According to a recent report from the San Francisco Chronicle, the Bay Area is home to two of the most haunted hotels in the country, as highlighted by the Historic Hotels of America. Last week, the hotel group announced that the Claremont Club & Spa in Berkeley and the Fairmont Sonoma Mission Inn & Spa have made the list due to their reported connections to supernatural phenomena.
At the Fairmont Sonoma, both guests and staff have reported sightings of a ghost named Victoria, an early settler of the Sonoma Valley who celebrated her wedding and anniversaries at the resort. It is said that she wanders the hallways on foggy nights, adding an eerie charm to the hotel.
Reports suggest that there is also the spirit of an elderly man who appears in one of the hotel’s oldest rooms, which dates back to the 1920s. Legends tell of a tragic incident where a guest was decapitated in the bathtub by a jealous lover. Since then, the hotel has received numerous accounts of paranormal activity, including flickering lights, unexplained noises, and shadowy figures. The hotel playfully reassures guests that “wine is not the only spirit in the establishment.”
Similarly, the Claremont Club & Spa, also operated by Fairmont, boasts its own rich history of ghostly encounters. Since its opening in 1915, patrons have reported sightings of a ghostly elevator and unsettling sounds. The resort describes this as “an abundance of ghost stories passed down through generations.”
Among the tales is that of a six-year-old girl’s ghost who is said to be gentle; guests who encounter her often describe her as peaceful. Many claim she has visited them at night, extending her hand as if to say, “Hello.”
Other accounts from the hotel include reports of extreme temperature fluctuations in a particularly haunted room on the fourth floor, where both guests and staff have sensed an unusual chill.
The hotel offers ghost history tours every October, with tickets priced at $40, inviting those curious about the spectral stories that linger within their walls.