Learn Spanish (Latin America): ¿Dónde están las maletas?

We use a form of estar (like están) because we are talking about the location of specific things. We are asking about las maletas (the suitcases). If we wanted to ask if there are any suitcases around (unspecific existence), we would use hay, as in ¿Hay maletas? (Are there suitcases?).

Could I say ¿Dónde hay las maletas?

No, that would sound very unnatural in Spanish. The word hay (there is/there are) can never be used right before a specific word like el, la, los, or las. Because we are looking for the suitcases (las maletas), you must use estar.

Why does están end with an "n"?

Because we are asking about more than one suitcase. Está is the singular form used for one thing ("it is"), while están is the plural form used for multiple things ("they are"). Since maletas is plural, the verb must match it.

Why does Dónde have an accent mark over the "o"?