A Haunted Road Trip: Ghosts, Cocktails, and a Very Creepy Hospital

Every Eastern Washington adventure I’ve had started in Spokane. It’s the city where I love to go for hikes and follow it up with cocktails and great food. Spokane, or as they call it this time of the year, Spook-ane, is also a great place to begin a haunted Eastern Washington road trip. A bar haunted by a librarian, a haunted hotel that was once a front for the mob, a National Historic massacre site, and a creepy hospital haunted by, well, everyone who died there, are the kinds of haunted roadside spots you’ll find scattered across the state. 

So if you’re looking for a ghostly adventure, try this route from Spokane to Walla, Walla and see what else you can find along the way. 

Spokane is the biggest city between Seattle and Minneapolis. There are plenty of haunted places to stay in Spokane, but one of the underrated historic haunts in the city is the Spokane Club Hotel. My nicely appointed boutique room (with a view of Spokane Falls) and comfortable bed might have helped me sleep through any apparition. In fact, I didn’t know about their haunted past before I stayed the night, though apparently my occasionally flickering bathroom light should have been a sign. 

While I was there, I was given a private tour down the labyrinth of its two lower floors, where there was once a true speakeasy (the bar is still there) and illegal gambling. Al Capone once used the club as part of his bootlegging and gambling network. According to the hotel, guests sometimes see lights flicker, hear children’s voices in the hallway (but no children are found), and meet a “playful” spirit known as Henry. He likes room 215 the most and doesn’t want people getting in his space. The ghost of a bride named Helen apparently doesn’t appreciate having her mirror moved by guests. Spook-ane Club ghosts include a chef, a girl in a prom dress, and a young girl in white. And in that old speakeasy, which is now an employee break room, you can apparently hear music and voices from the Prohibition period.

While you’re in the city, get a cocktail at The Bad Seed in the Hillyard neighborhood. Once a library in Spokane and now a bar, The Bad Seed is a place to drink and be haunted by more than your life’s choices. At The Bad Seed, the ghost of the former librarian watches guests disapprovingly from her portrait above their tables and over the stairway to the basement, where a creepy little closet of a room is said to be the most-haunted spot. It’ll leave you wondering, did you actually see her, or did you have a few too many?

And if you’re brave enough, climb the haunted staircase (dubbed “1,000 Steps”), which is said to be guarded by the dead, or join The Haunted Fork Tour with Wander Spokane or a self-guided tour. Before you hit the road the next morning, get breakfast at Spokane’s historic Fergusons Cafe, which is a location for the movie, Benny & Joon. There are no ghosts there, but you will find a great breakfast.

Follow US-195 south from Spokane to Colfax and take a right onto South Mills Street, where you’ll find Saint Ignatius Hospital’s haunted tour. The now dilapidated building is perfect for super-charging your Halloween inspired fears. Paint stripping off of walls, old rooms where a rosary drapes over a Bible next to an old bed in a room, or an unlit room with only a small bit of sunlight peaking through a tear in the window shade reveals you are surrounded by dolls blankly staring your way. I didn’t personally run into ghosts, but I did recall several horror movies from the 1980s. 

The over-a-century-old hospital is said to be a hotbed of paranormal activity, largely for its former patients who checked-in, but never checked-out. People report hearing unexplainable voices of children (kids’ voices apparently love to haunt places), and are sometimes kicked or touched while no one is around. At Rose’s room, people leave Marlboros and Coors Light, which is said to be her favorite.

Next, head to Walla, Walla. Take WA-26 W and WA-127 S to US-12 W, and check in at the Marcus Whitman Hotel & Conference Center. Guests have claimed to see several apparitions at the hotel, including a woman and her child. I didn’t see any ghosts when I stayed there, but I did love my room. After almost a century, the hotel harkens back to its history, using original decorative touches with modern comforts. The Marc Restaurant and The Marc Bar have an elevated dining experience and fantastic cocktail selections. Walla Walla is also a wine-lovers destination, with over 135 wineries nearby and 40 tasting rooms in the city. Pretty Gritty Tours sometimes offers ghost tours of Walla Walla which begin at the hotel.  

Near town, The Whitman Mission National Historic Site is where Protestants missionaries Marcus and Narcissa Whitman set up their outreach to the Cayuse Nation. After the Whitman’s arrived, increasingly more settlers wanting Indigenous land came through along the Oregon Trail, bringing with them a measles epidemic. The Cayuse saw the Whitman’s as the source of their turmoil and led to what is now dubbed the “Whitman massacre” in 1847, where fourteen people, including the Whitmans were killed. Visitors have claimed to hear sounds of children (of course), horses, and said they have been touched, seen apparitions of the Whitmans and others with wounds, and have heard voices telling people to leave. 

The underrated eastern side of Washington state doesn’t get the love that Seattle’s Pacific coast does, but it’s worthy of a road trip, especially for those ghosthunters looking for surprises. And if you don’t see anything in Walla, Walla, well, at least you get to have plenty of wine.