Haunted hotel guide · Gulfport, Florida
The Haunted Peninsula Inn, Gulfport (Now The Peninsula Bed & Cocktails)
A century-old inn on Gulfport’s main street, reborn as a cocktail-themed boutique hotel, with a gentle ghost named Isabelle and a phantom cat that never left.
For most of the last hundred years, the shingled building at 2937 Beach Boulevard South was simply the Peninsula Inn, the grand old lady of Gulfport, a small arty waterfront town just south of St. Petersburg. It has been a hotel, a hospital during World War II, a nursing home and, from the 2000s, the Historic Peninsula Inn & Spa. It closed in 2022, was sold, and after an 18-month renovation reopened in late 2023 as The Peninsula Bed & Cocktails, with 16 rooms each named after a classic cocktail.
Its ghost stories came through the makeover intact. Guests and local writers describe a gentle woman called Isabelle who drifts through the upstairs halls with a small ghost cat at her heels, a man in 1950s clothes who appears and vanishes, and thumping in empty rooms and corridors that has brought paranormal investigators to the inn over the years. None of it is documented history, but it is one of the best-known haunted stays on Florida’s Gulf Coast.
The Peninsula at a glance
Haunted Rooms Score
- Address 2937 Beach Boulevard South, Gulfport, FL 33707, in the middle of Gulfport’s downtown
- Built Around 1905; later a World War II hospital and a nursing home
- Most haunted spots The upstairs hallways and guest rooms
- Best-known ghosts Isabelle and her little ghost cat, and a man in 1950s clothes
- Booking the haunted room No single room is linked to the ghosts. Ask for an upstairs room when you book direct.
- Good to know No front desk and no overnight staff: check-in is contactless with a keypad code. Upper floors are mainly reached by stairs. Dog friendly.
The ghosts of the Peninsula Inn
Isabelle
The inn’s best-known ghost is a gentle woman known as Isabelle. Florida mystery author Carol J. Perry, who based the haunted Haven House Inn in her novel Be My Ghost partly on the Peninsula, describes her as a kindly presence rather than a frightening one. Guests who mention her talk about a woman glimpsed at the end of an upstairs hall, a sense of company in a quiet room and the feeling of being looked after.
Nobody has put a surname or a date to Isabelle. Some guests assume she is a former guest or resident from the building’s long years as a boarding house and nursing home, but that is guesswork. She is a local legend, not a documented person.
Isabelle's ghost cat
Isabelle is said to keep a small phantom cat with her. The stories describe a cat seen darting along the hallway or curling up on the foot of a bed, which is gone when the guest looks again. With a dog-friendly policy at the new hotel, a real animal is not always the explanation people expect.
The man in 1950s clothes
Older accounts, including the earlier version of this guide, describe the apparition of a man dressed in 1950s-style clothes. He is usually reported standing in a hallway or doorway and disappearing within seconds. Unlike Isabelle, no name or backstory has stuck to him.
Thumps in the halls
The most common report is not a figure at all. Florida Rambler notes recorded incidents of thumping noises from rooms and hallways, and paranormal investigators have visited the building over the years to try to catch them. In a wooden building more than a century old, with guests coming and going on keypad codes at all hours, there are ordinary explanations to rule out first.
The most haunted rooms and places to look
- The upstairs rooms: Most of the stories, from Isabelle in the hallway to the thumping, come from the guest floors above the lobby. Rooms on the second and third floors are mainly reached by stairs.
- The cocktail suites: Two of the 16 rooms are suites, including The Greyhound. Every room is themed on a classic cocktail, with a framed story and recipe for its drink.
- The Lobby Bar and veranda: There is no front desk; a lobby bar greets guests instead, behind French doors off the old veranda. It is the obvious place to ask the bartender whether anyone has met Isabelle lately.
History of The Peninsula Bed & Cocktails
The building dates to around 1905, which makes it one of the oldest in Gulfport. It was a hotel for most of its life, and during World War II it served as a hospital for wounded servicemen. After the war it spent time as a nursing home before it was converted back into an inn.
For decades it traded as the Peninsula Inn and then the Historic Peninsula Inn & Spa, a Victorian-flavored small hotel with a restaurant, known for its veranda and its position a short walk from Gulfport’s waterfront, casino ballroom and galleries. That inn closed in mid-2022.
The building sold for just under $3 million, and the new owners spent around 18 months renovating it. According to the St Pete Catalyst, it had a soft opening in November 2023, with a grand opening planned for January 2024, as The Peninsula Bed & Cocktails. Cocktail culture runs through the whole property: 16 rooms named after drinks such as the Negroni, Mai Tai, Manhattan and Pina Colada, retro 1950s appliances in the first-floor lounge, and a lobby bar in place of a reception desk.
The hotel runs with very few staff. Check-in and check-out are contactless, guests receive a keypad code, and housekeeping and maintenance are on site during the day, but there is no overnight staff. For a haunted stay, that means the building really is quiet after the bar closes.
Tips for a haunted stay
- Book direct and ask for upstairs. No room is officially tied to the ghosts, but the upstairs halls are where the stories come from. Book on the hotel’s own site or call 727-346-9800.
- Check the bar hours. The hotel’s site lists the Lobby Bar as open Thursday to Sunday afternoons and evenings, with live music on weekends, weather permitting.
- Know there is no night desk. You will get a keypad code instead of a key. Keep the hotel’s contact details on your phone.
- Stairs matter. Upper rooms are mainly reached by stairs and the hotel warns the elevator may be out of service at times. Ask for a lower room if that is a concern.
- Walk the waterfront. Gulfport’s casino ballroom, waterfront and Beach Boulevard galleries are all a few minutes away on foot.
- See our guide to haunted hotels in Florida for more places to stay, including two famous haunted hotels a short drive away in St. Petersburg and St. Pete Beach.
More haunted hotels nearby
- The Don CeSar, St. Pete Beach: the pink palace and its lovesick founder
- The Vinoy, St. Petersburg: a 1925 waterfront grand hotel with its own ghost stories
- Haunted places in Tampa: for a night across the bay
- Haunted hotels in Florida: every haunted hotel in the state, ranked and mapped
- Haunted hotels in Florida
Stayed in one of these hotels? Tell us what happened
We collect first-hand accounts from guests and add the best ones to our guides, with your first name and the date of your stay. We read every story before it’s published.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Peninsula Inn in Gulfport haunted?
It has a long local reputation. Guests and writers describe a gentle ghost called Isabelle with a small phantom cat, a man in 1950s clothes and thumping noises in empty rooms and halls. These are guest accounts and local legend rather than documented events.
Is the Peninsula Inn still open?
Yes, under a new name. The Historic Peninsula Inn & Spa closed in 2022, and after a renovation the building reopened in late 2023 as The Peninsula Bed & Cocktails, a 16-room boutique hotel.
Who is Isabelle at the Peninsula Inn?
Isabelle is the name given to the inn’s best-known ghost, a kindly woman said to wander the upstairs halls with a ghost cat. No historical record has been tied to her.
What was the Peninsula Inn before it was a hotel?
The building dates to around 1905. It was a hotel for most of its life, a hospital during World War II and later a nursing home before becoming an inn again.
Is The Peninsula Bed & Cocktails dog friendly?
The hotel’s website describes it as dog friendly. Check the hotel policy page for fees and limits before you book.
Sources
Facts on this page are checked against the hotel’s own website, historic records and news coverage. Ghost stories are reported as guests, staff and local historians tell them. Read how we rate haunted hotels.
- St Pete Catalyst: Themed hotel premieres in Gulfport's downtown
- The Peninsula Bed & Cocktails
- Visit St. Pete/Clearwater: The Peninsula Bed and Cocktails
- CrimeReads: A tour of Florida's haunted hotels
- Florida Rambler: 6 haunted places in Florida
- Narcity: Haunted places to stay overnight in Florida
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About the authors
The Haunted Rooms Team runs public ghost hunts and overnight investigations at historic venues across the United States. We research every hotel in our guides using hotel histories, local archives, news coverage and the accounts of guests and staff, and we review each guide regularly so you are not booking a hotel that has closed or changed its name. Spotted something out of date? Let us know.
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