San Jose (California)



Often called "the Capital of Silicon Valley", San Jose is the largest city in the Bay Area, 3rd largest in California, and the 10th largest city in the United States. It was named the 6th safest big city in the US in 2015. This clean, sprawling metropolis has sports, beautiful vistas, and ethnic enclaves and bleeds into the greater Bay Area for travelers who want to take their time in Northern California.

Understand
El Pueblo de San Jose de Guadalupe (literally, the Town of Saint Joseph of Guadalupe) was founded by José Joaquín Moraga in 1777 near the present day intersection of Guadalupe Parkway and West Taylor Street. In 1797, the pueblo was moved to the Plaza Pueblo (now Plaza de César Chávez), around which San Jose grew.

True to its location in the heart of Silicon Valley, San Jose is now home to the headquarters of many tech companies such as Cisco Systems, eBay, and Adobe Systems. The population is approximately 980,000 in 2022.

There are so many different neighborhoods in the large geographic area of San Jose that, depending on where you are, you might not know if you're still in the same city. Like most Bay Area towns and cities, San Jose is an expensive place to live (many basic houses easily top $1M in price). Some of the hip areas to live these days are in San Jose's downtown area, for those who prefer urban living, or Santana Row for a mixed living, shopping and dining community. You can find vintage California charm in the neighborhoods of Willow Glen and Rose Garden. The woodsy area of Almaden Valley is known for its excellent schools, and Silver Creek is known for its subdivisions of sprawling "McMansions." Evergreen is in East San Jose, right at the foothills of the city. Evergreen has some more affordable housing and is very residential. Since it is at the foothills, east San Jose is not as accessible as the other neighborhoods. Evergreen has excellent views of the foothills and many parks and recreational areas. Groseprick Park is right in the heart of Evergreen and offers a mile long loop, basketball courts, baseball fields, playgrounds, and hiking trails.

Get in
People who ask, "Do you know the way to San Jose?" (in reference to the 1968 hit song recorded by Dionne Warwick) will be glared at.

By plane
San Jose is home to one of the Bay Area's three international airports.

There are two terminals at the airport, Terminal A and Terminal B, which are connected airside. Terminal A includes the international arrivals building, which houses departure gates 15 and 16 (for foreign airlines), U.S. Customs and Border Protection inspection facilities and a public arrivals zone for non-travelers to meet & greet international arrivals. International arrivals disembark through Gates 15-18 where passengers proceed downstairs for U.S. immigration and customs inspection. Passengers come out into the public areas (non-secured areas) to meet local contacts or proceed to the adjacent Terminal A or B to check in for the next flight. Passengers will have to go through security screening to access connecting flights.

The next nearest airports are San Francisco International Airport, northwest of San Jose along US Route 101 on the peninsula, or Oakland International Airport , which is  north off I-880 in the East Bay. Below are directions on getting into downtown San Jose from the three bay area airports without a (rental) car:

From SJC to Downtown

 * Taxicab. A cab to downtown San Jose will cost you $15-20 and take 10 minutes. Other neighborhoods will cost up to $50 and take up to 15 minutes.
 * Public transportation. Take the VTA route 60 bus in either direction, to the or the . The Route 60 bus is free for travel in either direction if you board at the airport.
 * From the Metro/Airport light rail station, take a southbound Green Line or Blue Line train (towards Winchester or Santa Teresa respectively). Both go downtown, but only the Green Line goes to Diridon Station.
 * From the Santa Clara Transit Center, take a route 22 (local) bus or a Rapid 522 bus to Downtown San Jose. Alternatively, take Caltrain southbound to Diridon Station. From Diridon station, you can transfer to a multitude of VTA and other buses to your final destination.

From SFO to Downtown or SJC Airport

 * Taxicab. A cab to downtown San Jose will cost you up to $150 and take 1 hour on average and up to 2 hours in rush hour traffic.
 * Public Transportation. Take a Purple Line or Yellow Line BART train down to Millbrae. At Millbrae, take Caltrain south to Diridon station. From Diridon Station, there are multiple bus routes as well as the light rail to get to downtown. To get to the SJC Airport, get off at the Santa Clara Caltrain station and transfer to a VTA route 60 bus (towards Milpitas BART).
 * Depending on the time of day and your intended destination, it may be quicker to take BART down the East Bay, rather than Caltrain down the Peninsula. If that is indeed the case, when at SFO, take a northbound Yellow Line train (towards Antioch) and transfer to a southbound Green Line or Orange Line train (towards Berryessa).

If traveling between both airports, a direct alternative is the Groome Transportation / Monterey Airbus, which goes from SFO to SJC and then on to Monterey, Marina and Prunedale, surrounding Monterey Bay south of San Jose. Their northbound buses, coming from around Monterey Bay, do provide a direct shuttle from SJC to SFO.

From OAK to Downtown or SJC Airport

 * Taxicab. A cab from Oakland Airport to downtown San Jose will cost you up to $120 and take 40 minutes on average, or up to 1 hr 15 min in rush hour traffic.
 * Public Transportation. Take the BART connector train to the "Coliseum/Oakland Airport" BART station. Transfer to a southbound Orange or Green Line train towards "Berryessa/North San José".
 * If going to the SJC Airport, get off at Milpitas Station and transfer to a VTA route 60 bus, which will take you to the airport.
 * If going downtown, get off at Berryessa/North San José Station (the end of the line) and transfer to a VTA Rapid 500 bus, which goes to Downtown San Jose as well as Diridon Station.

By train

 * BART Orange Line and Green Line serve, which is in San Jose. There is also in the neighboring city of Milpitas. Both stations are connected to various parts of the city through VTA buses. The VTA Express Bus 500 provides service between the Berryessa/North San José Station and Diridon Station, making several stops in downtown San José.
 * Train operators serving Diridon station:
 * Routes stopping in San Jose:
 * Coast Starlight operates daily between Seattle and Los Angeles. Stops include Tacoma, Lacey, Centralia, Kelso, Vancouver, WA, Portland, Salem, Albany, Eugene, Klamath Falls, Dunsmuir, Redding, Chico, Sacramento, Davis, Martinez, San Francisco (Emeryville), Oakland, San Jose, Salinas, Paso Robles, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, Oxnard, Simi Valley, Van Nuys, and Burbank.
 * The Capitol Corridor runs 11-12 times daily between Sacramento, Emeryville and Oakland Jack London Station with some trains continuing to San Jose through Hayward and Santa Clara in the east and south side of the Bay. Caltrain (see below) is the best bet to get between San Jose and San Francisco. Discount BART tickets can be purchased in the cafe car.
 * Caltrain, +1-510-817-1717 operates a regional rail service from San Jose to its San Francisco terminal at Fourth and King in SoMa. The service also runs between San Jose and Gilroy during rush hour. Caltrain is very useful for travel between San Francisco and communities on the Peninsula, Silicon Valley or South Bay. On weekdays Caltrain provides two trains per hour for most of the day but run more during commute hours, including "Baby Bullet" limited services that cruise between San Francisco and San Jose in 57 minutes; on weekends and public holidays trains run hourly, except that after 10PM only one train runs, leaving at midnight. The Diridon Station is the nearest station to downtown San Jose which is a shared facility with VTA (local bus and light rail), Greyhound and other intercity bus lines (see below under 'By bus'). Fares vary depending on how far you go. Tickets must be purchased before boarding the train from ticket vending machines at any of the stations or from ticket clerks at staffed stations. Tickets are checked on the trains and anyone found without a ticket is liable to a substantial fine. Cyclists should use the designated car at the northern end of the train, and be aware that bike space is often limited during commute hours.
 * Altamont Commuter Express (ACE) runs from Stockton, Livermore, and Pleasanton into San Jose and the Santa Clara Valley in the morning and then returns in the late afternoon and evening. Passengers can also transfer to the San Joaquins Train from Stockton as well. Check the schedules beforehand, as there are only a handful of trains per day.
 * There are free connecting shuttles at certain ACE stations, timed to match trains coming from/going to the north. From Santa Clara station, there is a shuttle to/from the San Jose airport. From San Jose Diridon station, there is a shuttle into downtown San Jose.

By bus
Most of the intercity bus lines connect San Jose to the Los Angeles Metro area and to the San Joaquin Valley (Stockton, Fresno, Bakersfield, etc.), though some buses also go further south to San Ysidro and Tijuana. With the exception of Greyhound, Flixbus, Amtrak & Caltrain, other bus lines generally do NOT sell tickets for travel between San Jose, San Francisco and/or Oakland, or anywhere in-between in the Bay Area. Northbound buses continuing to San Francisco and Oakland will only drop off in San Jose, and southbound buses will only pick up.

At Diridon Station, the buses for VTA, Santa Cruz METRO Highway 17 Express and Amtrak Thruway are all located in the bus hub north of the station building. The Greyhound bus stop is along between Cahill and Montgomery in front of the Diridon Station building while the taxi stands are on Crandall St, on the opposite side of the grassy divider from Stover St. Other long-distance bus carriers such as Intercalifornias, Hoang Express, Flixbus & Tufesa pick-up and drop-off passengers in different locations. See below:


 * Amtrak Thruway Motorcoach operates a bus to San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara from San Jose and another bus from San Jose to Oakland. A ticket/connection with an actual train is required to board Amtrak Thruway buses. The Amtrak route to Santa Cruz is operated by Santa Cruz Metro Rt #17 (Amtrak Thruway Rt #35) and to Monterey is operated by Monterey-Salinas Transit (MST Rt #55)(See below under 'By bus') which are available without connections to/from Amtrak trains.








 * 511.org. Public service site with transportation information in the nine-county SF Bay Area (including San Jose). The site includes a trip planner to help users plan a transit trip from 'A' to 'B' across the greater SF Bay Area, as well as up-to-date traffic information for those driving. Site includes information and links to Valley Transport Authority (VTA) which operates city buses and light rail in San Jose and the surrounding municipalities of Santa Clara County.

By car
San Jose is connected to San Francisco by two major freeways, US-101 and Interstate 280. From Los Angeles, take Interstate 5 North to CA-152 West to US-101 North. From the East Bay, use either I-880 or I-680 South.

Travel time from San Francisco and Oakland is about an hour, but the trip is much longer during rush hour on US-101 and Interstate 880. Taking Interstate 280 from San Francisco is a scenic alternative, and consider a detour westward on Highway 92 to Half Moon Bay and the coastal Highway 1, which leads north to San Francisco and south to Santa Cruz. From Santa Cruz, take Highway 17 through the mountains.

On foot
The downtown area is compact and rather easy to get around on foot. Most of the streets are arranged in a grid, but the grid is not strictly aligned with north (more like north–northwest). Street address numbers increase (by 100 every 2 or 3 blocks) radiating from Santa Clara Street (an east/west street) or First Street (a north/south street). Furthermore, Santa Clara Street (and other east/west streets) carry the prefix East or West radiating from First Street; and First Street (and other north/south streets) carry the prefix North or South radiating from Santa Clara Street. This makes it somewhat easy to locate a downtown facility given its street address.

Downtown Willow Glen, Campbell and Japantown are also easy to navigate on foot. Going from one neighborhood to the other on foot is not easily feasible except for some neighborhoods directly adjacent to Downtown (such as Japantown and the Alameda area).

By car
Outside downtown, things are spread out in San Jose, so a car is the most convenient mode of transportation. Interstate 280 is the fastest route East–West, for example from the Valley Fair Mall or Santana Row, to the West, to Downtown, or from Downtown to Alum Rock Park. California 87 (to and from the airport) and Interstate 280/California 17 (from Rose Garden to Campbell and vice versa) offers fast North-South travel.

Public transit
The Santa Clara Valley Transit Authority (VTA), does offer serviceable transit around town. The frequency and hours of buses vary depending on the route and your location, so it's best to check a schedule beforehand. The Light Rail system also provides quick service to, from, and around downtown and Diridon Station.



A single fare of $2.50 is valid for 2 hours of travel if using a Clipper Card or the EZFare mobile app. A VTA day pass lets you use buses and light rail all day, costing $7.50 for an adult, and $3.75 for a youth aged 5-18. Express routes cost double, but these are primarily commuter routes and not what most tourists would take.

The Transit app is an app for trip planning endorsed by VTA, but it can also be used for scooters and e-bikes, and in more places than just the Bay Area. The 511.org website is also a great resource, whether by car or public transit (or a combination of both). Its Trip Planner spans all Bay Area transit systems. Alternatively, you can call VTA Customer Service at +1-408-321-2300 and listen to bus schedules on their automated system.

By bike
Many roads in San Jose have designated bike lanes and/or wide shoulders. A map of the city's bikeways is available on VTA's website. This, along with typically favorable local weather, makes biking a viable means of transportation within the city. Bus lines, light rail and Caltrain all accommodate bikes, making mixed-mode travel a simple affair.

There is a growing number of Bay Wheels Bike Share stations around Downtown which allow anyone to rent city bikes for 30 minutes at a time (time above that costs extra). A single ride costs $3.49, if you will be staying longer, then a $29 month pass or $169 annual pass might make financial sense.

Downtown
Downtown San Jose is a mix of offices, shopping, hotels, numerous restaurants as well as a convention center and the SoFA (South of First Area) nightclub district. Check out the San Pedro Square Farmer's Market on Fridays for local and organic produce, or visit the new City Hall (2005) and the nearby San Jose State University campus. The new main library (2003) is a prestigious, award-winning, joint-use library combining resources of the city and San Jose State University. Get outdoors and take advantage of San Jose's invariably sunny weather on the Guadalupe River Trail or in one of the many city parks. You'll always find a wealth of cultural events at theaters, art galleries, and museums.



Do
San Jose has two major professional sports teams, some fantastic amusement parks and a variety of theater and comedy venues to entertain you throughout the year. The city also hosts a colorful array of festivals and conventions and offers plenty of shopping options.



American




Vietnamese
With the second-largest Vietnamese-American community living in San Jose, Vietnamese restaurants have proliferated here in the past few decades. Vietnamese cuisine features fresh herbs, often added to the meal at the table. The signature dish of Vietnamese cuisine is phở, a beef soup with rice noodles, usually with a choice of cuts of meat available. Bánh mì (sandwiches), noodle bowls, and rice plates are also common choices.



Korean
In addition to the several Korean restaurants in San Jose, numerous Korean restaurants are concentrated in the "Koreatown" neighborhood on El Camino Real in neighboring Santa Clara.



Drink
Nightlife in the Downtown area is a mix of lounges, clubs, and bars which, according to locals, have either greatly improved the scene or marked the beginning of its decline. Santana Row has a number of upscale clubs and bars and has been the new hotspot since 2005.



Hotels in Downtown
If you arrive by train, there are no hotels adjacent to the train station, but there are a few that are less than a mile's walk away. Alternatively, from the train station's bus loop, you can take the local bus one or two stops along The Alameda to save your feet.



Consulates
Most of the foreign consulates are located in downtown San Francisco. The following is in Santa Clara County:
 * 🇲🇽 Mexico

Go next
Just east of the city lies Alum Rock Park, a canyon through which Penitencia Creek flows, which is lined by sulfurous mineral springs and several small waterfalls. Above the park stands Mount Hamilton, one of the highest peaks in the Bay Area at 4213 ft. The telescopes of Lick Observatory, operated by the University of California, crown the summit and are open to the public during daytime hours. Northeast of San Jose is the Livermore Valley, which includes wine country and the cities of Pleasanton and Livermore.

Other places to see in San Jose's backyard are the Scenic Drive in Saratoga Hills, the quaint and classy town of Los Gatos, and Mission Santa Clara at Santa Clara University. Palo Alto and Stanford University are about half an hour's drive to the north. About 45 minutes northeast, you can visit Fremont's Mission San Jose and the Ardenwood Historic Farm.

Less than an hour away over the scenic Santa Cruz Mountains, the small coastal city of Santa Cruz is a nice day trip out of San Jose. Spend the day enjoying the beaches and Boardwalk, or make it the first stop on a longer coastal drive. From Santa Cruz, you can take Route 1 (also known as the Pacific Coast Highway) south to Capitola, Monterey, and the charming town of Carmel-by-the-Sea. The Hwy 17 Express bus links San Jose to Santa Cruz.

The Pacific Coast Highway is a nationally famous highway. It goes along the whole coast of California giving off spectacular views of the Pacific Ocean. Many movies have shown this highway in scenes that take place in California, and it is also a main tourist attraction to drive along the coast. Route 1 can take you up to Pacifica which is about 30 minutes north of San Jose. Pacifica is an ocean side residential town that has affordable housing and sit's on hills that overlook the Pacific. The beach here is typical of the Bay Area and has a very rough current.

Less than an hour away is Half Moon Bay beach. This beach sits on the bottom of cliffs with a very rough current. During most of the summer months the water is closed to swimmers because of rip tides and massive waves. The Pacific ocean is typically cold and in Half Moon Bay this is still very true. The sunsets here have been known to lure in travelers and those wanting to rent beach houses. Since Half Moon Bay sits on cliffs, the sunset goes down over the water and seems to create perfect scenery.

Only about 55 miles north, taking highway 101, is the city of San Francisco. San Francisco is the heart of the Bay Area and is the proud owner of the Golden Gate bridge. San Francisco has many neighborhoods with all kinds of restaurants, shopping, parks, beaches, and views of the bridge. Caltrain provides train service to San Francisco.

The rolling hills of San Jose surround the city creating a valley. See the top of these hills by driving into East San Jose. The houses on the hills are spread out and ranch from ranches, farms, and even mansions. These houses can be seen from the valley and the picturesque drive leads to the top of the hills where you can see the entire landscape of San Jose. On the Fourth of July, many San Jose natives come up to the hills to watch the spectacular firework show over the city.