Staying in San Jose area
 

My wife and I are planning on staying in the San Jose area the first week of November. I am from the midwest and haven't been in the San Jose area for about 15 years. Which areas of town should I avoid? I can get a better rate on hotels in Sunnyvale, but I didn't know if this was a bad part of town or not. I am willing to spend up to $150/night and would like something around three stars at least. It would be nice to have a room with a jacuzzi tub for two, too. Thanks.

There aren't really any areas of SJ or S'Vale you should be concerned about.

$150 might be tough to come by, unless you have something like an AAA discount or a good internet rate.

Over the years I've stayed in most of the 3* & 4* hotels in SJ and SV and don't recall any of them having a jacuzzi tub. Most are geared towards business travellers and are all pretty similar to each other. There are differences in bedding and on-property dining, but lots of good hotels in the area.

I pick my hotel based on where I'll be commuting to and from. The shorter the drive the better.

There are some cheaper hotels on El Camino Real in S'Vale, but that area is just fine. I know the town inside and out and there are no bad areas. On 101, S'Vale is about 10min from San Jose - both are in the heart of Silicon Valley and are part of the continuous suburban sprawl - you won't know when you've gone from SJ to Santa Clara to S'Vale....etc.

If you have specific questions about a particular hotel or area, just post a reply here w/ specifics and I'm sure somebody can chime in w/ comments.

I really don't think the SJ area has changed a lot in the 15 years I've been either living there or visiting 2-3x/quarter, so it might all be very familiar to you.

I can get specific about a question--trying to decide between Sierra Suites and Hawthorn Suites. Both are similar area, both have kitchenettes, 2 bds, sitting area, for ~79. Any more info you can give? I don't trust the travel review from TripAdvisor, they seem like setups.

Another option would be the pleasant Garden Inn in Los Gatos, which is a charming little village with many good restaurants and shops.

Sylvia, Sierra Suites and Hawthorne suites where? If you can give the street or at least the city that would help.

Oh, and JC as far as I know there are no bad areas of Sunnyvale. There are bad areas of San Jose but it's unlikely there would be hotels there.

Sure, Sunnyvale is perfectly safe - but the hotels are located in very boring areas. So, if you just need a bed - they are fine. but I agree - Los Gatos is charming - even downtown Campbell is charming, although very small - but there are lots of restaurants there, too. So - if you want to be able to take a stroll - choose carefully.
I'll be happy to be specific if you have further questions.

Hawthorne Suites Silicon Valley (El Camino hwy)and Sierra Suites Rivermark Plaza (both Santa Clara). (I didn't see any other of either chain in the San Jose area)

ttt

jacllicotte, your $150 pricepoint with a jacuzzi might be difficult to pinpoint right now, but we'll come up with it. I've only stayed there on business and never sought a jacuzzi.

Fairmont in San Jose opened 15+ years ago.
Hotel Valencia in Santana Row opened 3 years ago.
Four Seasons in Palo Alto will be open soon...stay tuned.

The areas of San Jose you should avoid are the 20 city blocks of "insulation" that parallel the 101. Lining the 101 is an industrial zone and then as the city continues to blend West or East from the 101 there are lower-priced homes. After that, you begin to see normality of tract homes.

About the same in every city I've seen. Living next to the freeway is generally less expensive. Next to the railroad tracks, you find industrial operations that need those heavy items delivered by rail.

J62 is dead wrong that San Jose hasn't changed much in 15 years. Go ahead and research the actual figures, but about $3Billion has been poured into development of new city center, 4-and-5-story townhomes, library, parking garages and urban
redevelopment downtown, including restaurants and hotels in the surrounding cities such as Sunnyvale and specifically the Santana Row residential/retail center.

All three of those mentioned above are great places. Jacuzzi tubs are in short supply at the Fairmont. Call to verify availability. When everything else was booked for some event, we once stayed at the Arena Hotel w/Jacuzzi, but it's more of a motel at 2.5 stars. Very near the HP Pavilion where the San Jose Sharks hockey team makes its home.

Crestview on El Camino has jacuzzi tubs. A visitor once stayed there. I have not. Another 2.5 star location.

Tough call...Ask me about jacuzzi rooms in Tahoe. :)

San Jose has definitely had a lot of changes in the past several years. I moved to SJ 10 years ago and in that time the changes to downtown and surrounding areas have been pretty striking.

This San Jose question reminds me of Dick's bakery and the most wonderful cake--burnt almond chocolate cake. Anyone ever have it? If not, try it and tell me if it's still that good!!

Yep, Dick's Bakery is a local icon. Also, Aki's on Race Street. And don't forget, Lou's donuts.

I stayed at the Los Gatos Hotel recently and it was very nice. Some of the suites have jacuzzi tubs but they may be a lot more than $150 a night. They do have a beautiful pool area w/ an extra large outdoor hot tub. They even serve drinks out by the pool, which was nice and relaxing.

Sylvia: Don't know of the specific hotels in question, but El Camino is a main road in Santa Clara with a lot of retail and some of the strip malls are older. Rivermark is a brand-new faux "downtown" style huge development. What are you trying to be near? The traffic to get in and out of the Rivermark area could be a factor--you're not really near anything else when you're there. Of course, the same could be said of El Camino in Santa Clara--not really where a visitor would locate unless you were trying to be near friends, work, etc.

I went on to Expedia and found some good hotels listed under $150 a night
I haven't personally stayed at these but I have seen them and visited some.

Hotel De Anza - this is downtown in an historic building in the thick of San Jose

4 Points Sheraton in Sunnyvale

Hilton Santa Clara - really new hotel right next to Great America

Sheraton in Palo Alto

Larkspur Landing in Milpitas - this is brand new hotel by 880 and 237 major freeways in San Jose

I think anything in Sunnyvale will be pretty safe. There are many parts of San Jose that I would not feel comfortable staying in and I've lived here my whole life. When you find a place you could post here before you book and we might be able to tell you what that specific area is like.

Good luck!

Yep - Dick's burnt almond is great - you should also try his brother place, Peter's! (not a joke!)

I too had to laugh at the comment that San Jose has "not changed much in 15 years.".....wow! There have been so many they are hard to enumerate...and it is still going on.

THE HILTON SANTA CLARA is an excellent hotel. Across from the convention center, next to Great America Park and down the street from SF 49er HQ. The 49ers are all staying there again this year during training camp. New hotel and well run.

THE DE ANZA is downtown SJ and very nice. Classy. As is the FAIRMONT.

I would stay in Los Gatos if you could much to do and see. The Tollhouse is the first hotel I can think of. Sunnyvale is not a bad part of town, just not much to do there.