The Westin San Jose

The Westin San Jose is a historic hotel in downtown San Jose, California, housed in the former Hotel Sainte Claire. The six-story building was completed in 1926 and became one of the most prominent grand hotels in the South Peninsula region, with a reputation for offering some of the area's most elegant accommodations between San Francisco and Los Angeles. Its development was financed by T. S. Montgomery, a San Jose realtor and developer who played a significant role in the city's commercial growth. Montgomery also donated land across from the hotel for a civic auditorium, reinforcing the property's connection to the civic and architectural development of downtown San Jose. The building was designed by Weeks and Day, a San Francisco architectural firm known for hotel and theater projects throughout California. Its design combines Renaissance Revival detailing with Italian Renaissance references and elements associated with French, Spanish, and Mediterranean Revival architecture. The structure uses a steel-and-concrete frame clad in tawny brick on the upper floors, with rusticated buff-colored stone at street level. A distinctive truncated and recessed northwest corner creates a formal entrance facing South Market and San Carlos Streets. The building's vertical composition includes an arcaded ground floor, a four-story central shaft, and a top section marked by paired arched windows and ornamental stringcourses. The lobby is the building's best-preserved interior space. Its coffered ceiling is among the property's notable architectural features, and the original room arrangement included the Patio Room, Empire Room, and Spartan Room. Later modernization altered several of these spaces: the Patio Room was enclosed and combined with the Empire Room, while the Spartan Room and other interiors were updated. Although some hand-painted ceiling decoration was lost, several historic elements remain, including woodwork in guest rooms, carved wood doors leading to former retail areas, and original bathroom fixtures in some rooms. Following restoration work in the 1990s, the property operated as the Hyatt Sainte Claire. During the 2000s it used the name Hotel Sainte Claire. On July 9, 2015, it was renovated and rebranded as The Westin San Jose, bringing the historic property into the Westin Hotels & Resorts system. Its present identity combines a nationally recognized upscale hotel brand with a landmark downtown building listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The property serves hotel guests as well as visitors attending meetings, events, cultural activities, and business engagements in central San Jose. Its offering is centered on accommodation, food and beverage, meetings and events, and Westin-branded wellness and sleep-related amenities where available.

The property now known as The Westin San Jose originated as the Hotel Sainte Claire, a major downtown San Jose hotel completed in 1926. Its development was financed by T. S. Montgomery, a prominent realtor and developer whose projects contributed substantially to the commercial expansion of San Jose. Montgomery's role extended beyond the hotel itself: he donated a parcel across from the property for a civic auditorium, linking the hotel project to the development of the city's civic center. Weeks and Day, a leading San Francisco architectural firm, designed the building. The firm was recognized for hotel and theater work in California, and the Sainte Claire reflected that expertise through a carefully articulated Renaissance Revival composition. The design drew primarily on Italian Renaissance traditions while also incorporating French, Spanish, and Mediterranean Revival influences. The six-story building was constructed with a steel-and-concrete frame. Tawny brick covers the upper floors, while the ground level is faced in rusticated buff-colored stone. A recessed, truncated corner forms the principal entrance at South Market and San Carlos Streets, where the two main elevations meet at an angled junction. The exterior is organized into distinct vertical zones. The ground floor uses arcaded detailing, the middle section rises as a four-story shaft, and the upper floors feature paired windows in arched frames. Decorative denticular stringcourses separate selected floor levels. These details helped establish the Sainte Claire as one of San Jose's most recognizable architectural landmarks and as a leading grand hotel serving the wider South Peninsula region. During its early history it was regarded as one of the most elegant hotels between San Francisco and Los Angeles. The interior originally included several formal public rooms. The lobby, with its coffered ceiling, remains the most intact major interior space. The Patio Room was once a defining feature, framed by a Corinthian arcade and associated with an open patio arrangement. A formal garden and fountain room known as the Spartan Room occupied part of the second floor. The Empire Room was another important public area. Over time, modernization changed these spaces: the Patio Room was covered and combined with the Empire Room, and the Spartan Room was updated. Hand-painted decoration that had appeared on ceilings in the lobby and other principal rooms was also lost or obscured through alterations. Nevertheless, wood details in many guest rooms, ornate hand-carved doors leading toward former retail areas, and some original bathroom fixtures survived. The building underwent restoration in the 1990s and subsequently operated as the Hyatt Sainte Claire. In the 2000s it was known as the Hotel Sainte Claire. A later renovation led to the property's rebranding as The Westin San Jose on July 9, 2015. The change placed the historic hotel within the Westin Hotels & Resorts system, which is associated with upscale lodging and wellness-oriented guest experiences. Marriott International is identified as the parent company of the Westin brand, although the available reference material does not establish the specific ownership structure of this individual property. Today, The Westin San Jose remains an active hotel in downtown San Jose. Its identity rests on the combination of a nationally distributed hotel brand and a locally significant historic building. The property supports conventional lodging, business travel, meetings, events, and food and beverage activity while retaining architectural features that connect it to the city's early twentieth-century commercial and civic history. The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and remains one of San Jose's best-known architectural landmarks.

• 2015

  Rebranded as The Westin San Jose

  [1]The Westin San Joseen.wikipedia.org

  Following renovation, the property reopens as The Westin San Jose on July 9, 2015.

• 2000

  Property uses the Hotel Sainte Claire name

  [1]The Westin San Joseen.wikipedia.org

  During the 2000s, the hotel is identified as the Hotel Sainte Claire before its later Westin rebranding.

• 1990

  Restoration-era operation as Hyatt Sainte Claire

  [1]The Westin San Joseen.wikipedia.org

  After restoration work in the 1990s, the historic property operates under the Hyatt Sainte Claire name.

• 1926

  Hotel Sainte Claire opens

  [1]The Westin San Joseen.wikipedia.org

  The six-story Hotel Sainte Claire is completed in downtown San Jose. The project is financed by developer T. S. Montgomery and designed by Weeks and Day.

Upscale business and leisure hotel combining Westin hospitality with a restored historic downtown landmark.

• Hotel accommodation

  Guest rooms and suites

  The property's primary offering is overnight accommodation within the historic Sainte Claire building. Rooms combine contemporary hotel operations with architectural features retained from the 1926 structure, including surviving wood details and, in some rooms, original bathroom fixtures. The accommodation serves both business and leisure travelers seeking a downtown San Jose location.

• Hospitality and events

  Meetings and events

  The hotel provides spaces and services for meetings, receptions, and other hosted events. Its public rooms and historic setting support business functions and social occasions, while the building's central downtown location makes it relevant to civic, cultural, and commercial activity in San Jose.

• Hotel dining

  Food and beverage services

  Food and beverage service forms part of the property's full-service hotel proposition. The historic building formerly contained formal dining and public rooms, including the Patio Room, Empire Room, and Spartan Room; several of these spaces have since been modernized or reconfigured.

• Wellness hospitality

  Westin wellness and sleep experience

  As a Westin-branded hotel, the property is positioned around the chain's wellness-oriented hospitality approach, including sleep and fitness-related guest benefits where offered. The available reference material identifies Westin amenities such as branded sleep products and fitness services at the brand level, but does not document every amenity currently available at this individual hotel.

• 2015

  Adoption of the Westin brandStrategy

  Background

  The historic hotel had previously operated as the Hyatt Sainte Claire after 1990s restoration and later used the Hotel Sainte Claire name during the 2000s.

  Action taken

  After renovation, the property was rebranded The Westin San Jose on July 9, 2015, aligning the landmark hotel with the Westin Hotels & Resorts system.

  Aftermath

  The property continued operating as an active downtown San Jose hotel while retaining its association with the historic Sainte Claire building.

  Source

• 2015

  Historic Sainte Claire Hotel rebranded as The Westin San Jose[1]The Westin San Joseen.wikipedia.org

  Product launch

  The renovated Hotel Sainte Claire reopened under the Westin name on July 9, 2015, joining the Westin Hotels & Resorts portfolio.

1. 1The Westin San Joseen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Hotel Sainte Clairenps.gov