Santa Clara County - 84 Attractions You Must Visit
About Santa Clara County
Home to Silicon Valley, Santa Clara County is an economic center for high technology and has the third highest GDP per capita in the world. The county's concentration of wealth, primarily due to the tech industry, has made it the most affluent county on the West Coast of the United States and one of the most affluent places in America.
Types of Attractions in Santa Clara County
List of Attractions in Santa Clara County
Almaden Lake Park
Lake/ River/ Ponds
A beautiful lake located in the heart of San Jose and is surrounded by wildlife and beautiful hiking trails. You can enjoy activities that include hiking, jogging, and cycling along 30 acres of lake and 65 acres of land. It will be a pleasure visiting this place .
Almaden Quicksilver County Park
Viewpoints
Dams
1 Day Treks
Old Ruins
4,163 acres (17 km²) park that includes the grounds of former mercury ("quicksilver") mines. The park is named after the New Almaden Quicksilver Mines, which were named after the mercury mine in (old) Almadén, Spain, and produced mercury that was used to process ore during the Gold Rush.
Alum Rock Park
Viewpoints
1 Day Treks
The 720 acres (2.9 km2) park offers 13 miles (21 km) of trails. The narrow floor of the valley includes a visitor center, a small museum/animal rehab facility, picnic areas, playgrounds, lawns, sand volleyball pits, mineral springs, lush plant life, woodlands, creek play opportunities, and occasional group camping.
Alviso Marina County Park
Outdoors- Other
This 20.6 acre bayside park, located along Alviso slough and adjacent to the salt ponds and marshes of Don Edwards San Francisco Bay National Wildlife Refuge. The park offers a great variety of recreational opportunities within its boundaries and leads visitors to the Refuge for bird watching, hiking along the pathways, boardwalks, and on regional trails including the San Francisco Bay Trail.It offer fantastic views of the mountains surrounding the bay, and of the wildlife.
Anderson Lake County Park
Lake/ River/ Ponds
Outdoors- Other
1 Day Treks
This is an artificial lake in Morgan Hill, located in southern Santa Clara County The 4,275 acre Anderson Park also features the Coyote Creek Parkway multiple use trails, the Jackson Ranch historic park site, the Moses L. Rosendin Park, and the Burnett Park area. It provides limited fishing, picnicking, and hiking activities. Although swimming is prohibited, boating, water-skiing and jet-skiing are permitted in the reservoir.
Arizona Garden
Botanical Gardens
This is a small botanical garden specializing in cactus and succulents. It is located on the campus of Stanford University.
Baylands Nature Preserve
Outdoors- Other
This is the largest tract of undisturbed marshland remaining in the San Francisco Bay. Fifteen miles of multi-use trails provide access to a unique mixture of tidal and fresh water habitats. The preserve encompasses 1,940 acres in both Palo Alto and East Palo Alto, and is owned by the city of Palo Alto. It is an important habitat for migratory shorebirds and is considered one of the best birdwatching spots on the West Coast.
Baylands Park
Outdoors- Other
Parks
Baylands Park provides over 70 acres of developed parkland offering active recreation, pathways and picnic areas for families and large groups. It offers biking, hiking, nature trails and access to the San Francisco Bay Trail, which connects 300 miles of trails along the shoreline of San Francisco Bay.
Black Mountain
1 Day Treks
Mountain Peaks
This is a mountain in the Diablo Range of eastern Santa Clara County, east of Poverty Ridge and Arroyo Hondo, and about 10 miles from Milpitas.The peak is one of the highest in area. The northern half of Black Mountain is an oak woodlands while the southern half is barren. Black Mountain can be clearly seen from most parts of the Santa Clara Valley including Sunnyvale, Cupertino, Mountain View and San Jose. The peak is visible from the Mount Hamilton and Monument Peak.
Calero County Park
Outdoors- Other
1 Day Treks
This majestic 4,471 acre park is nestled in the eastern foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. Two distinct areas define this park: Calero reservoir, which offers a host of water-oriented recreational activities, and the adjoining "back country" which reveals to the visitor California Oak woodland, chaparral, riparian plant communities and associated wildlife habitats.The back country offers 18.9 miles of trails available to hikers and equestrians.
California's Great America
Theme Parks
A 100-acre (40 ha) amusement park featuring over 40 rides and attractions. One of its most notable attractions, Gold Striker, has been featured as a top-ranked wooden roller coaster in Amusement Today's annual Golden Ticket Awards publication.
Cathedral Basilica of St. Joseph
Churches
Old Ruins
This is a massive Roman Catholic church in downtown San Jose, the cathedral of the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Jose, California, with the distinction of a minor basilica. It is listed as a California Historical Landmark and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The basilica is named for Saint Joseph, patron saint of the Catholic Church and namesake of San Jose, California.
This is a cultural institution serving children, families, and schools in the Silicon Valley/San Francisco Bay Area. A member of the Association of Children's Museums and the Association of Science-Technology Centers, Children's Discovery Museum is located in downtown San Jose. The museum builds and displays interactive exhibits that responds to early childhood education.
Computer History Museum
Museums
The museum presents stories and artifacts of the information age and explores the computing revolution and its impact on society. The museum claims to house the largest and most significant collection of computing artifacts in the world. This includes many rare or one-of-a-kind objects such as a Cray-1 supercomputer as well as a Cray-2, Cray-3, the Utah teapot, the 1969 Neiman Marcus Kitchen Computer, an Apple I, and an example of the first generation of Google's racks of custom-designed web ser
Coyote Lake
Lake/ River/ Ponds
A majestic artificial lake in Santa Clara County, impounded by Coyote Dam, a 140-foot high, 980-foot long, earth and rock dam built in 1936. It holds 23,244 acre feet of water when full. It is the second largest reservoir owned by the Santa Clara Valley Water District. Power boating, jetskiing, waterskiing, sailing, canoeing/kayaking and fishing are all allowed in the reservoir. It has two docks, a 3-lane concrete ramp, paved parking and a restroom.
Cunningham Lake
Lake/ River/ Ponds
1 Day Treks
A 390-acre lake surrounded by a 1,050-acre park located in north central Omaha, Nebraska. The lake was constructed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for flood control and recreation and opened to the public in 1977. It has tent camping, no-wake boating, fishing, hiking, bicycling, picnicking and horseback riding.
De Saisset Museum
Museums
The de Saisset Museum is the South Bay's free museum of art and history. The museum owns nearly 10,000 art pieces and historical artifacts, including the work of early Californian artist and university alumnus Ernest de Saisset and a considerable collection of California mission artifacts. Highlights of the de Saisset’s permanent collection include Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo, and 19th century prints by artists such as Albrecht Dürer, William Hogarth and so more.
Ed R. Levin County Park
Parks
1 Day Treks
This majestic 1,558 acre park is one of Santa Clara County's most unique regional park and recreation areas. It has the traditional features of an urban park such as picnicking, fishing and play areas, with the complex trail system of many regional wilderness parks. The park's recreational facilities include a hang gliding and paragliding area, a dog park, and horseback riding areas. Ed R. Levin County Park has two lakes.
Elizabeth F. Gamble Garden
Botanical Gardens
This is the former home and garden of Elizabeth Gamble. The house is in a colonial style and the garden retains an Arts and Crafts character. The original garden design was by Alan Reid. It is filled with flowers. Magnificent magnolias and a wonderful collection of hellebores. It is an oasis of beauty and tranquility, providing a community resource for horticultural education, inspiration, and enjoyment.
Emma Prusch Farm Park
Outdoors- Other
Emma Prusch Farm Park is a 43.5 acre park in the King & Story neighborhood in San Jose. It offers visitors opportunities for both recreation and learning about San Jose's agricultural past. The farm also has a rare fruit orchard, a deciduous fruit orchard and two community gardens, and a 6-acre urban farming project called Veggielution. In the spring, the park offers guided tours for K–3 school groups.