Solved Murders - True Crime Stories - Seconds from Vanishing My Terrifying Encounter at a Denver Airport Hotel Lobby #66

Episode Date: August 27, 2025

#horrorstories #reddithorrorstories #ScaryStories #creepypasta #horrortales #hotelhorrorstory #paranormalencounter #denverairportmystery #vanishingpeople #unexplainedevents  After a long flight, all I wanted was rest. Instead, I found myself face-to-face with something I still can’t explain. In the lobby of a seemingly normal Denver airport hotel, I experienced a chilling brush with disappearance, paranoia, and something... not quite human. This isn’t just a story—it’s a warning to always trust your instincts, especially when you're alone and something feels off.  horrorstories, reddithorrorstories, scarystories, horrorstory, creepypasta, horrortales, hotelhorror, denverairport, nearvanishing, paranormalexperience, unexplaineddisappearance, lateflightterrors, liminalspaces, urbanlegend, sleeplessnight, hauntedhotels, truehorrorstories, mysterythriller, somethingwaswatchingme, survivalinstincts

There's so much rugby on Sports Extra from Sky. They've asked me to read the whole lad at the same speed I usually use for the legal bit at the end. Here goes. This winter Sports Extra is jam-packed with rugby. For the first time we've got every Champions Cup match exclusively live, plus action from the URC, the Challenge Cup, and much more. Thus the URC and all the best European rugby all in the same place.

Get more exclusively live tournaments than ever before on Sports Extra. Jampack with rugby. Phew, that is a lot of rugby. Get Sports Extra on Sky for 15 euro a month for 12 months. Search Sports Extra. New Sports Extra customers only. Standard Pressing applies after 12 months for the terms apply. Okay, so let me just say this up front. Every single time I try to tell this story, I feel like people think I'm making it up. Or exaggerating. Or being dramatic. And honestly, that's probably why I don't talk about it much anymore. But it's one of those things that keeps replaying in my head, over and over, like a scene from a movie I didn't ask to watch. So here I am, throwing it out into the void, because maybe, just maybe,

someone out there will understand. It was December 2020. You know, back when the world was still a little upside down and everyone was adjusting to, the new normal. I'd been staying at the Marriott in Denver for a couple nights, specifically the airport Marriott. I don't even remember why I booked that place instead of staying closer to the city, but I guess I thought being near the airport was convenient for heading out early. Anyway, that night I couldn't sleep well. Maybe it was the bed, Maybe it was the anxiety of knowing I had a long drive ahead of me the next day, or maybe it was just one of those nights where my brain wouldn't shut up. I kept tossing and turning, scrolling on my phone, watching random TikToks and YouTube videos, hoping I'd tire myself out. Around 1.30 in the morning, I just thought, screw it. Why stay here any longer?

I might as well leave now and beat the morning traffic. So I got up, threw on some comfy leggings, grabbed my bags, and started heading downstairs. Now, let me paint the scene for you, because this is important. It's about 2 a.m. The hotel is quiet. Too quiet. Like, creepily quiet. The kind of quiet where you almost feel like you're in an abandoned building

instead of a busy hotel near an airport. I didn't even hear any TVs playing from behind the doors of other rooms as I walked down the hall. Not a sound. I pushed the elevator button and, and waited. You know how elevators in hotels can feel kind of eerie when you're by yourself late at night. This one was no exception. The ding felt louder than it should have been when the doors slid open. I stepped inside, clutching my bag tight and stared at the numbers lighting up as I descended. When I finally reached the lobby, I immediately noticed something odd, there wasn't a

single hotel employee in sight. No one at the front desk. No one sweeping or one. Sweeping or wiping down tables. Nothing. That alone gave me a weird feeling. But what made it worse, was the man. There was a man sitting on one of the couches in the lobby. He was slouched back, staring straight ahead like he was in his own little world. He wasn't dressed like a guest. His clothes looked kind of, off. Not dirty exactly, but mismatched in that way where it felt intentional. He had no luggage, no coffee cup, no phone in his hand, just sitting there like he'd been waiting for something. Or someone.

I remember hesitating for a split second as I stepped out of the elevator. It felt like all my instincts screamed at me at once, something's not right. But I brushed it off. I told myself, you're tired. You're overthinking. Just get to the car. the second I stepped out of the elevator with my bags, though, I saw him shift. He straightened up. His head turned. And then, this is the part that still sends chills down my spine,

he reached into his pocket, pulled out a mask, and put it on. Now listen. This was 2020. Masks weren't weird. Everyone was wearing them. But there was something about the way he did it. It wasn't casual. It wasn't like he suddenly remembered, oh right, COVID. No. It was deliberate. Like putting on armor. Like preparing for something.

Then he stood up and started walking toward me. Not casually. Not like he was headed to the vending machine or bathroom or whatever. He walked with purpose. Quick, heavy steps. And the look. Look in his eyes, God, I'll never forget it. I felt my heart drop into my stomach.

My palms went clammy. Okay, stay calm, I thought. Don't freak out. Just get to the door, I picked up the pace. So did he. At this point, I kept looking around the lobby for an employee, any employee, but it was empty. Completely empty. No one at the front desk.

No one mopping the floors. No one refilling the little coffee station. It hit me then, what if they're in on it? I know how paranoid that sounds. But the thought flashed across my brain so fast I couldn't shake it. Why was no one around? Why wasn't anyone seeing this? I could hear his footsteps getting closer.

My bag felt so heavy suddenly, like it was slowing me down. I adjusted it on my shoulder and practically sprinted toward the automatic doors. And then, I swear this is what saved me. The person I've been traveling with, my friend, walked into the lobby from the parking lot right as I was about to push through the doors. She saw me, smiled, and waved. And just like that, the man stopped. I mean he stopped. Dead in his tracks.

Like a predator caught midstock. I didn't even look back fully. Just caught him out of the corner of my eye as he turned on his heel and walked away. Disappeared back toward the couches. I didn't say a word. I grabbed my friend's arm and whispered, let's go. Now, we got in the car, and I didn't even bother checking if he followed us outside. I peeled out of that parking lot like my life depended on it.

And honestly, it probably did. I never called the police. Never reported it. Why? Because at the time, I felt like there wasn't anything to report. What would I say? A guy in a hotel lobby followed me around and put on a mask. He didn't touch me. Didn't say a word. Didn't do anything that could be classified as a crime. But looking back, God, I wish I had called. I keep thinking about how many people have gone missing. at hotels like that. How many women have walked through that same lobby and didn't get as lucky as I did? I don't know who that man was. I don't know what his intentions were. But in my gut, I know, if my friend hadn't walked in when she did, I wouldn't be sitting here writing this.

And the scariest part? I don't think it was random. Something about the emptiness of that lobby. The way he moved. The way no employees were. were around. It felt orchestrated. Like I'd walked straight into a trap. That's why it haunts me. That's why I can't let it go. People say, trust your gut all the time, and I never really understood what that meant until that night. Now, I trust it with everything. Because if I hadn't listened to that little voice in my head screaming run, I'm not sure I'd be here. And the worst part is, I'll never know for sure what would have happened. But I have a pretty good idea.