Stanley Hotel — Estes Park, CO, United States
About Stanley Hotel
When a flood cut power to the hotel in 1911, a maid entered room 217 with a lit candle, not knowing the gas lamp backup system was leaky. She set off an explosion, tumbled down to the dining room, and was taken on dark, flooded roads to the hospital in a coma. That didn't keep Elizabeth Wilson, the head chambermaid, away from the Stanley. She worked there for decades, and according to many, still inhabits room 217 today, arranging shoes and folding shirts as a ghost. When, in 1974, Stephen King and his wife spent the night, they found themselves in the strange predicament of being the only guests on the last day of hotel operations before the winter shut-down. Hoteliers put King and his wife in room 217 (the Presidential Suite). When his wife fell asleep, King hit up the bar before retiring back to their palatial digs, where King had the nightmare of his life. His experiences here inspi…
Literary significance
Stephen King Suite, with a photo of King and his editor, a case of King books for you to read, and a bust of King, who overlooks the suite. There's no longer a creepy shower curtain (or a tub at all) but guests still come just as much for the paranormal lore as the author's stay. You don't need to stay in the suite to experience the creepy King vibes. King brought a packed-sandwich dinner to the MacGregor Room during his stay here. They chowed down here, and King has said it was the scariest dinner he'd ever experienced, with fancy music wafting over the couple, with the rest of the chairs piled up on tables in the soon-to-be-closed hotel. Or try the Whisky Bar, though it is a different bar and space compared to the one where King drank before his fateful dream. You can also wander the hedge maze and rose garden outdoors to reinact the novel (the hedge maze is short and kid-friendly, no…
Authors
Location
333 East Wonderview Avenue, Estes Park, CO 80517, United States