FANCY a stay inside a haunted hotel this Halloween? Consider a night at Ettington Park in Stratford Upon Avon.
The property is home to so many ghosts that the AA declared it to be the most haunted hotel in the country, with plenty of ghostly sightings by guests.
Ettington Park’s roots go all the way back to the time of William the Conqueror, and as many as 21 ghosts are said to wander its corridors.
Guests and staff have reported sightings of a woman standing by their bed, floating candles and even taps turning on on their own.
One of the most commonly sighted ghosts is Lady Emma in White, who is believed to be a former governess – she wears a long white gown and vanishes into solid walls.
An older Victorian woman has also been seen and heard walking near the conservatory, while others have seen the ghost of a man walking with his dog inside the library.
One member of staff even claimed that on Christmas Eve, a candle lifted up off the mantelpiece and floated by itself.
The Long Gallery on the top floor has a vaulted ceiling and is said to be one of the eeriest parts of the building.
Lots of guests have taken to social media after their stay to reveal their experience, with one writing on Facebook: “I woke in the night feeling rather cold and was hit by a feeling of pure fear. It felt like someone was leaning over me and so close I couldn’t move .
“The room was completely black but I was totally convinced someone was there. I don’t know how long I lay terrified before I screamed.”
Another said that during their stay they woke up in the middle of the night to find the taps running and had to “sleep with the lights on all night.”
Talking to The Sun, another guest said that he woke and was laying in bed when he saw a light under the door.
When he opened it, he “saw this woman standing there, screaming, but there was no sound. I was really freaked out.”
The hotel is tied closely to The Shirleys, one of Warwickshire’s oldest families and has owned Ettington for many years.
There’s evidence that people have been living in the area for at least 2,000 years and that it’s possible a Roman villa once existed on the site of the Ettington Park Hotel.
Next door is a private chapel with a graveyard and tombs, ancient headstones and a pet cemetery.
The hotel even featured in the 1963 film ‘The Haunting’ which follows a small group who spend several nights in a sinister, isolated mansion to investigate whether it is truly haunted.
Aside from its hauntings, visitors describe the hotel as incredibly beautiful and it’s a popular wedding venue too.
If you fancy a stay and perhaps a glimpse of a ghost, the hotel has a variety of rooms from superior to feature and classic.
Meals are served in the grand Drawing Room which has tapestries and enormous windows with views of the grounds.
Afternoon tea is popular too and starts from £29 per adult.
The hotel even has its own spa with a huge swimming pool, hot tub and treatments too from manicures to massage.
Classic rooms start from £125 per night.