Early tall-building designers, fearing a fire on the 13th floor, or fearing tenants' superstitions about the rumor, decided to omit having a 13th floor listed on their elevator numbering. This practice became commonplace, and eventually found its way into American mainstream culture and building design.

The absence of the number 13 in hotels, particularly the 13th floor or room number 13, is primarily due to a widespread cultural superstition known as triskaidekaphobia, or the irrational fear of the number 13. This belief is deeply rooted in Western history, with many tracing it back to the Last Supper, where the 13th guest (Judas Iscariot) betrayed Jesus. In Norse mythology, a similar tale exists where Loki, the 13th god at a banquet, caused chaos. To avoid making guests feel uneasy or "unlucky," hotel developers frequently skip the number, often labeling the floor above the 12th as the 14th. This is not just a legacy practice; even in modern high-rises, elevators are programmed to jump from 12 to 14. For hotel management, it is a practical business decision: if a significant percentage of travelers refuse to sleep in room 13 or stay on the 13th floor, that space becomes a financial liability. Interestingly, in East Asian cultures, you may see similar omissions of the number 4 (tetraphobia) because the word for "four" sounds identical to the word for "death."