San Jose is one of the safest large cities in the USA; however, I don’t even know what the walking path from Tamien to downtown is. I’d recommend going ahead and hopping on light rail — it drops you off right next to the hotel.

The reason it’s $26 is that the only hotel parking is valet parking, and valet parking is usually expensive. We’re not meeting in some remote suburban location with acres of free parking, but in a downtown location where parking is not free. However, as we note on our travel page, there is lots of parking in downtown San Jose, much of it close to the hotel (as in immediately across the street), both in surface lots and garages, much of it at far more reasonable prices that the hotel’s valet parking garage. I’m driving myself, and I certainly won’t be parking in the valet garage, but probably across the street in one of the surface lots.

In general, there is no free parking in downtown San Jose, although it is possible that in some parking lots and garages, if you exit late at night or during certain hours, you will not be charged. Unfortunately, the conditions under which this may happen are so unpredictable that we can’t give a hard and fast set of guidelines.

Also, if you need free parking and don’t mind having your vehicle a couple of miles away, you can park at the Tamien light rail station’s long-term parking spaces and ride light rail downtown. The parking is free although there is a fare for riding light rail.