The Most Haunted Hotels in San Diego

Posted: 03.07.2025 | Updated: 03.07.2025

When choosing where to stay on a trip to San Diego, you might be prioritizing a room with an ocean view or a hotel with a relaxing pool. Yet, at some of the nicest hotels in town, you may find an uninvited apparition in your room. 

If you want to stay at a haunted hotel in San Diego, you have plenty of good options. Yet, you may be wanting just a taste of the spectral scene in San Diego. 

If that’s the case, you can book a ghost tour with San Diego Ghosts to see the highlights of the spookiest places in town without having to worry about an apparition messing up your sleep schedule.

What is the most haunted hotel in San Diego?

Of all the haunted hotels in San Diego, there are three that stand out as some of the most phantom-active spots in the entire state. The most haunted hotels in San Diego include: 

• The Horton Grand Hotel 
• Hotel Del Coronado
• The US Grant 

Horton Grand Hotel: The Home of the Murdered Gambler

The Horton Grand Hotel isn’t your run-of-the-mill American hotel. Originally built in 1886, the ornate Victorian style of the hotel was based on the luxurious inns of Austria. 

After opening amidst the popularity boom of the California Gold Rush, the Horton Grand Hotel welcomed everyone from famed sheriff Wyatt Earp to President Benjamin Harrison. It was a highly sought after inn for many years, until the 1960s. 

Poor management and a disregard for old buildings led the hotel to be on the docket to be destroyed in the 1970s. However, a developer saw the beauty of the building and decided to manually remove every brick, window, and door and rebuild it a few blocks away. 

The process was extremely time-consuming and costly: reconstructing the Horton Grand’s staircase cost $200,000 alone. However, the effort paid off, and the hotel is now a beloved feature of the Gaslamp Quarter. 

Who Haunts the Horton Grand Hotel?

Despite being moved, it seems the resident ghost of the Horton Grand stuck with the building. The spirit’s name is Roger Whitaker. 

In the early 20th century, Whitaker had developed a reputation for enjoying his alcohol and cheating at cards. He checked into the Horton Grand Hotel one night and was given room 309. 

Whitaker went to play cards at a nearby bar and was discovered to have cheated once again. Unfortunately for Whitaker, he had already tried to swindle this group of men before, and this time, they weren’t standing for it. 

After being shot at, Whitaker ran back to room 309 and hid in his wardrobe. His assailants pursued him and easily found his hiding spot. They shot him in the wardrobe, and Whitaker died on the spot. 

Ever since, guests in both the original and new location have experienced strange things while staying in room 309. While sleeping, the bed will violently shake — jolting the guests awake. The lights are also known to flicker and items in the bathroom are often moved around by an invisible hand. 

Hotel Del Coronado: The Site of the Infamous Kate Morgan Case

Built on Coronado Island in 1888, Hotel Del Coronado cost an astounding $1 million to construct. It cemented itself as one of the finest hotels in all of California, drawing visitors from all corners of the globe to relax at its 5-star rooms. 

Yet, just a few years after opening, the resort gained nationwide attention for a much darker reason. 

Kate Morgan’s Ghost

In 1892, a woman checked into Hotel Del Coronado by herself, telling staff that a man would be meeting her there. 

Well, four days went by, and no man turned up. Staff noticed that the woman, who had not given a name, started to become more and more agitated and anxious. On the fifth day, a guest went to use an outside staircase to head down to the beach when they discovered a woman’s lifeless body. 

Further investigation showed that the mysterious woman had been shot in the head. It was determined to be self-inflicted. After distributing the woman’s photo to hundreds of police stations across the country, the unnamed woman became a celebrity. Everyone wanted to know who the heartbroken woman at Hotel Del Coronado was. 

Eventually, it was discovered that the woman’s name was Kate Morgan. She was a servant in Los Angeles who had apparently run off to meet her lover in San Diego. When he didn’t show, she couldn’t face the disappointment. 

Morgan hasn’t been able to move on from the hotel where she took her last breath. Staff and guests see her all around the property in a black lace dress, though she’s most often seen around the third floor, where her room was. 

In the third floor rooms, guests have experienced everything from the TV suddenly turning on to sudden spikes and drops in temperature to doors slamming on their own. After a shower, one guest spotted “KM” drawn on the steamy mirror in the bathroom, leaving little question about who was present in their room. 

The US Grant: Where the Daughter-in-Law of a President Resides

While it’s not quite as old as the previously mentioned haunted hotels, the US Grant still has plenty of history from its 110 years in operation. The hotel was opened in 1910 by Ulysses S. Grant Jr., the son of President Grant, and his wife Fannie Chaffee Grant. Fannie actually purchased the land the hotel sat on, as she came from wealth herself (she was the daughter of Colorado’s first senator). 

Excited guests flocked to the state-of-the-art hotel, and the Grants soon knew they had a success on their hands. However, they couldn’t enjoy the triumph for long. 

Sadly, Fannie died just a year after the hotel was opened. As was common back in the day, Ulysses didn’t wait very long before remarrying, bringing a stepmother into the home he shared with his and Fannie’s children. 

It seems his quick rebound didn’t sit too well with Fannie’s ghost. Ever since, guests have noted seeing an apparition of a woman in a formal white dress. Many believe it’s Fannie in her wedding dress, still determined to remind Ulysses of her presence. 

Fannie is known to do more than make a ghostly appearance too. She’ll do everything from flicker lights to move items. In fact, many people have set something down in the ballroom for a moment, only to turn around and find it’s gone. 

What is Fannie doing with the collection of things she’s built up over the years? Or is she still trying to get back at her husband by making the guests’ experience just a little less perfect?

Haunted San Diego

Aside from haunted hotels, San Diego has ghosts whose backstories track back to tales of espionage, betrayal, and tragedy. A German spy haunts the William Heath Davis House, where he hid out to collect intel during World War II. An old sea captain is often seen around the Yuma Building, perhaps from when he frequented it during its brothel days. 

San Diego has dozens of ghost stories that show just how wild the city was in its early days. To explore the most haunted sites for yourself, book a ghost tour with San Diego Ghosts tonight. 

Curious about other haunted hotels around the U.S.? Follow us on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok to learn about more eerie hotels nationwide. To read about other spooky locations around San Diego, check out our blog. 

Sources:

• https://sdghosts.com/horton-grand-hotel/
• https://sdghosts.com/
• https://www.hortongrand.com/history
• https://www.hoteldel.com/press/haunted-hotel-del-coronado/
• https://lajollamom.com/haunted-hotels-in-san-diego/