14 Terrifying Hotels From Horror Movies and TV

Never After Dark opens this week, and its setting—a former bed-and-breakfast turned private home—got us thinking about the most horrifying hotels we’ve seen on screen before. The kinds of places where ghosts and other creatures await, serial killers lurk, and guests find themselves wishing they’d booked a room literally anywhere else. Overlook Hotel, The Shining (1980) If you visit in the summer months, it’s actually rather pleasant, though you should probably still avoid room 237. But when the Overlook is snowed in for the winter season, its malevolent spirits come out to play, tormenting the caretaker (always Jack Torrance) and his family with creepy visions and murderous urges. Bates Motel, Psycho (1960) Experiencing a change of heart after stealing a bunch of cash from your employer? Your road trip of regret may have you feeling emotionally and physically exhausted, but if you see a run-down motel with an abundance of vacancies and a creepy Victorian house perched just behind it, you should probably keep driving. If you absolutely must stop, avoid taking a shower at all costs. © Neon Bilberry Woods Hotel – Hokum (2026) The local folklore about the witch trapped within its walls is, regrettably, absolutely true. But the true frights sneaking through this quaint Irish country inn are actually human in origin, as an American author finds when he’s trying to resolve some of his own unfinished business there. The Dolphin, 1408 (2007) Two decades after Stephen King dreamed up the Overlook, he wrote about another exceptionally haunted hotel, this one proving you’re not safe even in the middle of New York City. One particular room in the Dolphin has claimed dozens of victims, a warning somehow not strong enough to dissuade a skeptical visitor from pushing his luck. Pinewood Motel, Vacancy (2007) After Psycho, most folks would have second thoughts about checking into a random roadside motel. But sometimes, your car breaks down. You don’t have a choice. And it’s not your fault that the motel in question exists to attract victims for the snuff aficionados who’ve made it their favorite filming location. No-name motel, Identity (2003) There’s a plot twist at the end of Identity that sort of makes its setting—yep, another random roadside motel—a moot point. But for most of it, we’re watching a hodgepodge of stranded travelers hunker down during a dangerous storm, only to start getting picked off by a mysterious, number-obsessed killer. © Magnolia Pictures/Magnet Releasing Yankee Pedlar Inn – The Innkeepers (2011) A historic hotel long rumored to be haunted is about to go out of business, so the two remaining employees seize upon their last chance to document any paranormal activity. The Innkeepers is somehow not a found-footage film, despite that premise, and it delivers some atmospheric scares as well as some unexpectedly oddball humor. Abaddon Hotel – Hell House LLC (2015) This one is a found-footage film, and it’s one of the genre’s better examples, following the ill-fated creation of a Halloween haunt attraction within the walls of an abandoned hotel. Should you find yourself in a similar situation, give any and all clown statues the widest berth possible. Breakwater Inn – Widow’s Bay (2026) The second episode of Apple TV’s Emmy-winning juggernaut gave a splendid showcase to a place no tourist should ever stay, though that won’t stop the mayor from trying to show it’s totally fine. The time distortion in the captain’s suite? Just a mold-related hallucination. The weirdly inappropriate board games? Merely examples of the quirky local sense of humor! The crawl space? Well, uh… maybe stay out of there, actually. Hotel Excelsior, The Witches (1990) A little boy whose grandmother has primed him with cautionary tales about witches knows to be on his guard when the pair travels to a seaside resort that is quite obviously crawling with them. The takeaway is this: beware any hotel willing to host a convention that might result in you, your friends, and their parents being turned into mice. And definitely hide your eyes if it looks like anyone is about to peel their face off. © FX Hotel Cortez – American Horror Story: Hotel (2015-2016) Serial killers. Fashion models. Tormented ghosts. Impossibly gorgeous vampires. An interwoven narrative of gruesome crimes that stretches across multiple decades. Yep: Hotel delivered pure American Horror Story camp, gore, and eye candy, with Lady Gaga heading up the cast and flashbacks to vintage Hollywood oozing in for some extra glamour. Motel Hello, Motel Hell (1980) Psycho meets Texas Chain Saw Massacre in this cult classic about a motel that’s really a front for a rather unusual meatpacking business. In other words, if you check in, you might only check out in sausage form—unless you get drawn into the twisted dynamics of the family running the place. Starlight Hotel, Eaten Alive (1976) Another cult classic, this one actually directed by Texas Chain Saw Massacre helmer Tobe Hooper. It’s the violent, deranged, and delightful tale of a motel owner who shoves anyone he doesn’t like into the nearby swamp to be devoured by his pet crocodile. The surprisingly notable cast includes a pre-Freddy Krueger Robert Englund, a post-Addams Family Carolyn Jones, Texas Chain Saw breakout Marilyn Burns, and future Real Housewives reality star Kyle Richards. Raven’s Inn, Horror Hotel (aka The City of the Dead, 1960) Widow’s Bay featured a scene with characters watching Horror Hotel, and you know that wasn’t a random choice. A college student becomes an unwitting human sacrifice when she visits a Massachusetts town with some highly Satanic secrets lurking in its past—and present, in particular in the basement of the local hotel. The great Christopher Lee plays a coven member, as if you needed any more incentive to check this one out. Want more io9 news? Check out the best movies and TV shows to stream this month and all the upcoming sci-fi, fantasy, and horror books that should be on your radar.