3 Arizona hotels named among America’s most haunted

Arizona’s historic hotels are nothing if not spooky. Three are even eerie enough to be considered among the most famously haunted lodgings in the U.S.

Earlier this month, the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s Historic Hotels of America program released its 2026 list of the 25 most haunted hotels in the nation. The Hermosa Inn in Paradise Valley, Prescott’s Hassayampa Inn and Tubac Golf Resort & Spa in Tubac were included.

The annual list, which is released every October, highlights historic lodgings whose “lore and legends make for memorable stays.”

All three of the Arizona properties have more than a few ghost stories attached, making them spirited choices.

The Hermosa Inn, for instance, has a lengthy history of unexplained occurrences credited to the spectre of its original owner, Alonzo “Lon” Megargee.

The famed Western artist built the property’s original adobe structures in 1935. Since his death in 1960, Megargee’s ghost has reportedly been spotted by staff and guests haunting rooms or the resort’s bar, according to the Historic Hotels of America’s list.

“The inn’s enduring ghost lore remains closely tied to its founder, with staff and guests frequently attributing unexplained occurrences in the original adobe structures to Lon’s lingering presence,” the list noted.

Other spirits have also caused some mischief at the resort. Sightings of a mysterious Pink Lady are mentioned, along with objects moving on their own and a cowboy appearing in casita mirrors. The Hermosa Inn’s staff even have a shorthand for various mishaps that have befallen the resort over the years, such as falling pots and pans or doors mysteriously slamming: “Lon did it.”

Similar unexplained experiences have occurred at Prescott’s Hassayampa Inn since it opened in 1927. Many involve a ghost named Faith, a forlorn bride who supposedly committed suicide after being abandoned by her husband during their honeymoon.

Guests and employees of the Hassayampa have reportedly encountered a mysterious woman in a pink gown in rooms and hallways over the decades, according to the Historic Hotels of America’s list.

Others claim to have felt chills in the couple’s honeymoon suite at the hotel or had lights or televisions turn on in the middle of the night.

Tubac Golf Resort & Spa, in Tubac, which has previously made Historic Hotels of America’s list, is also a hotbed of close encounters of the paranormal kind. Some of its ghost stories are tied to the property’s origins in 1789, when the late Don Toribio de Otero received a Spanish land grant.

Guests and employees have reported seeing ghostly cowboys, a mysterious doorman and a woman in period clothing. The property’s most famous tale involves a young boy spotted playing near the historic Otero House.

The building is also purportedly home to unexplained voices, strange scents and furniture moving on its own. The stories have even attracted investigators from the Phoenix Arizona Paranormal Society.

For even more ghostly tales from each of these legendary Arizona spots, check out the Historic Hotels of America’s list.