Haunted Hotels in Tucson

Downtown Tucson's grand hotels saw a century of arrivals, departures, and tragedies. Three of them are among the most haunted buildings in the city.

Walk the Hotel Tour

When the railroad reached Tucson in 1880, hotels rose along Congress Street to house the travelers stepping off the trains. The grandest of them collected stories the way they collected guests. These three sit on our nightly walking tour route.

🏨 Hotel Congress

311 E Congress St

Located a stone's throw from the Tucson railroad station, the Hotel Congress was built in 1919 in response to the increase in commerce and visitors. The Tap Room opened in the 1930s and was renamed Tiger's Tap Room after longtime bartender Thomas "Tiger" Zeigler, who worked there starting in 1959.

The Hotel has several well-documented haunted rooms. Room 242 is known as the "woman in the white dress" room. Guests have reported being awakened by a heaviness in the air and seeing a woman sitting on their bed. She appears ghostly, dressed in white, and sometimes lies down beside them. She is said to have taken her own life, and a bullet hole is still present if you know where to look.

Read the full Hotel Congress story →

🏚️ 57 S Scott Ave (Site of the Santa Rita Hotel)

88 E Broadway

The elegant Santa Rita Hotel was built in 1903 in the Mission Revival style and opened in February 1904 to great celebration. It boasted indoor plumbing, a dance floor, cafe, a roof garden, and a swimming pool. At one time the hotel was owned by a business group that included singer Linda Ronstadt's grandfather. The Santa Rita was built on the site of the former Camp Tucson, used post-Civil War to keep the peace in the settlement. The area has a long military history dating back to the 1700s. The last of the hotel was demolished in 2009.

Seven people died at the Santa Rita Hotel. In 1939, a young boy was found dead at the bottom of the pool after his parents retired to the hotel bar. When hotel staff awakened his still-intoxicated parents the next morning, they made their way to the rooftop garden and jumped to their deaths, hitting the concrete alongside the pool.

Read the full 57 S Scott Ave (Site of the Santa Rita Hotel) story →

🔥 Pioneer Hotel

100 N Stone Ave

Built in 1929, the Pioneer International Hotel was one of downtown Tucson's busiest and most iconic venues. Its twelve stories towered over the other buildings, and the Pioneer was a favorite for office parties, family gatherings, and holiday festivities.

Even after rebuilding and refurbishing, the horror of that night had tarred the Pioneer's reputation. It was eventually converted into an office building. The hauntings are well-documented: the sound of running footsteps on the upper floors, murmurings and shrieks in empty rooms, the smell of smoke (especially on the upper floors and in the stairwells), and the rare apparition of a person running wildly through an upper hallway.

Read the full Pioneer Hotel story →

More haunted Tucson: all haunted places, the ghost stories, and the full tour route.

Stand in the lobbies where it happened

Our walking tour starts at Hotel Congress and passes the Santa Rita site and the Pioneer. Nightly at 7 PM.

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