Disney Fans Take Matters Into Their Own Hands, Open Haunted Mansion Hotel

Walt Disney World and Disney Parks across the globe are known for many exciting and thrilling attractions. However, few attractions are as beloved and iconic as the Haunted Mansion.

Guests can enjoy the Haunted Mansion at four different Disney parks across the world. The attraction is found in New Orleans Square at Disneyland, Liberty Square at Walt Disney World, Fantasyland at Tokyo Disneyland, and Frontierland at Disneyland Paris. This makes it the only park attraction that can be found at four different Disney parks in four different lands.

Credit: Disney

The first Haunted Mansion attraction opened at Disneyland in August of 1969. After eight years of construction work on the ride’s mansion exterior and spooky story-filled interior, the attraction was finally ready to welcome guests. The grim grinning ghosts of New Orleans Square invited guests to retire in their quiet mansion or at least visit as they were passing through Disneyland.

The Imagineers anticipated the ride being a hit with guests, so much so that they built the animatronics used in Walt Disney World’s attraction at the same time as Disneyland’s animatronics. Just two years later, in 1971, the Haunted Mansion was included as one of Walt Disney World’s opening day attractions on October 1, 1971.

Just over ten years later, the Haunted Mansion was opened for guests visiting Tokyo Disneyland in 1983. The last installment of the famous attraction arrived at Disneyland Paris in 1992 as Phantom Manor. Each park offers its own spooky rendition of the ride, but happy haunts are present in all versions.

The Haunted Mansion Takes the Big Screen

Credit: Disney

Starting in 2003, the Haunted Mansion made its debut from the theme parks to the big screens with the premier of The Haunted Mansion starring Eddie Murphy and Marsha Thomason. In this film, Murphy and Thomason’s characters find themselves trapped within the Haunted Mansion, eager to find a way out but finding the answers to more important questions along the way.

Almost 20 years later, the next adaptation of the Haunted Mansion film premiered with Muppets Haunted Mansion in 2021, starring Darren Criss, Taraji P. Henson, and Will Arnett. This film was a hit with young kids and long-time Muppet fans alike. The most recent film adaptation was released this past July in 2023, featuring many stars, including LaKeith Stanfield, Rosario Dawson, Tiffany Haddish, Jared Leto, Owen Wilson, Danny DeVito, Dan Levy, and Jamie Lee Curtis.

Now Accepting Reservations

Credit: @ghoulish_sanctuary, Instagram

To all the long-time Haunted Mansion fans, we can now ask, would you stay in this Haunted Mansion? They always say there’s room for one more, and now a couple in Florida has made sure your spooky accommodations are ready!

Recently, a couple shared how they made their dream of bringing Disney’s Haunted Mansion to life a reality by transforming a Florida rental property into the ultimate Haunted Mansion-themed getaway. The couple shared on social media about their “burning desire for a Haunted Mansion hotel” and how they made it a reality in just two months.

I saw a post 2 months ago about us needing a Haunted Mansion hotel. I agreed, and it inspired my partner and I to take matters into our own hands…
byu/FancyPantsBlanton inthehauntedmansion

The couple also shared before and after photos of the property, and the results are nothing short of impressive! Their “Haunted Mansion hotel,” officially named the Ghoulish Sanctuary, is located in Kissimmee, Florida, very close to the Walt Disney World Resort. The Ghoulish Sanctuary is now open for reservations on Airbnb for Disney fans who have dreamed of being guest #1,000 at Disney’s Haunted Mansion.

Disney fans on social media have been overwhelmingly positive in their responses to the couple’s DIY “Haunted Mansion hotel.” One guest responded saying, “Take. My. Money.” While another was in the spooky spirit, saying, “Tell your family that these horror stories will last you a lifetime… We’re just dying to have you.”

Would you stay at the Ghoulish Sanctuary? Let us know in the comments below!