Radio Hoyer was founded in 1954 by Mr. Horacio Hoyer in Curaçao, the largest island of the Netherlands Antilles in the Southern Caribbean. Mr. Hoyer was a well-known musician and athlete who in the evenings converted his sporting goods store into a recording studio. He produced records under the Hoyco label.

At the time, Radio Hoyer 1 (1010 kHz AM) was the first to start broadcasting in Papiamento, the local language. Hoyer believed that this was very important to stimulate the local culture. In 1959, Horacio Hoyer expanded into the Dutch language with a second station: Radio Hoyer 2 (1500 kHz AM). After his passing in 1987, the square on which the studios are located was named Plasa Horacio Hoyer. His daughter Helen succeeded him.

In 1984 Radio Hoyer made history when its new FM transmitters were installed on top of the Tafelberg (101.9 MHz and 105.1 MHz). Radio Hoyer was the first commercial radio station in the world to make use of FM transmitters that are fully powered by solar energy. The system was designed by the Radio Hoyer technical advisor, Fred M. Chumaceiro.

For the following 20 years, Radio Hoyer operated in both AM and FM bands. In 2004, shortly after celebrating its 50th anniversary, Radio Hoyer closed down its AM transmitters. Broadcasting continues only in the FM band. During the AM transmission period Radio Hoyer 2 also broadcasted the debates in parliament on a regular basis. Radio Hoyer is the leader in local, international, and sports news on Curaçao. Music also plays an important role in the programming. Radio Hoyer can also be heard well in Bonaire.