with the "Ghostess of Galveston."
The Emily Morgan San Antonio - a DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel
San Antonio, Texas
Known as "the official hotel of the Alamo," at one time, the hotel housed a medical facility, which had a morgue and a psychiatric ward on-site. Guests have reported unexplained noises, apparitions and the feeling of being touched. Floors seven, nine, 11 and 12 are said to have the most paranormal activity.
St. Francisville, Louisiana
It is believed that nine identified ghosts roam the grounds of The Myrtles Plantation, including a slave girl named "Chloe." The former antebellum-era plantation is one of the country's most haunted homes.
Darrow, Louisiana
The 'crown jewel of Louisiana's River Road' offers two unexplained tales. One of those happens to be one of Le Petite Fille (The Little Girl). She has been spotted on the property during the day, either in the hallway or on the stairs.
Cheneyville, Louisiana
The three-story Loyd Hall Plantation, built in 1820, is situated on 640 acres of a working farm. And yes, like many old structures in Louisiana, it has its share of ghost stories. There have been four known deaths in the house and unexplained happenings since.
New Orleans, Louisiana
Among the spirits at the property include a maid known as "Mrs. Clean." Once paranormal researchers asked why she stayed. The maid, whose mother, grandmother and great-grandmother also worked at the hotel, responded she was picking up after housekeeping to ensure high standards.
New Orleans, Louisiana
Once the historic Orleans Ballroom and Theater, and a convent, many of the property's spirits come from the property's past. Some ghosts that consider Bourbon Orleans to be theirs include a Confederate soldier, a nun and a dancer in the ballroom.
Natchez, Mississippi
According to Karla Brown of Downtown Karla Brown Tours, Trips & Shuttle Services, several bed-and-breakfasts state they're haunted, like Monmouth Historic Inn. Some have heard General John Anthony Quitman, former owner, walking up the stairs at the property.
Birmingham, Alabama
The city's oldest operating hotel opened in 1925, touting private bathrooms and cold water. The property is believed to be haunted by its previous owner, Clifford Stiles, who died in 1975.
Interestingly enough, the other ghost that frequents The Redmont is that of Hank Williams. On what would be his last night, he overnighted at the hotel en route to West Virginia.
Jekyll Island, Georgia
There have been seven reported ghosts that have been known to haunt this resort. They range from a ghostly bellman who delivers bridegrooms their pressed suits to the ghost of a former president who walks the veranda at sunset.
Chattanooga, Tennessee
According to Ghost City Tours, spirits roam the property's third floor. However, for a chance meeting with the resident ghost, Annalisa Netherly, the tour recommends requesting room 311.
Nashville, Tennessee
The hotel is home to a resident ghost named Abigail. Legend has it that a young woman, Abigail, said goodbye to her soldier on the Union Station train platform during World War II before he shipped off to France. When she arrived at the same spot to greet him on his return, she learned he was killed in action. Distraught, Abigail threw herself in front of a passing locomotive far below. The forlorn spirit of Abigail, still looking for her lost love, can reportedly be seen wandering the main terminal and her presence is felt in Room 711. Now known as the Abigail Room, guests can request to stay in the haunted suite.
Her story also lives on at the hotel's bar and restaurant in the grand lobby, Carter's with The Abigail Cocktail. The signature libation is made with local spirit Picker's Vodka, St. Germain, grapefruit juice, lemon and bubbles.
St. Augustine, Florida
The oldest inn in America's oldest city is said to be haunted by a former servant known as "Lily." Apparitions have appeared, and strange occurrences have happened in the third-floor room known as "Lily's Room."
St. Pete Beach, Florida
Over the years, many reported sightings and strange incidents have occurred at the property. However, the most common presence felt through the building is that of Mr. Thomas Rowe, who brought the Don CeSar to life and is the focal point of the hotel's love story.
People have reported seeing Mr. Rowe throughout the hotel, on the beach, and interacting with guests and staff. Sometimes in the evening, it's said you can look up to the windows on the 5th floor and see the figure of a man watching from above.
Charleston, South Carolina
In the early 1930s, New Yorker Ned Cohen was found face down with his body smashed in the middle of King Street, facing toward the old Citadel's parade grounds.
Today, visitors hear eerie and unexplained sounds at night, all too familiar to the bell staff and room attendants walking the halls. Some see the image in shirt sleeves; others feel his presence throughout the hotel.
Asheville, North Carolina
For nearly half a century, there has been the belief that a female ghost roams the hallways of the main inn. The spirit is referred to as the "Pink Lady" because of her flowing pink gown.
It is believed the young woman was a guest in room 545 in the 1920s. She either jumped or was pushed to her death in the Palm Court, five floors below. No records exist that support these claims, but the incident may have been kept quiet to avoid negative publicity. Nevertheless, reports of her sightings still occur; some say they see a pink mist, others a full apparition of a young long-haired beauty in a pink gown.
The Seelbach Hilton Louisville
Louisville, Kentucky
Legend says two lovers were to be married at the hotel in 1907, but the groom met an untimely death on his way to the wedding. His then-distraught bride threw herself down the elevator shaft, falling 10 stories to her death. The bride is said to continue to haunt the halls of this historic hotel.
Boone Tavern Hotel of Berea College
Berea, Kentucky
The historic property attracts ghost hunters with its three-day ghost hunts. Some guests report seeing the apparition of a young boy in their photographs. At times, the voice of a boy named "Timmy" can be heard in the hotel basement.
Middleton, Virginia
Heralded as the oldest and longest continuously run inn in the country, The Wayside Inn has been the home away from home for many notables, like Thomas Edison and Tom Cruise. The property has attracted otherworldly guests as well.
The Wayside Inn has reported various paranormal activities, such as objects disappearing and turning up later in a different location, items flying off the shelf and more unexplained happenings.
Parkersburg, West Virginia
Built in 1889, the property is known for several hauntings, mainly from the gaslight era, says Susan Sheppard, story-teller and creator of Haunted Parkersburg Ghost Tours.
The primary haunting at the hotel is "the smoking gentleman," the builder of the hotel, Mr. William N. Chancellor. Not only has his apparition been seen at the hotel, but his cigar smoke lingers throughout the establishment and along the ghost tour route.
Omni Shoreham Hotel, Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
During Shoreham's early years, three people died unexpectedly in suite 870, two being the hotel's owners' daughter and wife.
During its vacancy, there were claims of mysterious noises, doors slamming shut and furniture moving.
special thanks to Historic Hotels of America for additional information
photo credits: (top) Lemp Mansion, courtesy of Lemp Mansion; Read House Hotel, courtesy of Chattanooga CVB; Blennerhassett Hotel, courtesy of Parkersburg CVB; Bourbon Orleans, Loyd Hall Plantation and Seelbach, personal collection