Standing outside the fog-covered ruins of the Old Diplomat Hotel, I found the eerie vibe hard to ignore, as I pictured a cinematic vision of a sequel to The Haunting of Hill House and of Bly Manor. For all its paranormal tales of housing wandering spirits, the history of these rundown, charming architectural remains provided a fascinating backdrop to any eight-episode horror series.
The Haunting at Old Diplomat Hotel | Baguio
First constructed in 1915 on a seventeen-hectare expanse of land on top of a hill, the original building was designed by Fr. Roque Ruaño—the architect who designed the main building of the University of Santo Tomas—and first opened as a retreat house of the American friars of the Dominican Order. Taking advantage of tax exemptions, it was briefly converted into a seminary called Colegio del Santissimo Rosario.
A Witness to the Horrors of World War II
If you thought ghosts of dead priests walking the hallways were good enough horror tale fodder, wait till you learned about what transpired inside the walls of the former Dominican Hill Retreat House during the height of World War II. With Baguio being the site of one of the most hard-fought theaters of war in Luzon—next to Manila, Bataan, and Corregidor—the property wasn't spared from the invading Japanese, who turned it into a garrison.
It was there where the secret police of the Japanese Imperial Army called the Kempeitai imprisoned Filipino prisoners of war and detained and interrogated suspected guerrilla members. Doing so, the Kempeitai were believed to have committed many violent acts through torture and even raping and murdering civilian refugees.
During the liberation of the Philippines in 1945, as the American forces inched closer, a battalion of Japanese soldiers committed hara-kiri in the building's right wing.
The ghost tally of the Dominican Hill Retreat House just increased hundredfolds after the war.
The Diplomat Hotel Years
After decades of neglect, the local government of Baguio converted it to become the Diplomat Hotel. After undergoing a remodeling phase that constructed a total of thirty-three bedrooms but still retained the original architectural features, Diplomat Hotel operated from 1973 until 1987.
During that time, unconfirmed stories of several mysterious deaths of hotel guests added to the horror lore of the property.
If the rumors of hotel guests’ demises were to be believed, then the Dominican Hill Retreat House turned Diplomat Hotel had again increased its ghost tally in the 1980s.
A Charming and Creepy Ruin
Today, the Old Diplomat Hotel still evoked much of its original architectural elements while earning a newfound appeal attracting artists, tourists, and paranormal junkies alike. Declared a National Historical Site after the city government of Baguio acquired ownership of the property in 2005, it was now used for certain events and functions as well as an artist haven. If one was not busy ghost-hunting inside, one could easily spot some interesting mural arts on the walls of the building.
During our visit, a busload of young students—probably on a field trip—were also visiting the abandoned hotel. Despite a lot of people on site that day, I still found myself entering bare rooms by myself. Inside, I saw traces of the old hotel interior through a decrepit bathtub and touches of the former Dominican Retreat House through its olden walls and mossy-covered courtyards.
By embracing its haunting atmosphere straight out of a Stephen King novel, the Old Diplomat Hotel was one of the most stimulating places to visit in the City of Pines. History, check. Good architecture, check. Heritage, check. Ghosts? Uhm, I’d rather not find out myself.
