A Room With a Spook

With the summer tourist season just around the corner, I thought it might be fun to take a look at some of the hotels in Charleston that offer more than just a comfortable place to rest your head – they also offer the possibility of you being visited by a supernatural being, or haint as the Lowcountry folks are fond of calling them.

So where can you go for this free amenity? First on the list is the Battery Carriage House, located in the heart of the historic district at 20 South Battery. Be sure to ask for room #8, for that’s where the weirdest going-ons seem to occur. Like waking up in the middle of the night to find yourself gazing at a headless torso, dressed in a Confederate soldier’s uniform. Make sure there is a female in the room if you want to experience this because it seems that this ghost, known as the “gentleman ghost”, prefers the opposite sex, although he will politely leave through a wall if they scream out in fear (guess that’s considered a gentlemanly thing to do in the spirit world).

Next on the list is the Embassy Suites Hotel in downtown Charleston, which is located within the walls of the old Citadel military college. When I say old, I mean old, as in the Civil War old. A ghost from this period is said to roam the hotel. He appears to be one of the Citadel’s cadets, a teenager who hasn’t got the news that the war has been over for quite some time and his side didn’t win. But the folks he’s paid a visit to say he seems happy and friendly (Casper would be proud). Not sure why he’s in such a good mood, though, considering he’s missing half his head. Yep, they say there is nothing but air from his eyebrows on up, as if his skull has been ripped off by a cannonball. Not sure about you, but that would tend to put me in a foul mood. But maybe death has taught him something the rest of us don’t know. Anyway, he has been seen so many times by employees of the hotel that they refuse to go near the area he haunts. Makes you feel sorry for the people in that section of the hotel that want room service, doesn’t it?

Last but not least on our list is a bed and breakfast located on Wentworth Street. Built in 1837, it is haunted by the ghost of a slave named George who died trying to swim after a boat that was taking his parents away. He’s quite a mischievous spirit and likes to shake the bed in one particular room and turn the lights on and off. But he also has a dark side, because many say they have heard the sound of a whip cracking in his presence, a sad reminder of how inhuman humans can be at times.

So now you know where to stay if you’re looking for a paranormal experience to go along with your fun day at the beach and visiting Charleston’s many attractions. But don’t ask the hotel owners for a refund if you don’t get spooked, for spirits can be a finicky bunch and may have something better to do than scare the you-know-what out of you on any particular night. But as a precaution, I’d ask for an extra roll of toilet paper when you check in … just in case they do scare the you-know-what out of you!