Alanya or Istanbul?

Alanya is built around its beaches. Cleopatra Beach curves west of the castle in fine pale sand, Keykubat runs for kilometres east of the harbour, and boat trips around the headland stop at turquoise coves. The water shelves gently and stays warm well into autumn.

Istanbul sits on the water without really swimming in it. The sea near the centre is not for bathing, so beach days mean an hour's trip to the Black Sea sands at Kilyos or Sile, which are cooler and known for undertow, or a ferry to the pebbly coves of the Princes' Islands.

Istanbul is one of the reasons people visit Turkey at all. Dishes come in from every region: Black Sea anchovies, south-eastern kebabs, Ottoman palace cooking, lokanta stews at lunch, fish sandwiches by the Galata Bridge and long meyhane evenings in Beyoglu and Kumkapi. Kadikoy's market streets on the Asian shore are a meal in themselves.

Alanya's seafront mostly serves resort menus and hotel buffets. Good Turkish food is there if you look for it, in back-street pide houses, grilled fish, gözleme in the hill villages and the weekly market, but the range and depth do not compare.

Istanbul has been an imperial capital for centuries, and it shows. Hagia Sophia, the Blue Mosque, Topkapi and the Basilica Cistern stand within a short walk of each other, with the Süleymaniye, the Chora church, the Theodosian walls and the Bosphorus palaces beyond.

Alanya's history is concentrated on its peninsula: the Seljuk castle walls, the Red Tower, the rock-cut Tersane shipyard and a small archaeological museum. It is rewarding for a day or two, and then the town is modern resort.

Istanbul's nights have more range. Rooftop bars and singing meyhanes in Beyoglu, cocktail and wine bars in Karakoy and Cihangir, cheaper bar streets in Kadikoy and Moda, and summer clubs on the Bosphorus shore that run until dawn give a choice of moods.

Alanya offers one kind of night, and does it loudly in summer: the harbour bar street, karaoke, open-air clubs and party boats for a young international crowd. It is fun if that is what you want, and it largely shuts down from late autumn.

Alanya has wilder country on its doorstep. Within a short drive the Taurus Mountains bring pine forest, the Dim River valley and cave, Sapadere Canyon's waterfalls and high summer pastures, while the coast adds sea caves, paragliding and diving.

Istanbul's outdoors is gentler and more urban: the wooded Bosphorus seen from a ferry, tulip-filled parks in April, the trails of Belgrad Forest and cycling on the Princes' Islands. There are no mountains within easy reach.

Both have good outings, with Alanya slightly ahead. From Alanya the classical coast lies west: Side's Temple of Apollo, the great theatre at Aspendos, Perge's colonnaded streets and Antalya's Kaleiçi and museum, mostly done on organised tours because the sites are spread out.

Istanbul's best escapes go by water, to the car-free Princes' Islands or up the Bosphorus to Anadolu Kavagi, with Bursa the strongest town trip. Getting out of such a large city eats into the day, and Edirne, Gallipoli and Troy are long or need a night.

Alanya is the easier family vacation. Calm, warm, gently shelving beaches, family resort hotels with slides and kids' clubs, water parks, the castle cable car and pirate boat trips keep children busy, as long as you stay away from the noisy harbour and sit out the midday heat.

Istanbul welcomes children just as warmly and has real treats in the ferries, the Rahmi M. Koç Museum, Miniaturk and its aquariums. The crowds, steep cobbled hills and long transfers are tiring for small legs and hard on pushchairs.

Istanbul has the fuller system: one card covers the metro, the T1 tram through the old city, the Marmaray tunnel, funiculars and ferries, and crossing continents by boat is a pleasure in itself. Rush-hour crowds and slow taxis in traffic are the price of its size.

Alanya's centre, harbour and two main beaches are walkable along the promenade, and buses and dolmuş minibuses run the coast road. The canyons, mountains and ancient sites, though, mean a tour or a hire car, and staying far out on the hotel strip makes everything slower.

Istanbul is a serious shopping city. The Grand Bazaar's covered streets and hans, the Spice Bazaar, lanes of copper and textile trades, designer Nisantasi, Cukurcuma's antiques and Kadikoy's flea markets cover everything from kilims to fashion labels.

Alanya's harbour streets sell leather, towels, gold and imitation brands to resort visitors, with haggling expected. Its large weekly market is the one stop worth planning around.

The two cost much the same overall, but in different ways. Alanya is cheapest as a package or all-inclusive stay, with cheap buses and market food, while boat trips, tours and harbourside meals cost more and peak summer pushes rooms up.

In Istanbul, ferries, simit and lokanta lunches cost very little, but rooms in Sultanahmet and Galata, heavily taxed drinks and steep entry fees at the big monuments add up quickly. Staying in Kadikoy and eating like a local brings it down a great deal.

Istanbul has a real stage life: the state opera and ballet at the Ataturk Cultural Centre, concert halls with touring orchestras, summer music and jazz festivals in historic courtyards, Sema ceremonies in old dervish lodges and small folk, rock and jazz venues in Beyoglu and Kadikoy.

Alanya offers hotel shows and Turkish-night dinners. Its early-autumn jazz festival in the old shipyard is the one occasion worth timing a trip around.

Both cities are built for the hammam, but Istanbul has the real thing. Sinan's sixteenth-century baths, such as Cemberlitas and Haseki Hürrem, still work under domed, star-pierced marble ceilings, and a slow tea in Kandilli or a ferry ride balances out a hectic city.

Alanya's hotel and town hammams are made for visitors but done well. Its strength is the unhurried resort pace, best in spring and autumn, along with the humid air of the Damlataş cave.