When you think of Atlantic City, haunted places might not be the first thing that pops your head. Around Atlantic City, hidden among the glitz and the neon lights, are places that might give you the chills. These spots tell tales that aren’t found in your average guidebook, stories that could make your skin crawl.
Forget the bustling casinos and Boardwalk; we’re turning down the shadowy backstreets and into the heart of the eerie. If you’ve got a taste for adventure and don’t mind a little scare, these five creepy destinations are calling your name.
Join us as we explore these fascinating haunts that will add a touch of the supernatural to your next trip.
Resorts Casino Hotel
The Resorts Casino Hotel first opened its doors in 1978, but the building’s history stretches back to 1860. Back then, it served various roles—a hotel, a lodging house, and even a hospital for soldiers during wars. This hotel has two main sections: the Ocean Tower and the Rendezvous Tower. It’s the Ocean Tower that’s rumored to be home to several ghosts.
The spooky occurrences started back in 1903 when they were fixing up the original building. Since then, people have reported hearing strange howling from the higher floors, with no apparent reason why. Visitors and staff often feel sudden chills and hear unexplained sounds in the elevators. Some have even seen a ghostly figure of a man tipping his top hat.
This spirit could be Charlie Chaplin, though the tales have gotten mixed up. Sightings of soldiers from World War II, thought to have passed away when the building was a makeshift hospital, are common. There’s a particularly chilling tale of a guest whose door was shaken violently in the night by an invisible force.
The reason for all this haunting might be the hotel’s thirteenth floor, which is usually avoided in the hotel industry due to superstition.
Estell Manor
Estell Manor, set within the vast Jersey Pine Barrens, is notorious for its ghostly encounters. At the Abbott house, visitors report seeing the ghost of a little girl playing and bouncing a ball. People think she is the spirit of the Abbotts’ adopted daughter, who came into their lives after they tragically lost two sons as infants.
The Ocean City Bed and Breakfast is another spot where guests notice objects moving on their own, hear voices without a source and hear footsteps coming from the second floor when it’s empty. The inn’s first owners also ran a funeral home across the street, leading to speculation that they unintentionally invited spirits back to their lodging.
Over at the Emlyn Physick Estate, the original owners are said to linger. People hear footsteps with no one around, mysterious voices, feel suddenly cold, encounter strange noises, see doors open on their own, and even feel ghostly touches.
A well-known spirit of Estell Manor is Captain Emilio Carranza, who perished in a plane crash during a storm. At the spot where his plane came down, a monument was built to honor his humanitarian missions. Local stories tell that if you visit this memorial at night and turn off your car headlights, you might see his plane descending into the woods. There are also accounts of hearing a plane’s engine struggling and seeing a mysterious mist around his memorial.
Zombie House
The Zombie House on Ocean City’s Boardwalk is a step up in the scare department from Atlantic City’s Haunted Tales Shop. Here, tour guides take you through a house that blends historical facts with spine-tingling surprises.
It’s an affordable adventure for those who love a good fright. This place on 10th street along the Boardwalk is inspired by a well-known zombie-themed video game. It spins a tale about two brothers, Cletus and Connor, whose home is overrun during a zombie outbreak.
As you step into the Zombie House, the cost is just $10 per person. A guide leads the way, and you get props to aim at targets and rack up points throughout the tour.
Inside, you’ll experience zombies clawing at the windows and thumping on the walls. There’s even a clever trick with trackers hidden beneath the floor, making it rumble, which adds to the eerie experience. Atlantic City and its environs are brimming with chilling destinations for those drawn to the macabre. And for those who can’t get enough, there are even more haunted places to explore worldwide, including ghostly castles.
Jonathan Pitney House
Jonathan Pitney, known as the “Father of Atlantic City,” cherished the Pitney House, which he built for his wife Caroline and himself in 1799. He was so attached to it that he asked Caroline never to leave. Pitney passed away in the house, and many believe that the paranormal happenings there are his doing.
Caroline seems to have taken her husband’s words to heart, as she reportedly stayed in the home even beyond death.
Most of the spooky experiences occur in Caroline’s room. While her spirit hasn’t been seen, there are reports of bells and whistles, doors slamming without cause, and sightings of two different men wandering through Caroline’s room.
Others have witnessed lights emerging from a bureau drawer and have heard mysterious voices. It has become a favorite haunt for the spirits that linger, and the ghost hunters who leave the place are thrilled with their supernatural interactions.
Flanders Hotel
The Flanders Hotel is famous for its ghost stories more than any other in the Atlantic City area. It’s the last tall building standing after the Ocean City fire. After the disaster, they made the building even more robust, which some say created the perfect setting for ghosts.
The most famous spirit here is Emily, or the Lady in White. She’s pretty active, moving through the hotel’s halls without a hint of hesitation, often heard singing, laughing, or humming. She’s also known for her playful antics like rattling doorknobs, swinging doors open and shut, and even unscrewing light bulbs.
The hotel’s lower levels have their own tales, haunted by the spirit of a little girl who tragically drowned. It’s said that her spirit stayed after she died, being rushed through the tunnels to the main floor. These underground spaces also echo the troubled spirits of those caught up in the mob’s ruthless past activities, hinting at the area’s darker history.