Garden Plaza

The Garden Plaza Hotel in Gatlinburg, Tennessee is said to be haunted by the ghosts of two teenage girls who were murdered there.

Two teenage girls named Jenny and Tanya were traveling home after visiting Tanya’s grandmother. They decided to stop over for a few days in Gatlinburg, Tennessee and reserved a room in the Garden Plaza Hotel, which at that time was known as The Sunspree Resort Holiday Inn.

After booking into room 413 and dropping off their bags, the girls spent the day shopping. That night, Jenny and Tanya were in the mood for some fun, so they got dressed up and went to a downtown nightclub. After dancing for a while, the girls went to get a drink and a man who was sitting at the bar started a conversation with them. At the end of the night, when the nightclub was closing, the girls invited him back to their hotel room.

They sat on the beds and chatted for a while, but Tanya soon grew bored. She got up to use the bathroom, leaving Jenny and the man talking in the room. When Tanya flushed the toilet and opened the door, she was horrified to discover that the man had strangled her friend to death.

Quick as a flash, she evaded his clutches and fled out the door. Tanya ran down the hallway, beating on the doors and screaming for help. The man rushed after her. Tanya managed to get to the stairs. The murderer was hot on her heels. Unfortunately, in her haste she made a fatal mistake. She ran upstairs instead of downstairs.

The terrified girl was desperate to escape. Almost out of breath, Tanya reached the top of the stairs. There was a door that led to the roof. She grabbed the handle. It was locked. She turned around, but it was too late. The man was upon her, his evil hands tightening around her throat.

The next morning, a guest in the hotel was returning to his room when he spotted Tanya’s dead body lying at the top of the stairs. He raised the alarm and the police were called. Soon afterwards, a hotel maid, who was cleaning rooms, stumbled upon Jenny’s corpse, sprawled on the floor of room 413.

The scariest thing about this story is that it’s true. The girls’ names were Jenny Stevens (aged 17) and Tanya Roberts (aged 16). They died on July 29, 1980 .The killer’s name is Allan Wayne Hughes. He was convicted of murder and has spent over 30 years in prison.

Ever since the night the girls were murdered, Room 413 in the Garden Plaza Hotel has remained vacant. Guests and employees at the Garden Plaza have reported unusual things happening on the 4th floor. At night, the unmistakable sounds of running footsteps echo through the hallway and the stairwell when nobody is there. Visitors hear shrieks, screams and banging coming from Room 413, even though it s unoccupied. Whenever the hotel maids are cleaning the bathroom in room 413, they often hear strange noises coming from inside the room.