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Business Trip to San Jose

Hello Everyone, I'm heading to San Jose on a business trip in July. Anyone have suggestions for places to eat and sights to see. I'm renting a car and will be there for a week, so I'll have some time for a few short side trips as well. Thanks in advance for your tips! Sarah

Sarah, Which hotel will you be staying at? Assuming that you will be downtown, much of the Center City area can be explored on foot or by taking the Light Rail. Key points of interest in the city's(www.sanjose.org)downtown area include: The Tech Museum of Innovation(www.thetech.org) across from the Fairmont Hotel, the San Jose Museum of Art(www.sjmusart.org) at Market and San Fernando, as well as San Pedro Square. In San Pedro Square(www.sanpedrosquare.com)there are numerous great restaurants, as well as the Peralta Adobe(the oldest structure in the city dating back to the late 1700's) and the Fallon House which was one of the earliest mayor's residence). There are other restaurants along the South First Street Area(SoFA District) which is a nighclub area as well. Metro's Music in the Park free concert series in Plaza De Cesar Chavez Park in front of the Fairmont Hotel is on each Thursday from 5:00-8:15 PM (www.sj-downtown.com) Downtown Farmers' Market in San Pedro Square Fridays(10AM-2PM) There is also a Farmers' Market Sunday mornings in Japantown(www.japantownsanjose.org) Dependi ng on when you will be in town, the San Jsoe America Festival and Fireworks will be on Thursday July 4th(www.americafestival.com) and the International San Jose Mariachi Festival will be happening July 10-14 at the Center for the Performing arts downtown and at the Mexican Heritage Plaza at Alum Rock and King. Outside of the Downtown Area some of the key points to visit would be: History Park(www.historysanjose.org) in Kelley Park which consists of both old and replica buildings replicating San Jose's past over 100 yrs. ago. Also in Kelley Park the Japanese Gardens are worth checking out. Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum(www.rosicrucian.org) in the city's Rosegarden Neighborhood. The Municipal Rosegarden (Naglee and Dana Avenues) a couple of blocks from the Egyptian Museum is also worth a stroll to check out the flowers in bloom. The touristy, but nevertheless interesting Winchester Mystery House(www.winchestermysterhouse.com) Willow Glen Neighborhood just south of downtown. Lincoln Avenue has unique shops and sidewalk cafes. Antique Row on West San Carlos Street(http://www.antiqueinfo.com/briarwood/antiquerow.htm) Places I would recommend outside of the city would be: The Old Town area of Los Gatos(http://www.los-gatos.ca.us/los_gatos/traveler.html) a suburb of San Jose. Side Trips: Monterey (www.monterey.com) and Carmel(www.carmelbythesea.com). In Monterey the key points would be the Monterey Bay Aquarium, 17 Mile Drive, and lunch or dinner at a seafood restaurant on Fisherman's Wharf. Carmel is a quaint town with many cafes and shops. Further south, take the scenic Highway 1 alon the Central Coast to Big Sur and down to San Simeon for a visit to Hearst Castle(www.hearst-castle.org) Be sure to makes reservations for Hearst Castle. There are places to stay in nearby Cambria. Another recommendation would be to spend the day at Big Basin State Redwoods State Park (www.bigbasin.org) in the Santa Cruz Mountain above San Jose. The Roaring Camp Railroad (www.roaringcamp.com) has a steam train tour through the redwoods which I also would recommend. Have a great trip.

Sarah, Here is a better website for information on the town of Los Gatos. http://www.los-gatos.org/

Sarah, And, of course, what trip to San Jose would be complete without a wonderful side-trip to beautiful San Francisco! www.sfvisitor.org www.sfgate. com/traveler/guide/ http://www.zpub.com/sf/sf-visit.html www.digitalcity.com/sanfrancisco/ www.timeout.com/sanfrancisco/

Kenny, I don't think that Sarah was asking specifically about San Francisco. Sarah, Sorry about the advertising from the SF Visitor's Bureau.

Los Gatos is certainly a nice little town nearby as is Saratoga with many small excellent restaurants and shops. At the top of hwy 9 from Saratoga is Big Basin State Park---beautiful redwoods and I think prettier than Muir Woods. You can also visit my hometown, Palo Alto, and see the shops and restaurants on University Road, Stanford and the great art museum at Stanford's campus. It has funny open hours so check ahead. In SJ the Tech Museum is nice as is the Contemporary art museum and the cathedral--St. Joseph's is a very pretty old church. San Pedro Square is fun and has some worthwhile restaurants. In Saratoga also is Villa Montalvo which offers concerts in the summer.

Um, "Kev", Sarah specifically asked for short side trips. San Francisco is 45 miles or so away. Definitely qualifies as a short side trip in my book and it's a great city to visit as well! Be sure to check out Palo Alto as well. After all these years, I still love the Stanford mall!

Dan and Kev, I think it may be a little bit of "beating San Jose at it's own game", without the bashing?

Dan @ Stanford, SF is more like 50-60 miles depending on where from San Jose you are coming from. I won't quibble about the miles. But the time that it takes to get to SF can be more on the order of 1.5-2 hours, depending on the traffic. It sounds as if Sarah is primarily in San Jose on business and may not have alot of time for sightseeing too far out of the San Jose area. I think that Kam's suggestions of Palo Alto, Stanford, the San Jose Museum of Contemporary Art, St. Joseph's Cathedral Basilica, and Big Basin are worthwhile sidetrips which are easily doable in a day's time. SF would require more of an extended overnight stay than just a day trip based on the amount of time it would take to go and come.

PALO ALTO!! University Avenue is a fun street - it has great restaurants and shops. There is an old theatre called the Stanford Theatre that plays old movies. Wednesdays during the summer they play silent movies with organ accompaniment - fun! http://www.swixo.com/stanford/ Walk around the Stanford campus, too. They have a free museum on campus, as well as a huge outdoor Rodin sculpture garden. http://www.stanford.edu/dept/ccva/

Two more suggestions: For a beautiful walk, try Shoreline Park in Mountain View, and if you have time, drive over to Santa Cruz for a peek at the Pacific. If seeing one of California's missions interests you, Mission Santa Clara, on the campus of Santa Clara University, is very close to downtown SJ. Welcome to the South SF Bay.

Sarah, David, Kam, June, and CAgal have some great suggestions. I agree with Kev that San Francisco is more than just a short side trip. There is plenty to see and do in the San Jose area. Some of my favorite restaurants in Downtown San Jose that I would recommend: Southeast Asian: E and O Trading Company http://www.eotrading.com/sanjose/ Seafood: Scotts http://www.scottsseafoodsj.com/ Italian: Spiedo http://www.spiedo.com/ Original Joes http://www.originaljoes.com/ Upscale American Cuisine: A.P. Stumps http://www.apstumps.com/ Restaurant/nightclub: Agenda Restaurant Bar and Lounge 399 South First Street Trendy SoFA District restaurant: Eulipia http://www.eulipia.com/ French: Emiles http://www.emiles.com/ Welcome to San Jose and Silicon Valley!