Heathman Hotel - Portland, OR

Step into Portland’s elegant past—and perhaps meet one of its lingering guests—at The Heathman Hotel, one of Oregon’s most famously haunted stays. Since 1927, this historic landmark has welcomed stars, travelers, and, according to legend, a few restless spirits. Heathman offers timeless sophistication with a supernatural twist.

Hotel History

• The Heathman Hotel opened in December 1927 (initially named the “New Heathman Hotel”) as a 10-story, concrete-and-brick structure in downtown Portland, Oregon, built by hotelier George Heathman and the architectural firm DeYoung & Roald.

• It was designed in the Jacobean/Italian Renaissance-influenced style and built as part of Portland’s burgeoning entertainment/theatre district.

• Over the decades the hotel faced the shifting fortunes of downtown Portland post-WWII, underwent a major renovation in about 1984 for roughly $16 million, at which time it dropped the “New” prefix and became simply “The Heathman”.

• More recently it was purchased in 2023 by Aparium Hotel Group and is slated for another renovation to modernize while respecting its historic character.

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Haunted Hot Spots & Reported Paranormal Activity

The Heathman is widely cited as one of Portland’s most haunted hotels, and below are some of the key haunted spots and phenomena:

Haunted Rooms & Floors

• Rooms ending in “03” (notably Room 703, 803, and 1003) are repeatedly reported as haunted.

• The legend: a guest (or guests) on the 7th floor (some say room 703) jumped or fell to his/her death from a window, and the ghost is thought to haunt the entire column of “03” rooms.

• Reported phenomena in these rooms include:

  • Cold spots or sudden chills.

  • Guests waking to find furniture or towels moved, glasses of water missing or emptied.

  • Apparitions or hazy faces seen in corners; one guest claimed a man ran from their closet then vanished.

  • Sensation of a presence in bed (guests feel someone next to them or at the foot of the bed) especially in rooms ending in 03.

Other Haunted Locations Within the Hotel

• Room 510: Reports include a woman crying in a chair, and identity unknown.

• The Library / Mezzanine / Lobby Areas: Because the guest is said to have fallen near the library area (in legend), the library is cited in ghost tour accounts. Housekeeping staff have reported unusual activity in the corridors around the 7th floor and in the library space.

Summary of Paranormal Activity

• The haunted activity is often described as poltergeist-like: objects thrown or moved, electronics behaving oddly (TVs switching on by themselves) and lights flickering.

• Many reports come from guests who left the room and returned to find items tampered with despite no one else recorded entering.

• Some staff are aware of the lore and acknowledge that certain rooms (especially those ending in “03”) are frequently requested by ghost tourists.

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