Los Angeles True Crime

Stay On Main Hotel: The Dark Legacy of the Infamous Cecil

Los Angeles, California, United States

By the Wicked Cool Places editors · Published Fri, Aug 28, 2026

Why it’s cool

This downtown Los Angeles building masks a grim century of history, having served as a temporary home for notorious serial killers and the site of numerous unsolved mysteries.

West Coast Historic

The tall brick and white Hotel Cecil building in Los Angeles with large red signs on its side above a city street corner.

The facade of this downtown Los Angeles structure looks like many other historic buildings in the city core. However, the address hides a reputation so dark it allegedly inspired a season of television horror.

Known for decades as the Cecil Hotel, the property has recently attempted to shed its grim past through rebranding and renovation, yet the stories of what happened within its 700 rooms continue to fascinate and unsettle the public.

Why It Stands Out

Opened in 1927 to cater to the business class, the hotel fell into a long decline following the Great Depression. By the middle of the century, the clientele shifted from traveling professionals to transients and drifters.

This transition marked the beginning of a violent era. The nearby Psychiatry: An Industry of Death Museum also explores dark themes within the city.

In the 1950s, several individuals ended their lives by leaping from the upper floors. One such incident even claimed the life of a pedestrian on the sidewalk below.

The building gained even more notoriety as a haven for some of history's most feared criminals. In 1985, serial killer Richard Ramirez used a room here as his base of operations during his spree across Southern California.

Only a few years later, Austrian murderer Jack Unterweger stayed at the hotel while working as a journalist, during which time he targeted local women. More recently, the property returned to international headlines in 2013 after the body of a guest was discovered in a rooftop water tank following reports of low pressure and strange odors.

Before You Go

The property is located on Main Street, positioned between 6th and 7th streets. While it operated for a time as the Stay On Main Hotel and Hostel, the building has since closed its doors to short-term travelers.

It has recently been converted into an apartment complex. Visitors can still view the exterior and the historic signage from the street, but the interior is no longer open for public tours or overnight stays.

Those interested in other historic city structures can visit the Heritage Square Museum.

Questions worth answering

Can I book a room for the night?

The building no longer accepts short-term guests or overnight travelers. It has been turned into an apartment complex for residents.

Where exactly is the building located?

You can find the structure on Main Street. It sits between 6th and 7th streets in the downtown core.

Which famous criminals stayed at this location?

Richard Ramirez used the hotel as his base in 1985. Jack Unterweger also lived here while working as a journalist.

Is it possible to see the inside of the property?

The interior is closed to the public and no tours are offered. You can still see the historic signage and facade from the sidewalk.

Visit Snapshot

The building is situated on Main Street in downtown Los Angeles, between 6th and 7th Street. It is no longer operating as a hotel and has been converted into residential apartments.

Location

Los Angeles, California

Know before you go

The hotel is easy to find, as it is on Main Street between 6th street and 7th street.

Editorial source

Stay On Main Hotel

The historic (and recently re-branded) Stay On Main Hotel in downtown Los Angeles has a history of suicide, murder, and madness stretching back more than 50 years when the location was known as the Cecil Hotel. The Cecil was built in 1927 in a bid to attract businessmen to Los Angeles' bustling downtown area.

However, after 20 years of decline and the economic strain of the Great Depression, the respectable businessmen began seeking beds elsewhere and less respectable drifters began seeping in to fill the Cecil’s 700 rooms. Shortly after this shift in clientele the dark events that would come to define the Cecil began.

The suicides started in the 1950s. At least three people jumped to their deaths from their rooms in the Cecil, with one woman landing on a hapless pedestrian who was killed along with her.

Then in 1964, an elderly resident was brutally murdered, her room ransacked, and her killer (or killers) were never caught. By 1985 the hotel was a known flophouse for transients, convicts, and other ne'er-do-wells.

It was during this year that infamous serial murderer Richard Ramirez, also known as the Night Stalker, used the Cecil as his base for his Los Angeles killing spree. Six years later, Austrian crime journalist, and former murderer, Jack Unterweger booked a room in the hotel while covering the area and proceeded to murder a further three prostitutes himself.

After these high profile residents, the Cecil remained an unremarkable, part of the downtown skyline until February of 2013, when hotel guests began to complain about poor water pressure and foul smells. A maintenance worker soon investigated and found the body of a young Canadian woman, Elisa Lam, floating in one of the hotel's rooftop water tanks.

Between the gruesome shock to hotel guests and the bizarre circumstances surrounding Lam's death, the hotel resurfaced in the public eye. The Cecil had struck for the last time.

Shortly after Lam's body was found, the hotel changed hands and was re-branded as Stay On Main Hotel and Hostel. The bright and fun re-branding seems to have erased some of the location's negative reputation, but history has a hard time staying buried, so no one can say how long it will be before the Cecil is heard from once again.

The site is rumored to have been the inspiration for American Horror Story's "Hotel" season. Update: The hotel has closed and been turned to apartments.