When looking for places while traveling, you will use both hay and estar, but they serve different purposes.
Finding unspecific places
Use hay when you are looking for any place of a certain kind, or just stating that something exists. It is usually paired with words like un, una, unos, or unas (a, an, some).
| Is there a museum in the city? | ¿Hay un museo en la ciudad? |
| Where is there a clean bathroom? | ¿Dónde hay un baño limpio? |
| There is an old hotel here. | Aquí hay un hotel viejo. |
Locating specific places
When you are looking for a specific place, or stating the exact location of a place you already know about, use the verb estar. This is usually paired with definite articles like el, la, los, or las (the).
| Where is the hotel? | ¿Dónde está el hotel? |
| The bathroom is close to the door. | El baño está cerca de la puerta. |
| The museum is in the old city. | El museo está en la ciudad vieja. |
Singular vs. plural
Remember that hay never changes its form, even for plural items. But when using estar, you must use está for a singular item and están for plural items.
| There are some red suitcases here. | Aquí hay unas maletas rojas. |
| Where are the suitcases? | ¿Dónde están las maletas? |
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