Room service is only a helicopter away.
Brave holidaymakers are shelling out thousands of dollars to be ferried deep into the Atlantic Ocean and left stranded on a rusting steel tower 80ft above shark-infested waters at a hotel that has been named the world’s most dangerous hotel.
A TikTok video posted by charter boat captain Austin Aycock showing him dropping off six tourists at Frying Pan Tower off the North Carolina coast has racked up 2.2 million views, with commenters torn between horror and admiration.
Adventurers are paying thousands to be ferried 35 miles off the North Carolina coast and left stranded at Frying Pan Tower. The owner is unusual
Charter captain Austin Aycock’s TikTok video of him dropping off six guests at a rusty steel structure perched 80 feet above the shark-infested waters of the Atlantic Ocean has racked up 2.2 million views. @captainaustinsfishing / TikTok
“See you in a couple of days!” Aycock shouted joyfully as he drove away, leaving the group at a decommissioned Coast Guard light station that rises 135 feet above the waves of the Atlantic Ocean.
The clip prompted one viewer to note that the goodbye was “literally like a line from a horror movie.”
Built in 1964 and located approximately 34 miles offshore on a stretch of coastline historically known as the Graveyard of the Atlantic, the tower has been repurposed as one of the most unusual hotels in the United States.
Rates are approximately $200 per person per night with a three-night minimum stay, bringing the total to approximately $600 per guest for short stays.
However, Aycock confirmed in the comments that one group managed to last significantly longer than the weekend. “The longest I was there as a group was two weeks!” he wrote.
Guests are taken to the main deck by high-speed elevator, and there is no way to leave the tower without a helicopter or a 35-mile boat ride back to shore. @ImPeterMc / YouTube
Getting there is half the adventure.
Guests are transported to the main deck via a high-speed elevator that takes them 80 feet in the air in less than a minute. Below, the waters are teeming with great white, bull and tiger sharks.
The tower is located right on Hurricane Alley, where tropical storms regularly hit the structure and wind speeds exceed 100 mph. In case of a medical emergency, assistance can be achieved by helicopter flight or 35-mile boat ride.
The structure is located right on Hurricane Alley, where tropical storms regularly hit it and wind speeds reach 100 mph. The owner is unusual
One of eight bedrooms that can accommodate up to 12 guests. The owner is unusual
Activities include fishing, snorkeling over a protected reef, skeet shooting with biodegradable targets and golf balls made from fish food. @ImPeterMc / YouTube
The tower sleeps up to 12 guests in eight bedrooms with amenities including a full stainless steel kitchen, washer and dryer, hot showers and solar-powered high-speed internet.
Fresh water is supplied through a reverse osmosis filtration system.
Activities range from fishing and snorkeling over the protected reef below the structure to skeet shooting using biodegradable clay targets and playing with biodegradable golf balls made from fish food.
Despite all the comforts, the comments section of Aycock’s viral post reflects widespread disbelief that anyone would volunteer to travel.
“You couldn’t pay me enough to stay on sticks over the ocean,” one viewer wrote. Another said it would be “the easiest no of my life.”
Others saw potential for growth. “Zombies can’t get you out of there,” one commenter wrote, to which Aycock replied: “Zombies are free!”
Aycock said in the comments that one particularly hardy group once stayed there for two full weeks. @ImPeterMc / YouTube
The Frying Pan Tower Hotel is located on the Atlantic Ocean and is an old Coast Guard station. FPTower.org
The tower’s most concerned fans focused on practical issues.
“My anxiety would never allow this,” wrote one viewer with 20,200 likes on the comment. “If there is a medical emergency, do they need to call the Coast Guard?”
The facility is maintained by a community of volunteers dedicated to preserving the historic station. And they have been welcoming guests since 2012.
For groups that don’t want to cook together, a professional chef can be hired, and the 5,000-square-foot helipad makes a great spot for stargazing, watching the sunrise, and lounging in a hammock above the open ocean.
For the more philosophically minded of the 1,240 commenters, there is one question.
“What is the opposite of a bucket list?” one user wrote.