GHOST STORIES OF TRIPADVISOR
For Halloween 2020, Bompas & Parr published Ghost Stories of Tripadvisor, the first collection of online reviews detailing haunted hotels. The publication, dedicated to all who work in hospitality, is by turns horrific, unseemly and comic.
The publication – a five star spooking
The volume features thirty-nine tales illustrated with over forty unexplained and candid images. These were collected from around the world, from Boscastle to Chicago, each bringing a sense of creeping horror to the page.
Ever visited a hotel and not been able to put your finger on what’s wrong? Or experienced the weird and unexpected during your stay? Some may attribute hotel horror stories to staff mismanagement, poor cleaning regimes or their own baroque psyche. Others, gathered in Ghosts Stories of Tripadvisor attribute them to the supernatural.
The publication is available in a limited-edition hardback with just 25 copies printed (£25 - SOLD OUT) and 200 first editions of the softback edition (£6). Both are purchasable from the studio’s website https://shop.bompasandparr.com/ and should be read beneath the covers with phone torch and hot breath.
Here’s what noted authorities from the world of architecture and ghosts think of the publication:
‘Behind the veneer of hospitality lurks a creepy sense of something else - eerie sounds with no particular origin, corridors that don't quite compute, doors that open onto the unexpected, carpets with threatening auras. Ghost Stories of Tripadvisor collects first-hand accounts of the uncanny hum that haunts hotel worlds.’
Sam Jacob – architect, critic and director of Sam Jacob Studio
‘A riot of laughter. An epic compilation of spooky stories from the eeriest haunted hotel rooms around the world.’
Gonzalo Herrero Delicado – curator at Royal Academy of Arts
'Finally a reliable guide to easy to see ghosts and easy to feel hauntings. Oddly the reviewers do not seem, in the main, to have enjoyed the experience, which makes me think their testimony is all the more reliable. I have just booked room 242 at Lansdowne Strand House and can't wait to get there, I was amazed to be told there was no premium on the room - something that is sure to change now this book is out.'
Viktor Wynd - impresario, collector, owner of The Viktor Wynd Museum of Curiosities
‘Lots of scares here, mainly from rude receptionists and 1970s “shagadelic” (sic) carpets, but if you’re lucky you’ll see the ghost of a child and not be charged for the privilege.’
Roger Clarke – critic, author of A Natural History of Ghosts and youngest ever member of the Society for Psychical Research
‘A 3AM apparition that reeks of urine, phantom meals, disappearing dogs and, of course, the spectre of poor customer service… These are just some of the phenomena documented by guests in these sometimes hilarious, sometimes disconcerting Tripadvisor reviews.'
Edward Parnell – author of Ghostland: In Search of a Haunted Country
‘A riveting collection of spooky stories, by turns hilarious and horrifying.’
Susan Owens – art historian, curator, writer of The Ghost: A Cultural History
‘Take these reviews as a warning -- or quite possibly, a recommendation.’
Linda Rodriguez McRobbie - journalist and author of Princesses Behaving Badly
'This hysterically funny selection of reviews from the Gripers Paradise that is Trip Advisor, show a mixture of genuine fear at having experienced something paranormal, to people evidently wanting a refund having stayed in a grubby and underwhelming room. Some of these moaning minnies could do with a night at the Bates Motel….'
Simon Costin – curator, designer, director of The Museum of Witchcraft & Magic
Excerpts from Tripadvisor.com, © 2020, TripAdvisor, LLC. All rights reserved. Used with permission.
The imprint: a history of weird taste
Bompas & Parr Editions was founded to print food and hospitality-related books, magazines and ephemera too savage, niche, topical or provocative for conventional publishers to consider. The publishing house further focuses on making rare and out-of-print culinary masterworks accessible for food enthusiasts.