Albuquerque or Palm Desert?

Neither city has a beach, and in both a seaside day means a long drive: about two hours over the mountains from Palm Desert, and far further from inland Albuquerque. They differ in how you cool off. In Palm Desert the pool is the centre of a stay, with heated resort pools under the palms even in winter. In Albuquerque, where the Rio Grande is not for swimming, a summer dip means a hotel pool or a drive out to Cochiti Lake.

Albuquerque has a regional cuisine and Palm Desert does not. Carne adovada, blue corn enchiladas and posole under red or green chile, served in long-running family places in the South Valley and along old Route 66, are reason enough to plan your meals. In late summer the smell of roasting chile fills the air, and craft breweries round off the evening.

Palm Desert eats well but without much character. Its steakhouses and Californian bistros along El Paseo are dependable for a long patio dinner, and their menus are much alike. Its local flavour lies out east in Indio and Coachella, with taquerias and date shakes from the groves.

Albuquerque has three centuries of history to show. There is the adobe plaza around San Felipe de Neri, the Pueblo-run cultural centre, the nuclear science museum, the KiMo Theatre on Route 66 and thousands of carvings at Petroglyph National Monument. Together they make a rewarding couple of days.

Palm Desert was built as a resort after the Second World War. Its culture comes down to a branch of the Palm Springs Art Museum with a sculpture garden, plus the galleries on El Paseo. For mid-century modern architecture you drive to Palm Springs.

Neither city is a destination for going out, but Albuquerque has more to offer after dark. On weekends, downtown's strip of bars and a few clubs on Central Avenue fill up, Nob Hill offers calmer cocktail bars and taprooms, and patio evenings last from spring to autumn.

Palm Desert winds down early, with wine bars and lounges around El Paseo serving mostly retirees and golfers. A late night means one of the valley's casinos or the bars of downtown Palm Springs.

Outdoors the two are evenly matched, with mountains rising straight from the edge of town in both, but Albuquerque has its tramway on the doorstep. The Sandia tram climbs from the city's own foothills to over 3,000m and fir forest, and the La Luz Trail goes up the whole mountain on foot. Down on the Rio Grande, the cottonwood bosque has shaded paths and wintering cranes, and the volcanic cones lie west of the river.

Palm Desert's mountains are the Santa Rosas, reached by steep trails from the south side of town. Its tramway trip means a twenty-minute drive to Palm Springs and a different range. The landscape is harsher desert: fan-palm oases in the Indian Canyons, golf courses on the valley floor and the granite boulders and night skies of Joshua Tree an hour away.

Santa Fe alone gives Albuquerque the edge: an adobe capital with Canyon Road's galleries and serious museums an hour up the road. Add Acoma's Sky City on its mesa, the cliff dwellings at Bandelier, Chimayo and the Turquoise Trail villages, and you have a run of outings steeped in Native and Spanish colonial history.

Palm Desert's outings are enjoyable but lighter. They include Palm Springs, the tasting rooms of Temecula, cool Idyllwild, the old film set at Pioneertown and the folk art of Salvation Mountain. Los Angeles and San Diego are too far for a comfortable day.

Albuquerque gives children more to do. There is the BioPark with its zoo, aquarium and gardens, the hands-on Explora science centre, the dinosaur halls, rockets outside the nuclear museum and the Sandia tram. In October the Balloon Fiesta's dawn launches make a trip children remember.

Palm Desert has the Living Desert, an excellent morning of giraffes and cheetahs, and resort pools with slides for the afternoons. Beyond that, the valley is built for golf and adults. In both cities every outing means a drive, and the summer sun needs care.

In both places you'll want a car, but Albuquerque offers a little more for those without one. Old Town is walkable, a bus line on Central Avenue links it with downtown, the university and Nob Hill, and a commuter train runs to Santa Fe. Palm Desert's only walking street is a few blocks of El Paseo, its buses are slow, and evenings out rely on ride-hailing. Both cities share easy roads and parking.

Palm Desert is the better place to shop. El Paseo's palm-lined boulevard of fashion boutiques, jewellers and galleries is an outing in itself, and a large designer outlet centre lies half an hour west.

Albuquerque's shopping is narrower but more distinctive. Around Old Town and the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center you'll find Native silver and turquoise, Pueblo pottery and Navajo weaving, and Nob Hill adds a few vintage shops. Come for fashion in Palm Desert and for handmade craft in Albuquerque.

Albuquerque is the cheaper of the two, though neither is a budget destination. Its hotels are fairly priced most of the year, New Mexican plates are generous, and Old Town, the petroglyphs and the foothills trails cost little. The big exception is Balloon Fiesta week.

Palm Desert's resort rooms are expensive in the winter and spring high season, and golf and spa treatments add up quickly. Rates fall sharply in summer, but that is because of the heat. Both need a hire car every day.

The two are evenly matched in scale but differ in character. Albuquerque's stage life runs all year and has local roots: Broadway tours and the philharmonic at Popejoy Hall, the Pueblo Deco KiMo, a real depth in flamenco and weekend Pueblo dances. In summer, the Santa Fe opera is an evening's drive away.

Palm Desert is seasonal and led by its festivals. The McCallum Theatre's winter programme covers touring shows, ballet and orchestras, the casinos host big-name concerts, and Coachella and Stagecoach take over nearby Indio for a few spring weekends.

Rest is Palm Desert's strongest suit and the reason many people go. The town is lined with resort spas and pools under the palms and keeps a winter-retreat pace, and the mineral-spring spa hotels of Desert Hot Springs are half an hour north.

Albuquerque has no bathing culture of its own beyond hotel spas on Pueblo lands outside town. Its hot springs at Jemez Springs and around Santa Fe make a soak a day out rather than part of the stay.