Acapulco or Sayulita?

Both towns are built around the beach, but the beaches are very different. Acapulco has a whole bay of them, from Condesa in front of the hotels to the calm family coves of Caleta and Caletilla and the sheltered water of Puerto Marqués. The open-ocean beaches outside the bay have dangerous surf.

Sayulita has a single village bay with gentle, rolling waves that are better for learning to surf than for a calm swim. Quieter swimming spots such as Playa de los Muertos are a short walk away, and San Pancho is a short drive. In winter the sea is noticeably warmer in Acapulco.

Acapulco has the more distinctive local cooking. Pescado a la talla grilled over wood at Barra Vieja, ceviche in tomato sauce and the Thursday pozole verde make eating out part of the trip, and a few clifftop restaurants overlook the bay.

Sayulita eats simply and well: fish tacos, aguachile, al pastor from plaza stands and grilled fish on the beach. Above that sits a layer of smoothie bowls and international menus aimed at the surf crowd, and for a serious dinner people drive to Puerto Vallarta.

Neither town is a sightseeing destination, but Acapulco at least fills a day. It has the star-shaped Fuerte de San Diego with its museum on the Manila galleon trade, the cliff divers at La Quebrada, Diego Rivera's mosaics on the Casa de los Vientos and the cathedral with its unusual domes.

Sayulita has a plaza, a modest church and a hillside cemetery. Its one real cultural interest is the Huichol beadwork and yarn painting sold in its galleries.

Acapulco has been a party town for decades. The Costera has beach bars, open-air terraces and large clubs on the hillside that fill late and stay open until dawn, and the scene is at its loudest when crowds drive down from Mexico City for long weekends.

Sayulita's evenings are a few blocks of mezcal and cocktail bars around the plaza, starting with sunset drinks on the sand. In winter they stay busy until after midnight. In summer most nights end early, and anyone wanting a real club goes to Puerto Vallarta.

Sayulita gives more to do outdoors. The jungle-covered hills come right down to the sea, and there is surfing for every level, humpback whales in the Bay of Banderas from December to March, boat trips to the protected Marietas Islands, and footpaths and mountain-bike trails over the headlands.

Acapulco's natural appeal is its horseshoe bay ringed by hills. Around it you can snorkel at Roqueta Island, go deep-sea fishing for sailfish and marlin, take boat rides through the mangroves of Coyuca Lagoon or watch turtle releases at Barra Vieja. Inland, the heat and the lack of marked trails make hiking hard work.

Sayulita makes the better base. Puerto Vallarta's malecón and cobbled old town are about an hour away, San Pancho and Punta de Mita are closer still, and the colonial ruins and mangrove river trips of San Blas make a longer day out.

From Acapulco, the easy outings are half days to Pie de la Cuesta and Barra Vieja on the edge of the city. Taxco, the silver town with its white streets, is around three hours inland and works better as an overnight stay.

Both work for families in different ways. Acapulco has things built for children, including the CICI water park, the shallow coves of Caleta and resort kids' clubs, but most families end up staying in the hotel and taking taxis everywhere else.

Sayulita has no attractions aimed at children. What it offers instead is surf schools on gentle waves and a sheltered cove, which suits older children who love the water. Its cobbled streets without pavements make pushchairs hard going.

Sayulita is easier because it is small. You can cross the village on foot in ten minutes, although the surfaces are cobbles and dirt, shared with golf carts. A car, a taxi or the slow coastal bus is only needed for nearby beaches and Puerto Vallarta.

Acapulco stretches for kilometres along the Costera, and the distances between the old town, the hotel strip and Diamante are too long to walk. Cheap buses and taxis cover the boulevard, and taxis are the usual choice after dark.

Neither is a shopping destination, but they sell different things. Acapulco's large artisan market brings together Taxco silver, Olinalá lacquerware, masks and hammocks from across Guerrero, with bargaining expected, and there are chain malls out in Diamante.

Sayulita has small boutiques selling linen, embroidered dresses and handmade jewellery, along with surf shops and the best range of Huichol beadwork of the two.

Acapulco is clearly cheaper. It is a resort for Mexicans first, so beach-view rooms in the older hotels, seafood lunches and buses cost little, and even the all-inclusive resorts give good value. Prices rise only in Diamante and Las Brisas and over the peak weeks.

Sayulita prices its rooms, villas and visitor restaurants for North Americans, and surf lessons, boat trips and yoga classes add up. Eating at taco stands and coming in the summer low season keep costs down.

Acapulco has a little more live performance. Mariachi bands and guitar trios play in seafood restaurants, hotels put on folk dance shows, Latin pop stars play the large venue in Diamante, and the Acapulco Philharmonic gives occasional concerts.

In Sayulita, live music means a band or acoustic set in a bar during the high season, plus a few buskers near the plaza. Concerts and theatre mean a trip to Puerto Vallarta.

Sayulita is built for unwinding. It has hillside yoga shalas, week-long retreats in villas, temazcal sweat lodges and sound healing, all fitting around a morning surf.

In Acapulco, relaxing mostly means a resort spa in Diamante or Las Brisas, or a clifftop hotel pool above the bay. The noisy Costera works against rest, so quieter stays are at the east end of the bay or out at Pie de la Cuesta.