San Jose: how to get there and around
Airports, stations, ports, where the hotels are and what the numbers say, from public data rather than a brochure.
San Jose is a city of 997,368 people in United States (California), 23 m (75 ft) above sea level. The nearest large airport is Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC), 4 km (2 mi) from the centre. Our booking partner lists 159 places to stay.
Key facts
Daylight in San Jose runs from about 9 h 38 min a day in late December to 14 h 47 min in late June (computed for 37.34° latitude), which matters more than the forecast when a day is built around one flight or one crossing.
Getting there
San Jose is served by 6 airports with scheduled flights within 100 km. The closest large one is Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC), 4 km (2 mi) from the centre, whose 11,000-ft runway is long enough for long-haul wide-body aircraft. The alternatives are Oakland San Francisco Bay Airport (OAK, 51 km), San Francisco International Airport (SFO, 53 km), San Carlos Airport (SQL, 37 km), Buchanan Field (CCR, 74 km), Monterey Regional Airport (MRY, 84 km).
Flights to San Jose: every airport, routes and times
Buses to San Jose · Driving and car hire
Where to stay
Our booking partner lists 159 places to stay in San Jose. Of the 133 with a star rating, the largest group is 3-star (73), and 2 are five-star. Across 74 properties with at least 50 reviews, the average guest score is 7.9 out of 10. Guests have left 43,988 reviews in total.
Hotels in San Jose: the full picture, and book
What people come for
| Sight | Visitors a year | Year |
|---|---|---|
| San Jose Public Library | 6,855,000 | 2016 |
| Santa Clara County Fairgrounds | 850,000 | 2003 |
The busiest is San Jose Public Library at 6,855,000 visitors in 2016. At that volume, anything with a gate is worth a timed ticket or an early start.
Tours, tickets and day trips from San Jose
Nearby cities, and how to get between them
- San Francisco, 67 km — trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Fresno, 200 km — flights · trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Sacramento, 143 km — trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Oakland, 61 km — trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Bakersfield, 338 km — flights · trains · buses · car rental
- Stockton, 87 km — trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Reno, 304 km — flights · trains · buses · car rental
- Fremont, 25 km — tours
- Modesto, 86 km — trains · buses · car rental · tours
- Santa Rosa, 142 km — buses · car rental · tours
Twin towns and sister cities: Pune, Dublin, Tainan, San José, Okayama, Veracruz, Yekaterinburg, Guadalajara, Oeiras.
Common questions
Which airport serves San Jose?
Mineta San Jose International Airport (SJC), 4 km (2 mi) from the centre, plus 5 other airports with scheduled flights within 100 km.
How big is San Jose?
About 997,368 people live in San Jose, across 466 km² (GeoNames and Wikidata).
What time zone is San Jose in?
America/Los_Angeles, currently UTC-7.
What currency is used in San Jose?
The Dollar (USD). Traffic drives on the right.
How many hotels are there in San Jose?
Our booking partner lists 159 places to stay in San Jose, bookable on this site.
Which cities are near San Jose?
San Francisco (67 km), Fresno (200 km), Sacramento (143 km), Oakland (61 km), Bakersfield (338 km).
Where these facts come from
- GeoNames (CC BY 4.0): population, elevation, time zone, postal codes
- Wikidata (CC0): area, sister cities, visitor numbers, heritage listings, stations and ports
- OurAirports (public domain): airports, runways
- Natural Earth (public domain): map outlines
Data compiled 13 September 2026. Hotel figures are from our booking partner’s catalogue on that date. Journey times on this page are estimates from distance, not timetables; check the operator before you rely on one.