Hop in your choice of hire car at San Jose International Airport and you’ve got one key piece of information to remember: you need to drive on the right-hand side of the road. You’ll be overtaking on the left throughout the US, but many of the main driving laws will be similar from home. There’s no using mobile phones while driving and everyone has to wear seatbelts.

The other main thing to remember is to enjoy your driving – California is one of the greatest states in the US to explore by car. The landscapes have an extraordinary variety and you’ll be driving past forests, deserts, vineyards and mountains made for skiing. Freeways are the US equivalent of motorways, with a speed limit of 65mph in urban areas, 70mph in rural stretches. Speeds dip in towns and residential areas to 30ph. Always check the speed limit of the road you’re on.

The airport is perfectly located for getting into San Jose, only a 10-minute drive away along the CA-87. The I-280 cuts east to west across the city, passing by many of the main attractions such as the Winchester Mystery House. It’s bisected by the I-880 which runs south to north through the heart of San Jose.

If you plan on heading further afield, you can stay on the I-280 as it then shifts north-west all the way up to San Francisco. However, an alternative route to ‘San Fran’ is the 101, which heads through Palo Alto and has some wonderful coastal stretches.

For Los Angeles, you can drive east on the 130 before taking the I-5 as it snakes south. Heading north instead will take you to Sacramento, from where you can join the I-80 for the winter sport resort of Reno, just across the border in Nevada. For a truly memorable US road trip, head to the coastline west of San Jose and get on route 1, the sensational Pacific Coast Highway.

San Jose is a fascinating mix of the new and the old. It buzzes with Silicon Valley invention but also has roots dating back to America’s foundation and the gold rush to the West. And, of course, you’re in California, with great cities, beautiful coastal roads and amazing beaches only a drive away.

A glimpse of the future

The airport itself is strikingly modern, very much a hub for the digital age. You may well be greeted by the sight of the Space Observer, built in 2010 and looking like something straight out of a science fiction film. It sets the tone for the futuristic side of San Jose, which you can explore further at The Tech museum. This state-of-the-art visitor attraction is proudly hands-on, aiming to inspire the innovators of the future. Learn about robots, virtual reality and alternative energy before heading to the on-site IMAX cinema for awe-inspiring visuals.

More than a mystery

At the other end of the spectrum is the Winchester Mystery House, a piece of late 19^th and early 20^th century whimsy built by a true eccentric. Sarah Winchester started building the house in 1884 and conducted séances so that the spirits could guide the development, which went on until 1922. The spirits were clearly in a playful mood – this is a house with 40 bedrooms and 40 staircases, but includes doors that open to reveal walls, a staircase leading nowhere and chimneys that don’t reach the roof. The furniture and glass are inspiring, but so are the parquet floors – one craftsman alone dedicated 33 years of his life to them.

Park Life

Make the most of that famed California sunshine by exploring the Kelley Park in San Jose. Sprawling over 156 acres, it houses a park and zoo, a Japanese friendship garden and several museums, but also the wonderful History Park. The latter is full of historic buildings that have been relocated to the park in an attempt to recreate what San Jose once looked like. Houses, banks, stables, a print shop and fruit barn, all from the early 1900s, are sympathetically arranged with exhibits. It’s a reminder of life before the tech explosion.

You may be visiting for business in Silicon Valley or starting out on a road trip around California and the west. Either way, car hire at San Jose International Airport brings it all much closer.