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El hotel está a la derecha.

El hotel está a la derecha.
The hotel is on the right.
From Lesson 30:Asking the way (cerca, a la derecha, todo recto)·Spanish (Spain)

Questions & Answers about El hotel está a la derecha.

Why do we use está instead of es for the hotel?
In Spanish, there are two verbs for "to be": ser and estar. We always use estar (which becomes está for "it") to talk about where things are located, even if that location is permanent like a building.
Why does it say a la derecha instead of en la derecha for "on the right"?
English uses "on" for directions, but Spanish usually uses the preposition a (to or at). So, a la derecha acts more like "to the right" or "at the right". Saying en la derecha for a location or direction sounds unnatural to native speakers.
Is the "h" in hotel pronounced the same as in English?
No, the letter "h" is completely silent in Spanish. You pronounce this word just like otel, putting the spoken emphasis on the second syllable: o-TEL.
I've seen the word derecho before. Is it the same as derecha?
They look similar but mean very different things when navigating! Derecha means "right" (the opposite of left), as seen in a la derecha. But if someone tells you to go todo derecho, they mean go "straight ahead".

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