Adelaide or Canberra?

This is where the two cities differ most. Adelaide has a long line of sandy suburban beaches on calm, sheltered gulf water, from Glenelg with its jetty to quieter Henley Beach and Semaphore, and in summer a swim and a sunset fit easily into an ordinary day.

Canberra has no coast at all. Locals cool off at river spots such as Casuarina Sands and Kambah Pool, which have no lifeguards, and algae often closes the lake. The sea at Batemans Bay is a separate excursion over the mountains, not part of a city stay.

Adelaide is the place to eat. The Central Market and Chinatown next door, seafood from the gulfs such as King George whiting and Spencer Gulf prawns, and wine bars stocked from vineyards an hour away make food one of the main reasons to come.

Canberra eats well but on a smaller scale, with brunch in Braddon, the Asian kitchens of Woolley Street in Dickson and the older restaurant strips of Kingston and Manuka. Its cool-climate wineries around Murrumbateman are its own strength, but the fine-dining tier is short and there is no regional larder to match South Australia's.

Here Canberra comes out ahead, because holding the national collections is what the city was built for. Parliament House, the National Gallery, the Portrait Gallery, the National Museum and the War Memorial together give several days of serious sightseeing, and Griffin's lake-centred plan, seen from Mount Ainslie, is a sight in its own right.

Adelaide's offer is gathered along North Terrace, where the Art Gallery and the South Australian Museum both hold fine Aboriginal collections, and its colonial grid of sandstone churches is more pleasant to wander than Canberra's modern avenues. Still, it fills a day or two rather than a whole trip.

Neither city is built for big nights, but Adelaide has more going on. Laneway wine bars around Peel and Leigh Streets, pubs and terraces on Rundle Street, a louder club strip on Hindley Street and weeks of late festival crowds in summer give it real range.

Canberra's evenings revolve around cocktail bars and small breweries in Braddon and Civic, with students filling a few late spots at weekends. Outside term and sitting weeks the city goes very quiet.

The two are equally good for the outdoors, but the landscapes differ. Adelaide pairs the gentle eucalypt hills of Mount Lofty and Morialta with a coast of cliffs, the Heysen Trail and dolphins in the Port River, and Kangaroo Island is within reach on a longer stay.

Canberra has bush running between its suburbs, kangaroos on the playing fields at dusk and, forty minutes away, the granite peaks of Namadgi, above 1,800m and sometimes white with winter snow. It offers higher, wilder walking, whereas Adelaide's appeal lies where the hills meet the sea.

Adelaide is much stronger for day trips because of its wine country. The Barossa with its Lutheran spires, McLaren Vale running down to the sea, the Adelaide Hills and the Prussian-settler cottages of Hahndorf are all an hour or less away, and the Clare Valley and Victor Harbor add variety.

Canberra's outings are quieter country drives to the Murrumbateman cellar doors, the gold-rush streets of Braidwood, Bungendore's galleries or Goulburn's Victorian buildings. They are pleasant, but none draws visitors on its own the way the Barossa does.

Both are easy, safe and uncrowded with children, so the choice comes down to the kind of day you want. Adelaide offers calm, shallow beaches reached by tram, kangaroos and koalas at Cleland and open-range animals at Monarto.

Canberra's draw is indoors and educational: Questacon's hands-on science floors, the children's galleries at the National Museum and War Memorial, and the Arboretum playground. It has no beach, and a car makes the distances far easier with small children.

Adelaide is easier to get around. The centre is a compact, flat grid that is simple to walk or cycle, with a free loop bus and free central tram, and the same tram line runs all the way to Glenelg.

Canberra spreads its institutions along wide avenues around the lake, so walking between Civic, Braddon and the Parliamentary Triangle takes a long time, and buses thin out in the evenings. The off-road cycle paths are the best way around. In both cities the countryside, from the Barossa to Namadgi, really needs a car.

Neither is a shopping destination, but Adelaide gives you a little more to browse. Rundle Mall and its old arcades, the boutiques of King William Road and keepsakes such as South Australian opal, cellar-door wine and Aboriginal art from desert communities make a modest but distinctive haul.

Canberra keeps to the chains of the Canberra Centre and a few Braddon design shops. Its best stops are the Sunday makers' market at the Old Bus Depot and the gift shops of the national galleries.

Both carry full Australian prices for eating out and drinking, and neither is a budget stay. They save money in different places. Adelaide's hotels are kinder than those in the big east-coast cities, and the Central Market and Chinatown keep everyday meals reasonable.

Canberra's saving is that almost every major sight, from Parliament House to the War Memorial, is free, and hotel rooms often get cheaper at weekends. In both cities, a hire car for the countryside adds to the cost.

Adelaide is far ahead, at least in late summer, when the Fringe fills the parklands and pubs with comedy and cabaret, the Adelaide Festival brings international theatre and opera, and WOMADelaide takes over Botanic Park. The rest of the year, the Festival Centre, the state theatre and opera companies and the symphony keep up a steady calendar.

Canberra has a smaller round of touring shows at the Canberra Theatre Centre and a symphony season. Its one big event is the National Folk Festival at Easter, and many major tours pass it by.

Neither city has a bathing culture, and in both the main restorative quality is the slow pace. Adelaide has slightly more to offer, with retreats in the Hills and wine regions that combine treatments with vineyard stays, and long lunches and garden walks fit naturally into a day.

Canberra's spa options are limited to a handful of day and hotel spas. Its calm comes from quiet lakeside mornings and early evenings rather than from anything you would book.