I didn’t need another reason to love California, but San Jose offered one anyway. Several, actually. I had the pleasure of visiting San Jose for the first time when a group of 14 Macaroni Kid publishers toured the city as a destination for vacationing families in mind. We found that not only is San Jose an ideal destination for families, but San Jose makes one heck of a ladies trip as well!
Arriving was a breeze with 3 airports to choose from, including one 4 miles from downtown. I appreciate an airport that lets you get from plane to pool in minutes, especially when I’m traveling with my children, and you’ll want to stay downtown to easily walk to everything. Downtown San Jose is clean, safe and vibrant, and as you might imagine the heart of Silicon Valley offers serious free Wi-Fi. This creative city offers no shortage of galleries & outdoor sculptures and downtown doorways are painted by talented high school students in an ongoing program. Sporting events, theater and music thrive and our weekend offered an outstanding production of Bonnie & Cylde at the The San Jose Stage Company plus Ringo Starr and His All Starr Band at the City National Civic. Just seeing Ringo would be cool, but the All Starr Band is filled with amazing talent including Gregg Rolie, Todd Rungren & Richard Page and was a real treat. Put this show on your bucket list, classic rockers.
We stayed at the beautiful Fairmont San Jose, which is next to several museums including the San Jose Museum of Art. Exhibits that day offered works by Chihule, Maplethorpe and Warhol and you can explore the entire museum in about an hour. Be sure to check out the Museum Store for interesting gifts and funky kitchen stuff. For more hands–on experiential fun, families will want to visit the The Tech Museum of Innovation and the Children’s Discovery Museum.
Shopping is abundant and ranges from galleries and shops to Santana Row- San Jose’s version of Rodeo Drive. Santana Row offers high-end shopping, dining, spas and lots of open space for the children; there’s even a weekly Mommy & Me program. Macaroni Kid enjoyed lunch at Left Bank where a strolling accordion player stopped by our table!
One of the trip highlights for me was a visit to the Winchester Mystery House. You may have seen this house built by the Winchester rifle heiress featured on television. For 40 years this house was in constant construction designed to confuse restless spirits, resulting in a lovely but bizarre estate with stairs that lead to nowhere, windows that open into walls, and a baffling layout. The gardens are gorgeous and offer great photo opportunities.
Micro-craft beers and local and regional wines abound, and downtown alone offers over 200 restaurants. Our group enjoyed wonderful meals including one we prepared ourselves! At the Savory Kitchen, guests learn to prepare a meal and pair it with wines. Our group prepared and enjoyed three dishes, including a jicama slaw with marinated flank steak, which we seared on a stove top grill and then finished in the oven. The marinate is delicious with steak, but would work well on chicken or seafood, and the Savory Kitchen agreed to share it with you!
Another great meal was had at San Pedro Square Market, which offers a variety of take out restaurants in two buildings connected by a large courtyard offering outdoor seating and live music. This is a great option for families as everyone can order what they want and you can meet up and share.
If you decide to venture out of downtown you might choose to hike, bike, golf, visit vineyards or the beaches. The central location makes it the perfect hub for exploring the region, and with over 300 sunny days a year it's easy to plan outdoor activities.
I was pleasantly surprised to see all San Jose offers families, and to learn more about this delightful destination please visit Team San Jose and check out this You Tube Video. You'll find San Jose offers something for everyone and will make a memorable vacation.
The writer was a guest of San Jose for the purpose of this review. Accommodations, meals and most activities were complimentary. No compensation was received and all opinions are her own.
