SALT LAKE CITY — “How could you possibly forget about the Stanley Hotel?” That was the primary message I got as I read through the reader comments to my recent article listing the three most haunted hotels in the West. I was thrilled by the great response to the article and found it fascinating to read the creepy hotel experiences shared in the comments section.

While I certainly agree that the Stanley is one of the world’s most infamously haunted hotels, my original list was limited to places I’ve personally visited. Since I’ve never stayed at the Stanley, I couldn’t give a firsthand perspective.

To give the Stanley the credit it deserves, here is a follow-up list featuring the notorious Colorado hotel, as well a haunted hotel I’ve personally visited but didn’t include on my original list because it’s located outside of the western United States.

Stanley Hotel

Located in Estes Park, Colo., the Stanley Hotel was built in 1909 by F.O. Stanley, the early automobile inventor and manufacturer. Similar to contemporaries like the Banff Springs Hotel in Canada, it showcases the opulent grandeur typical of the golden age of travel. And like the Banff Springs, the remote resort is surrounded by natural beauty — in this case the Colorado Rockies.

During its prime, the Stanley was a favorite retreat for the rich and famous. But it lost some of its luster over the years and business declined to the point that when writer Stephen King stayed there one night in 1973, he and wife were the only guests in the 138-room hotel.

As King wandered the dark, lonely hallways, he realized it would make the perfect setting for his next story (which he’d originally planned to set at an amusement park). Though he didn’t write The Shining at the Stanley, as some accounts claim, the book was definitely inspired by its chilling seclusion.

According to hotel lore, King also heard the voices of children playing in the hallway outside his room. The laughter of phantom children is one of the most common complaints from guests at the Stanley, though the grand old hotel boasts a wide range of reported hauntings.

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Fright night: The 3 most haunted hotels in the West

Stories of haunted hotels particularly intrigue me. I've stayed in several of these infamous hotels over the years and have a great appreciation for the history and folklore they embody. Most of them have been harmless enough. Some are even charming. But a select few go beyond mere folklore and have a tangible eeriness to them.

Some claim that F.O. Stanley’s wife, Flora, still walks the halls of the hotel. She was an accomplished pianist and the piano in the ballroom is now said to play itself, the keys pressed by unseen fingers.

Room 407 is rumored to be haunted by the Earl of Dunraven, a curmudgeonly Irishman who once owned the land the Stanley is built upon. His face has been seen peering out the room’s window and guests sometimes claim they can smell the odor of his pipe tobacco.

Another of the Stanley’s most infamous spots is room 217, which is actually the room where King and his wife stayed. In the early years of the hotel, it was the scene of a tragic accident where a gas leak explosion seriously wounded a housekeeper named Elizabeth Wilson. Guests report phantom voices and crying in the room, as well as doors inexplicably opening in the night.

The Stanley is a true classic. From phantom piano players to the impressions of bodies that are regularly found on unoccupied beds, it is a place where history and folklore blend into an undeniably eerie setting.

The Allamanda Hotel

The Allamanda is an abandoned beach resort on the Bahamian island of New Providence. Largely unknown to travelers, it is an ominous relic that deserves a place on any “most haunted” list.

My friend Brody and I happened upon the Allamanda while returning from a scuba diving trip. It is located in a remote area of the island and surrounded by dense trees, but we were fortunate enough to catch a glimpse of it from our boat.

Back on shore, we made our way over a treacherous, rocky point and finally reached the secluded beachfront occupied by the Allamanda. From the condition of the property, it had clearly been abandoned for at least a decade.

The massive resort boasted five large buildings and several bungalows. Their dark hallways and rooms created an unsettling juxtaposition with the emerald Caribbean waters.

We only had time to briefly peruse the grounds before heading back to the marina for a second dive excursion. On the boat ride out to the dive site, we asked our guides if they knew why such a gorgeous resort as the Allamanda was abandoned. They wouldn’t say much about it, other than that the hotel’s windows had all been shattered by a hurricane and that’s why it was deserted.

I found this explanation confusing because Caribbean resorts often deal with treacherous weather and are accustomed to rebounding from storm damage. Also, why did locals avoid the Allamanda? Brody and I had seen no evidence that anyone had been there in years. There was no vandalism or trash on the property.

As we asked more locals about it over the next couple days, we began to learn that those familiar with the hotel felt it harbored secrets dark enough to warrant staying away. The main story we heard involved a local woman who had checked into the hotel many years ago to await her fiancé, who lived on a different island. Her fiancé never arrived and the next morning, the woman was found murdered on the hotel’s steps that led down to the ocean.

The tragic crime was never solved and soon afterwards, frightened guests began complaining of a dark figure stalking the hotel grounds at night. The specter would stagger along the beach and peer in windows with lifeless eyes, terrifying the occupants.

While many guests avoided the sea steps where the woman’s body had been found, some who ventured near it reported the sensation of cold fingers clutching their throat.

As the Allamanda’s macabre reputation spread, business understandably declined. So when most of the hotel’s windows were shattered by a hurricane, the already struggling property was abandoned.

Brody and I returned to properly explore the Allamanda on our last full day on the island. There were a seemingly endless number of hallways and chambers, and we spent hours wandering through the resort’s expanse.

We surveyed the patio area from the top floor of the northernmost building. Two feet of brackish sludge made the pool look like an elaborate stain. In the kitchen of the resort’s restaurant, we found a host of commercial appliances and rows and rows of canned food waiting to be eaten.

The entryway of the resort’s main building boasted an ornate, mosaic-inlaid double staircase. We passed through the arch at the top of the stairs and found ourselves in the Allamanda’s ballroom. The fact that the ballroom was still filled with valuable, hand-carved décor sent a chill down my spine. If thieves and vandals feared this place enough that they stayed out, what did they know that I didn’t?

So what other infamous hotels have I missed? Which hotels, local or international, would go on your world’s most haunted list?