Hotel Sorrento

Hotel Sorrento has been included on multiple 'most haunted' lists for Seattle and was named by KING 5 News as one of the 10 most haunted hotels in the world. The most-named resident spirit is Alice B. Toklas (1877-1967), the writer and longtime partner of Gertrude Stein, who is famously associated with the hash brownie recipe in her 1954 cookbook. According to a Seattle Times Pacific NW Magazine feature, Toklas's family moved to Seattle's First Hill in 1890 when she was thirteen, settling at 1006 9th Avenue — adjacent to the future hotel site. Toklas attended the University of Washington before leaving Seattle, and never stayed at the Sorrento, which was not built until 1909.

Despite the temporal mismatch, hotel staff and guests have reported encounters that ghost-tour operators and regional press attribute to Toklas. According to Seattle Terrors and Fodor's coverage, activity is concentrated on the fourth floor and Room 408, where reports include a woman in 1920s-style clothing appearing in hallways, lights flickering without explanation, and sensations of being watched. According to the Seattle Refined feature, mysterious piano music has been reported emanating from the Penthouse Suite when unoccupied, and the Fireside Room bar is associated with reports of drinks moving on their own.

The Sorrento's lore differs from typical hotel ghost stories in that the associated person never lived or died on-site — the haunting narrative is built around childhood proximity to the location. Hotel staff have neither confirmed nor denied the stories, and the hotel has hosted ghost-themed events and silent reading parties that lean into its literary-ghost reputation.