After reading about the purchase by Westin I decided to give it a try while attending a function with some friends downtown. Big mistake.
The lobby area is grand and elegant in an old hotel kind of way but the rooms are a disappointment.
We stayed in a "mini suite" , it was smaller than a regular room at a cheap hotel. No table and chairs, no microwave, no place to plug in your iPod etc. Rooms are old and outdated, bathrooms are small, cramped and dark. If you want a bathrobe in your room you must request it in advance. The beds are nothing special and I could hear clearly the conversations being held by the people in the adjoining rooms.
If you want a newspaper in the morning you have to get dressed and go down to the lobby in the am to get it and you'd better go VERY early, when I got down there they told me, "Oh, we have a lot of guests so there aren't any left"
I spoke with an employee who advised me they won't be redoing the hotel to Westin Standards till after June of 2013. Maybe we'll give them another try, but with the Marriot across the street and the Fairmont a few blocks away I don't think so.

My wife and I stayed for two nights at the Sainte Claire Hotel in San Jose on our way to Hawaii. The hotel is very nice and the lobby areas are elegant. The room we had was large and comfortable, at a price that was commensurate with others in the downtown area. The staff could not have been more helpful and friendly. The Italian restaurant within the hotel has a terrific menu with reasonable prices (for a quality, well appointed restaurant) and the food was delicious. The downtown location is wonderful - within walking distance of attractions like the Tech Museum, St. Joseph's basilica, etc. It is certainly worthwhile to check out this hotel if you are traveling to San Jose.

I had a great stay at the Sainte Claire. The staff were friendly and helpful, my room was clean and pretty and the lobby and meeting rooms were really nice. I loved the feel of history in the hotel and the location and price were great. I just have two complaints. One is that yes, the rooms aren't super soundproof to the street, which is to be expected in an older place. I did hear the light rail from my room, but as an urban dweller myself it wasn't that distressing. But if you're sensitive to noise mention it or bring some white noise.

Second, one of the reviews here on Travelocity promised ghosts. I was out quite late and so I was rambling about the hallways well into the witching hours and there was not so much as a peep, no weird chills, no wispy visions and no strange noises. Not so much as a bad dream. So really, if you're looking for haunted houses I wouldn't count on seeing anything odd here.

The bed was bliss, window opened and everything worked and was in top notch condition! The food was fresh and fabulous, coffee was superb and the staff were. Incredibly helpful and kind. Situated blocks from everything in San Jose, this hotel is the perfect boutique hotel environment.