What to Do in San Jose, California, This Summer

It’s time to start planning your summer vacation, and San Jose, California, is the perfect destination for travelers. With a summer line-up featuring different activities, hotels, restaurants and attractions, San Jose offers something for every traveler.

Attraction Anniversaries

© Winchester Mystery House

Celebrate the 100th anniversary of Winchester Mystery House, a cool, beautiful and bizarre mansion built by Sarah Pardee Winchester, heiress of the Winchester Repeating Arms fortune. Winchester felt guilty about the victims of the rifle and kept building the house for 38 years to outrun the ghosts. It features secret staircases, hidden rooms, ghosts and fun. The house opened in 1923, making the 100^th anniversary this June.

Take part in the 50th anniversary of San Jose Taiko. Drumming, a cultural Japanese art form, is featured at Taiko. Founded in 1973 by Rou Hirabayashi, as only the third outside of Japan, Taiko, a pioneer in the contemporary art form, has been a big part of the growth.

Where to Stay

For travelers looking for a relaxed stay with a focus on spa and wellness, Hotel Valencia is the place to stay. Nestled in the heart of Silicon Valley’s charming Santana Row entertainment district, Hotel Valencia offers chic and sophisticated hotel experiences.

Hayes Mansion offers more of a luxurious experience, perfect for golf lovers. As one of Northern California’s most iconic and historic spots, Hayes Mansion offers extraordinary accommodations, delicious dining and seclusion.

Cultural Experiences

One of only three Japanese towns in the United States, Japantown grew from the site where Japanese immigrants first settled in Santa Clara Valley. This town is a can’t-miss for travelers looking to dive deeper into the area’s culture.

Food and Drink

Adega Restaurant is the first and only Michelin-starred restaurant in San José, California, as well as the only Portuguese restaurant in the United States to be recognized with a Michelin star.

Every part of J. Lohr winery focuses on sustainability. J. Lohr was an early adopter of sustainable practices and helped pave the way for industry-wide sustainability methods.

© Visit San Jose

Nested within the hills of historic New Almaden, visitors are invited to explore, taste and discover the unique beauty of the San Jose countryside at Alamitos Vineyards. The vineyard features sustainable practices like fiber inserts in distribution and no Styrofoam in any part of the wine making or distribution process. Additionally, all wine not bottled is distilled and turned into Aguardente, a Portuguese brandy.

Attractions

A Guinness Book of World Records attraction and the only one in San Jose, the World’s Largest Monopoly Board allows travelers to play a larger-than-life-sized version of this popular board game. The 930-square-foot permanent Monopoly board was installed in Discovery Meadow near the Children’s Discovery Museum and is the perfect photo-op for board game lovers.