During their holidays in 2004, Dutch guys Onno Oostveen and Marcel Zuidhof realised they had been very lucky in life. Having had many opportunities for self-development, they decided it was time to give back.
In 2006, they travelled to Nicaragua to find out how to contribute to the country's wellbeing. They noticed that school drop-out rates were extremely high. Tourism on the other hand was booming and offering opportunities. The concept of Hotel con Corazón (‘Hotel with Heart’) was born.
In 2007-2008 Marcel and Onno lived in Nicaragua and built the first hotel, that opened in 2008. Soon after, the educational projects were up and running. Also, the Dutch Foundation Hotel con Corazón was established and staffed with professionals in various fields of expertise.
After seeing the tremendous success of the first hotel and of hundreds of educated children, the foundation and founders decided to expand the concept.
Onno and Marcel actively support the managers of the two existing hotels and in parallel they drive the expansion from two to five hotels.