The Millennium Biltmore Hotel
The Millennium Biltmore Hotel opened its doors for the first time in 1923. The luxurious destination was built to cater for Los Angeles’ high society, yet served many different purposes throughout its life time.
The Millennium Biltmore Hotel hosted the Academy Awards from 1935 until the beginning of World War II, when it was repurposed as a facility to serve soldiers on leave with rest and recreation. The stunning hotel’s interior has also made appearances across the small and silver screen featuring in Entourage, Fight Club and the Slimer scene from Ghostbusters, which seems fitting for a building with such close links to the paranormal world.
Hauntings of The Millennium Biltmore Hotel
The glamorous and grandeur Millennium Biltmore Hotel is an impressive building with an even more impressive paranormal track record. Many believe it to be one of Los Angeles’ most haunted buildings. Its infamy is in part spurred on by its association with one of America’s most well known, unsolved murders.
Shortly before her death in 1947 Elizabeth Short was sighted at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel’s bar. This is one of the last places she was seen alive before entering the infamy of becoming the Black Dahlia murder. Elizabeth Short’s body was later discovered dumped on an empty lot of land, completely drained of blood, naked, mutilated and cut completely in half by an incision dividing her torso. The murder captured the attention of the public, remains one of California’s most recognized unsolved crimes and ignited Black Dahlia ghost stories with the Millennium Biltmore Hotel at the epicenter. Many reports of a lady with dark hair, wearing a black dress in 1940’s fashion have been made at the Hotel. She is usually seen on the tenth and eleventh floors, roaming through the lobby or riding the elevator to floor six before disappearing into thin air or walking through a wall. One man claims to have rode the elevator with this lady in black, only to see her disappear when they reached level six. He was shocked to pick up a true crime book in a store a few days later and recognize the ghost from the elevator as Elizabeth Short.
Though the Black Dahlia is the most famous ghost to roam the Millennium Biltmore Hotel’s halls, she is not the only one. There have been numerous instances where sightings of a group of soldiers’ apparitions have moved through the lobby, thought to be residual energy left behind from the hotel’s history in World War II. Another spirit thought to haunt the hotel from around this era is the ghost of a female nurse who has commonly been seen on the second floor, where cots were set out for visiting soldiers during the war.
The spirits of children have also been encountered within the Biltmore Hotel. Countless sightings of a little girl have been made and many others have heard her footsteps hurriedly running along the corridors of floor 9, as well as her disembodied, playful giggling. Another more disturbing apparition of a child is rumored to occupy the roof of the hotel. Some reports exist of people who have seen the ghost of a little boy on the roof who has no facial features present.
Plenty more paranormal instances have helped the Millennium Biltmore Hotel build its haunted reputation. Both staff and visitors to the hotel have experienced phantom sounds of a party happening on the first floor, other unexplainable noises and voices, orbs of light, sudden temperature drops, cold drafts and the feeling that an invisible presence is around. It’s no wonder why countless staff have refused and fear working late shifts at the hotel.
Staying at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel
The Millennium Biltmore Hotel is a premier spot to stay within the Los Angeles Downtown area. The location is central, rooms are clean and the lobby and lounge areas are stunning in design. Did I mention it’s a great hotel for paranormal buffs to investigate? I enjoyed my stay here, but didn’t personally have any paranormal experiences. That is not to say they don’t happen, they’ve even been documented via Tripadvisor reviews! Let me know in the comments below if you’ve had any strange or unexplainable hotel experiences.
If you do stay in Los Angeles are are looking for other haunted places to check out around town, look no further. I’ve compiled LA’s 10 most haunted hot spots for you.
Thanks for reading!
xoxo
Posted by Makayla on December 27, 2019
I also want to visit this hotel and Elizabeth short sound really cool to study about in my 8th grade class I think my teacher and friends would like it to I wish that my dad could take me one day it would be fun
Posted by LAUREN OWENS on December 31, 2019
We stayed here for Rose Bowl 2017. I felt a haunted chill the second I walked in. My husband got a severe case of the flu. Our room freezes us out then turned so hot. The maintenance guy seemed reluctant to fix the air. Almost like he knew what would happen. My husband recovered fully when we left. Def a spirit haunting us!
Posted by Amy on January 1, 2020
That is so strange! Thank you so much for sharing your experience here with me, Lauren!
Posted by nev on January 7, 2020
The hotel is really cool i do a lot of research on haunted areas and i loved this page
Posted by Amy on January 8, 2020
Thanks for leaving a comment, Nev. Glad you enjoyed this article about the haunted Millennium Biltmore Hotel. It is an awesome place with some pretty creepy ghost stories.
Posted by Andrea on January 23, 2020
I stayed here last year for my birthday in room 1054. I’m an LA native, a Hollywood Historian, and I have also long been obsessed with the Elizabeth Short case, so naturally I wanted to come and experience a night here. Upon checking in, my gf and I felt like we were not alone. When I opened the closet to unpack our bags, I felt a very quick, sudden sense of fear which quickly subsided. I definitely felt a presence for a lot of the time.
After going out to dinner we returned to the hotel and took photos and videos inside the lobby. One of the videos captured what I can only describe as looking like shadowy clouds, all moving quickly together, across the lobby near the ceiling. It was pretty amazing to see that.
Then it was time to go to bed. Luckily I am a deep sleeper so I was able to get a restful night’s sleep. My gf, on the other hand, had a hard time sleeping that night. She said she could hear what sounded like a party going on next door. She heard two male voices and one female voice, and she thought it sounded like they were speaking English, but not exactly modern English. She said that their tone and cadence actually sounded like the people in my Old Hollywood movies. She definitely felt uneasy. When we got home I had a field day looking up all of the Ghost stories I could find on the hotel. I was astonished to find out that the spirit of Elizabeth is said to be on the tenth and eleventh floors. We had stayed on the tenth floor.
Definitely an amazing experience and I would definitely come back and stay again. My gf, on the other hand, might need a little convincing….
Posted by Amy on January 27, 2020
Thanks so much for reading and leaving me a comment, Andrea! It is always cool to hear from other people who have stayed in this hotel and even better to know that you had some strange experiences there of your own. I appreciate you sharing this and hope you are able to convince your gf to stay there again with you soon!
Posted by Erika Tinney on February 12, 2020
I recently was reviewing photos from a trip I had taken. My first stop was at the Biltmore and I loved everything about the hotel. I explored and had a great time. Never did I have a feeling of unease. A year after while I reviewed photos I could swear I caught a ghost on camera. I was at the bar and there appears in a few pictures a ghostly image of a bartender….as in he was completely transparent. In one photo there is a mirror in the background and where he is standing he does not reflect in the mirror.
Posted by Amy on February 12, 2020
Wow! That is crazy to hear! Thanks for sharing this, Erika.
Posted by Brenna on June 24, 2020
I used this blog as a main source for a paper I did and I was the only one in the grade that got full marks. The Biltmore is one of my #1 interests and it’s my dream to go. I love the history behind it and I’ve researched the amazing hauntings of the building. I know more than I should about the Black Dahlia murder than a thirteen-year-old probably should, but it’s just so interesting. Your website got me hooked on the building and the history behind it. Basically, thank you for writing these interesting articles and informing all of us on these historical places! I really admire you and home to be like you some day!
Posted by Amy on June 25, 2020
Hey Breanna! Thanks so much for leaving this comment. It is so cool to hear this, nice work! I hope you are able to make it there for yourself one day. I’m super flattered too. Cheers.
Posted by Lee on August 17, 2020
I am glad I read this my husband woke up at 3am in the morning he said the room got really cold saying he heard a man screaming right outside our window but we are on the 5th floor All the way at the end of the hall way 572 corner room when he went tHe window and saw nothing then he heard the sound when a needle hits the record he then woke me up terrified saying we have to leave. I got him to calm down and we started googling things about the hotel and realized this hotel was really haunted so thanks for this article because I thought he was going crazy
Posted by Amy on August 22, 2020
Thanks for sharing your experience at this haunted hotel, Lee.
Posted by jazlyn on December 12, 2020
i love this it is so creepy but fun i love the stories
Posted by Amy on December 12, 2020
Thanks for reading.
Posted by Maria on January 2, 2021
I had went down to the gym/pool area around midnight to workout. Felt a presence or someone watching me but it did not bother me. What did bother me is all of the sudden I felt something went in my body and I felt I was burning up! I realized ok that’s not normal and I left.
Posted by Amy on January 5, 2021
Hi Maria. Thanks for sharing your paranormal experience at the haunted Millennium Biltmore Hotel.
Posted by Robert Nield on February 7, 2021
Hi Amy, some interesting comments – especially the lady who heard two men and a woman. I have researched the Black Dahla case in detail. The murder was carried-out in the hotel in January 1947. Betty Short was tortured to death over a five day period – it was all filmed. There were two murderers, one was Dr George Hodel (suspected by the FBI) who carried-out the surgical bisection, the other was a very famous Holywood figure who worked for Colombia studios. I’ll leave you to guess who it was but a big hint is in The Lady from Shanghai – a film from which key incriminating scenes (in the crazy house) were cut.
Posted by Amy on February 7, 2021
Wow, thanks for sharing Robert!
Posted by Natalia Cortez on February 12, 2021
A few friends and I stayed here a couple weeks ago because we were curious about the haunted stories that people have experienced here. We walked around a few of the haunted floors but once we got to the 10th and 11th floor there was this very weird feeling right as we exit the elevator that we never felt entering any of the other floors. All of our body’s felt very very heavy and out of breath. Even walking it felt heavy just trying to lift our feet to take steps. The feeling went away as soon as we left the 10th floor it was really weird.
Posted by Amy on February 14, 2021
Wow, that is so cool. Thanks Natalia for sharing your experience at the haunted Milennium Biltmore Hotel.
Posted by Wanda on April 26, 2021
I was there this past weekend celebrating my birthday. I told my friends that this hotel feels and looks like the Shining! We stayed on the 5th floor and I had to walk all the way down to the hallway just to get ice. Once I got there the window as well as the shutters were wide open. Found it odd since the weather was very cool. Our room was extremely cold as well. Every time I walked in the hallways it felt creepy and I felt out of place. At times it felt like someone was with me, never saying anything just walking with me. Went for a dip in the pool and I was amazed at all of the pictures I saw that reminded me of Jack Nicholson’s character. Definitely not going back there.
Posted by Amy on April 27, 2021
Thanks for sharing, Wanda!
Posted by Jana on December 5, 2021
My husband and I just stayed here last weekend. I had no idea of this creepy history. We stayed in room 1116 even . Eek. This has been fun to read and had I known the history I would have been ghost hunting.
Posted by Amy on December 15, 2021
So cool to know you got to stay there, Jana! Thanks for sharing.
Posted by Chris Foster on January 14, 2022
Hello, we recently stayed here (01/02/2022). We
Lost lost power that night. The clerk was busy, so we had to wait for them to check us in. They upgraded our room to the 11th floor (1155). 1215am power goes out. Then doors were throughout the hotel were slamming shut (mainly top three floors) I, personally seen a shadowy figure walk by the room through the crack at the Bottom of the door but noise of footsteps. I’m not much of a believer of paranormal activity. Thank god! because I probably would not have stayed there lol. Def cool to hear what sounded like every door opening and closing as though people were leaving their room, only to find nobody in the hall. Still can’t explain it. But I don’t ever see my wife going back as she was spooked. For me…. There’s a reasoning for everything? Right. Good read thx. On a side note. I stayed here a few years ago to catch a football game and never experienced anything…. Also curious why the hotel light was dim then bright, however the hotel did mot restore power in between? And do they purposely close the doors between hallway corridors for noise at night? They def do not help as they were opening and slamming shut lol.
Posted by Amy on February 11, 2022
That figure you saw was interesting. Thanks for sharing!
Posted by Crystalclear312 on February 5, 2022
My daughter and I stayed here in December 2019 for a few nights… A friend of ours lives in LA with her husband and she suggested that we stay with them for the rest of our holiday… She told me to pack my bags while she had to run a few errands and she took my daughter with her. As I was getting into the elevator to press a fifth floor I realize the button was already pressed and nobody else was in the elevator or waiting upstairs it was completely empty. I also had a black dress that was not in the closet and I completely forgot about it until my next flight a week later… looking back Elizabeth Shorts presence was there. I had no clue that she stayed there the night before she died.
A week before visiting I colored my blonde hair jet black. Perhaps her spirit was watching me before I even got there. My whole life I’ve been highly intuitive. It was definitely a creepy experience, however, I don’t feel that she would harm anybody. The hotel itself is absolutely gorgeous and I highly recommend it. There was a huge Christmas tree in the middle of the lobby when we checked in. I guess my only suggestion is save your money if you want to fully embrace this experience.
Posted by Amy on February 11, 2022
Thanks for sharing your experience with us!