32-Story Convention Hotel, Rebranded 2013
9801 International Dr, Orlando, FL 32819
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$$
Standard convention-hotel rates; varies by season and event calendar.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Modern high-rise convention hotel, fully accessible
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1986 · Convention Hotel Era · Peabody Hotel Brand · Orange County Convention Center District
The Peabody Orlando was developed in 1986 as a southern outpost of the Peabody name, made famous by the Peabody Memphis and its longstanding lobby duck routine. The Orlando property opened with 891 rooms and was later expanded to 1,641, making it one of the largest hotels in central Florida and, at the time of its original construction, the second-tallest building in Orlando.
The hotel was located opposite the Orange County Convention Center on International Drive and operated primarily as a convention-and-meetings property, supplemented by tourist traffic from the nearby theme park corridor. Like its Memphis namesake, the Orlando Peabody hosted a daily duck procession through the lobby, an attraction that drew tourists independent of the lodging business.
In October 2013, Hyatt Hotels Corporation acquired the property and rebranded it as the Hyatt Regency Orlando. The duck program ended with the change in ownership. The building continues to operate as a convention hotel under Hyatt management.
Sources
Paranormal reporting on the property dates primarily from the Peabody era and continues, in lower volume, under Hyatt management. Most accounts originate in regional Orlando ghost-tour writing and aggregator entries rather than documented investigation reports.
The most consistent reports describe shadow figures and translucent humanoid forms in the upper-floor corridors, with the eleventh floor cited most frequently. Witnesses describe whispered voices in unoccupied hallways and sudden cold drafts that pass without explanation. A second category of reports describes belongings rearranged in rooms and faint laughter in spaces with no other guests; these are characterized in regional writing as playful rather than threatening.
Reports of more somber activity reference former guests said to have died at the property, including by suicide. Documentation for these claims in regional reporting is general and lacks named cases or dates; the hotel has not historically permitted formal paranormal investigations, and there is no published official statement on the activity.
Visitors interested in the building's paranormal reputation should treat the existing literature as folklore — atmospheric, repeated across local sources, and not corroborated by independent investigation.
Stay in the 1,641-room high-rise that operated as the Peabody Orlando from 1986 until October 2013, when Hyatt purchased the property and rebranded it. Reported phenomena from the Peabody era include shadow figures in upper-floor corridors and unexplained cold drafts; the hotel does not promote itself as a paranormal destination.
Every HauntBound history is researched from documented sources. We clearly separate verified historical fact from paranormal folklore.
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