Hotel Del Coronado

Seaside View

It was in 1888 when a grandiose hotel began booking guests into their luxurious resort on Coronado Island near downtown San Diego.  The Hotel del Coronado is an enormous hotel located by the sea and right off the beachfront.  Constructed of wood with a Victorian style façade, the hotel stands 7 stories high with 680 rooms.  Each room has its own unique style and price.  Other facilities you will find at the hotel are pools, a spa, a fitness center, hot tub, shops, bars, and restaurants.  Surrounding the hotel are many cottages for visitors to stay in as well.  The hotel has played host to many celebrities, presidents, and royalty.  You have also seen the hotel in several movies and it has also been the setting for various books.

The Hotel del Coronado is not without its mysteries and ghosts.  There have been numerous reports of strange happens throughout the place.  People have heard voices, seen apparitions and things move by unseen forces.  A person staying on the 7^th floor couldn’t sleep because of the noise from the party above him.  He went down to the lobby to complain at the front desk.  They told the man that it wasn’t possible because he was on the top floor.  Needless to say, he got a different room on a lower floor. 

The most seen and noted apparition around the property is that of Kate Morgan.  Kate was only 24 when she checked into the hotel in 1892.  Employees and guests noticed she looked depressed and seemed lonely.  She mentioned to some of the hotel personnel that she was waiting for a gentleman to join her.  After a few days of anticipating his arrival, he never came and she shot herself in the head.  She died immediately and her body was found a short time later.  Many of the ghosts sighting reports have come from the third floor room where Kate was staying at the time.  Witnesses have said they saw flickering lights, the TV shutting off and on, cool breezes in places where there were no doors or windows, doors opening and shutting, invisible forces moving items in the room, quick temperature changes, disembodied voices, and strange unseen footsteps.  Many ghost enthusiasts request that room for their stay.  The room may be the most active place where Kate reveals herself, but she has been seen in other places around the hotel as well.  Witnesses have reported seeing her in corridors or along the beach.   She seems to have fun in the gift shop where visitors and staff have witnessed breakable items soaring off shelves, and landing in an upright position, permanently intact.

If you are looking for a fabulous place to stay for rest and relaxation, the Hotel del Coronado is for you.  Also, if you don’t mind staying where the ghost of Kate Morgan roams, then this is definitely a vacation destination for you.