Ghost Town Guest House Review: Staying Overnight in St. Elmo, Colorado

I loved pretty much everything about this place. The Guest House was packed with character, from the reclaimed materials and antiques to the claw-foot tub, fireplace and little details that had stories behind them. Our hosts made the stay feel incredibly personal, the food was fantastic, and waking up in the middle of an actual Colorado ghost town was every bit as cool as I hoped it would be.

But the best part was getting St. Elmo to ourselves. Once the day-trippers left, it became a completely different place. We could wander Main Street in the evening and again early in the morning, before anyone else arrived. That alone made spending the night worth it.

Unfortunately, you can’t recreate our stay today. Chuck and Sharon are no longer operating the Ghost Town Guest House as a B&B, and the property was sold to new owners in June 2026. I haven’t found any indication that it has reopened for overnight stays.

When we stayed, my only real complaint was that during the day, you were also kind of part of the attraction. St. Elmo gets plenty of visitors, and people regularly stopped to photograph the Guest House while we were inside or sitting outside. There were definitely moments when I understood how the animals at the zoo feel.

Once the day-trippers disappeared, though, we had the quiet ghost-town experience we’d come for. I’m really glad we got to experience this place while we could.

What it’s actually like

The coolest thing about staying at the Ghost Town Guest House is that you’re not just sleeping near St. Elmo. You’re sleeping right in the middle of it. During the day, visitors wander Main Street taking pictures and exploring the old mining town. Then they leave. Suddenly, this place that felt like a tourist attraction a few hours earlier is quiet, and you’re one of the few people still there.

That was the magic for me. We could wander around in the evening and wake up the next morning before the day-trippers arrived, with St. Elmo almost entirely to ourselves. If you’ve ever visited a popular place and wondered what it would be like after everyone went home, this is that experience.

The Guest House itself is almost as interesting as the town. It looks like it has been sitting there since St. Elmo’s mining days, but owner Chuck actually spent about ten years building it using reclaimed materials and antiques. There are stories everywhere you look, including shelving made from old football bleachers that apparently required removing years’ worth of gum from underneath. That is the kind of completely unnecessary detail I live for.

We stayed in the Gold Queen room, with a queen bed, sitting area, gas fireplace, claw-foot tub and separate shower. My favorite spot was the little corner desk overlooking Main Street. There was something wonderfully strange about looking out the window at a ghost town from the room where we were actually spending the night.

And this wasn’t a rough-it-in-a-ghost-town situation. We were incredibly well taken care of. There were snacks and cookies, places to relax, and meals that were legitimately one of the highlights of the stay. Dinner and breakfast were shared with the other guests, which made the experience feel more like being welcomed into someone’s home than checking into a hotel. I spent two years waiting to finally stay here. It was worth the wait.

Visiting a popular ghost town during daylight hours is touristy. Spending the night is touristish.

The practical stuff