Built in 1927 on the former grounds of the high school its haunting superintendent never left, this Adirondack landmark ranks among USA TODAY's top haunted hotels in America.
100 Main Street, Saranac Lake, NY 12983
Research updated June 2026
Age
All Ages
Cost
$$$$
Overnight rooms available; Great Hall bar open to non-guests.
Access
Wheelchair OK
Urban hotel; elevator access throughout
Equipment
Photos OK
Est. 1927 · Built 1927 on the site of Saranac Lake High School · First fireproof hotel in the Adirondacks · Paul Smith's College hospitality training facility 1962–2006 · National Register of Historic Places, 2019 · USA TODAY top 10 most haunted hotels in America, 2024
The site of Hotel Saranac had been occupied for decades by Saranac Lake's high school, where Howard Littell served as school superintendent for nearly 35 years. When the school relocated in 1926, construction began immediately on the hotel that would replace it. Architects William Scopes and Maurice Feustmann completed the six-story Colonial Revival structure in 1927 — 102 rooms, steel framing, concrete floors, and a lobby on the second floor modeled on the Grand Salon of the Davanzati Palace in Florence.
The hotel operated continuously through much of the 20th century as a regional anchor for the Adirondack resort trade. In 1962, Paul Smith's College — the nearby two-year hospitality institution — took over management, using the building as a live training facility for hotel management students until 2006, when enrollment changes made the arrangement impractical. The hotel closed, sitting vacant for roughly seven years.
A $35-million restoration project, the most significant the building had seen, returned the hotel to service in 2018 under the Hilton Curio Collection brand. New York State listed the building on the National Register of Historic Places in 2019. During the renovation, a team from the Adirondack Park Paranormal Society documented their findings in the building — they concluded the hotel "does, in this team's professional opinion, contain spiritual energy."
Sources
The haunting claims at Hotel Saranac trace back to a single structural fact: the building sits on the grounds of the high school where Howard Littell spent 35 years as superintendent. Littell is consistently described as the hotel's most visually distinct ghost — a figure in a black tailcoat and top hat, spotted walking the basement corridors. The assumption in staff accounts is that he never followed the school when it relocated.
Katherine Stickney, identified in hotel accounts as a local schoolteacher, died at the hotel sometime in the early 1930s. She is reportedly seen in the fourth-floor hallway near Room 408, described in consistent detail: a young woman in a powder-blue 1930s gown or white nightgown, dark hair pinned in soft waves, sometimes reflected in the tall mirrors.
The third floor belongs to Emily Balsam, who lived at the hotel as a long-term resident until her death in her room in 1983. Her ghost is not directly sighted but her cat's scratching on the third floor is the most frequently reported sensory detail in that wing. Frances Peroni, who taught there during the Paul Smith's College years, is associated with sightings near the second-floor ballroom.
During renovations in 2015, the Adirondack Park Paranormal Society documented disembodied voices, shadowy figures in hallways, humming and singing, and a strong sense of presence. Their formal assessment: "not harmful or dangerous to staff or guest."
In 2024, USA TODAY ranked Hotel Saranac among the top 10 most haunted hotels in America.
Notable Entities
Guest rooms available for overnight booking through hotelsaranac.com. Room 408 on the fourth floor and the third-floor corridor near Emily Balsam's former room are frequently mentioned in staff and guest accounts.
Non-guests can visit the hotel's Great Hall bar on the first floor, which has accumulated the most consistent reports of unexplained footsteps, flickering lights, and door activity. The hotel is listed on the National Register of Historic Places (2019) and is a member of Historic Hotels of America.
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