Kate's room Our creepiness rating 💀💀💀💀💀
Citing its own 2002 book Beautiful Stranger, the hotel claims guests in her former third-floor room report flickering lights, a TV that switches itself on and off, breezes, moving objects and footsteps. It also tells of items falling from shelves in its gift shop. Source: Hotel del Coronado.
Facts below are drawn from the linked sources.
Real history
When it opened in 1888 the Del was the largest resort hotel in the world. It is a rare surviving wooden Victorian beach resort and was named a National Historic Landmark in 1977 (Wikipedia).
The hotel says a young woman checked in alone under an assumed name in November 1892 and was found dead on an exterior staircase on Nov. 29. The coroner ruled the gunshot wound self-inflicted, and she was later identified as Kate Morgan (Hotel del Coronado).
Ghost stories
These are reported legends, not verified events. The creepiness score (1–5) is Spook Atlas's own editorial rating, not a measurement.
Was it even Kate? Our creepiness rating 💀💀💀💀💀
A 2009 research summary posted by a San Diego paranormal group argues the "Beautiful Stranger" may not have been Kate Morgan, listing details it says do not fit. Source: sdparanormal.com research summary (PDF).
A 2009 research summary posted by a San Diego paranormal group argues the "Beautiful Stranger" may not have been Kate Morgan, listing details it says do not fit. Source: sdparanormal.com research summary (PDF).
Then and now
Public access
Open to the public It is an operating resort (Wikipedia). Last checked: Oct 31, 2026.
Explore more
- More places in Coronado and California
- More haunted & abandoned hotels
- Nearby: Whaley House (San Diego, CA), Mission Inn (Riverside, CA), RMS Queen Mary (Long Beach, CA), Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel (Los Angeles, CA)
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