Anguilla or St John?

Both islands are top Caribbean beach destinations, with white sand and warm, clear water all year. The difference is in the setting. Anguilla's beaches are long and flat and run around the whole coast of a low coral island. Some are lined with resorts and villas, as at Meads Bay and Rendezvous Bay, and boats run out to sandbars like Sandy Island.

St John's bays sit below steep green hills inside the national park, with almost no buildings. They are more scenic and better for snorkelling from the shore, with the underwater trail at Trunk Bay and turtles at Maho. But most of them are basic, with little more than sand and shade trees, and the best-known ones fill up by late morning in winter.

Anguilla is the stronger island for eating out. Dinner organises the evening there: a string of polished beachfront restaurants at the west end and Sandy Ground, plus crayfish, grilled snapper and the weekend lolos, roadside barbecue shacks.

St John has a decent choice for its size, but it's concentrated in Cruz Bay, with open-air grill restaurants, food trucks and a few West Indian kitchens serving pâtés and saltfish, and it has little fine dining. Many villa guests end up cooking for themselves. Neither island has proper markets, and on both nearly everything is imported.

Neither island is a culture destination, but St John has more to see, and more of it is in its landscape. The Annaberg sugar mill looks out over the north shore. The Reef Bay Trail passes estate ruins on the way to Taíno petroglyphs, and Coral Bay has the fort remains linked to the slave revolt of 1733.

Anguilla's history fits into a morning: Wallblake House in The Valley, the Heritage Collection Museum, the carvings in Fountain Cavern and the old salt ponds. On St John, the sightseeing comes with a good walk.

Both islands are quiet after dark, but Anguilla has a little more life. Sandy Ground's beach bars stay open late with dancing on the sand at weekends, and Sunday afternoon sessions around the island run into the evening.

On St John, going out means a few open-air bars on the Cruz Bay waterfront, where visitors and boat crews mix until late evening. Anyone who wants more takes the ferry to St Thomas.

This is where the two islands differ most. St John is mostly national park: steep dry forest dropping to reefs and empty headlands, with a network of trails, from the Reef Bay valley to the bare cliffs of Ram Head. In the water there are turtles, rays and coral around Waterlemon Cay and Maho Bay.

Anguilla is flat scrub and cactus, with no hills or forest. Its outdoor appeal is on the water: diving around Prickly Pear Cays and Dog Island, kitesurfing and sailing in the trade winds, plus cliff walks and birdwatching at the salt ponds.

From both islands, a day trip means taking a boat, and the options are about as good on each. From Anguilla the outing is Saint Martin, a short ferry ride away, with French Marigot and the restaurants of Grand Case on one side and duty-free Philipsburg on the other. St Barths is an occasional chartered treat.

St John offers more islands to choose from. Charlotte Amalie on St Thomas has Danish colonial streets and a fort. Across the channel lie the British Virgin Islands, from the beach bars of Jost Van Dyke to the boulders of The Baths, though visiting them means a passport and customs.

For families, the two are much alike: safe, slow and built around calm, shallow water, with nothing made for children beyond the beach. On Anguilla, gently shelving bays such as Rendezvous Bay and Shoal Bay West make the island easy with toddlers, and several larger resorts cater well to families.

St John appeals more to children who already like the water, with turtles at Maho Bay and the marked snorkel trail at Trunk Bay. But its steep roads, hillside villas and the taxi and ferry needed to get there are harder work with small children.

Anguilla is the easier island to get around. It's flat and about 26km long, traffic is light, and with a hire car any beach is a short drive away. The main effort is arriving: you fly into Sint Maarten and take a ferry across.

St John is harder work. You fly into St Thomas, take a taxi to Red Hook and then a ferry. On the island, the steep, switchbacked roads make a jeep close to essential. Its advantages are the open-air safari taxis to the north shore beaches and Cruz Bay, which you can walk around.

Neither island is for shoppers, though St John has slightly more to browse. Its Cruz Bay courtyards hold galleries, jewellers and craft such as hand-painted pottery, which is enough for an hour. Anguilla has a few galleries and resort boutiques, with sea salt and rum as souvenirs. For serious shopping, both send you to a duty-free neighbour, Saint Martin or Charlotte Amalie.

Both islands are expensive, because almost everything is shipped in, so meals, drinks and groceries cost a lot on either. Anguilla's accommodation is mostly high-end resorts and villas, with lolo barbecue as the main cheaper meal.

St John has more ways to save. The national park's beaches and trails are mostly free, and the campground at Cinnamon Bay gives a simpler place to stay. On the other hand, the jeep, taxis and ferries add up.

Anguilla's live music has more going on. Reggae, soca and string bands play at weekends around Sandy Ground and at Sunday afternoon beach-bar sessions. Two long-standing festivals anchor the year: the reggae festival in March and the August Summer Festival, with calypso and boat racing.

St John's music is mostly singer-guitarists and the odd steel pan band in the bars of Cruz Bay and Coral Bay. Its one big occasion is the St John Festival in early summer, with parades and quelbe music. Neither island has a theatre or concert hall.

Anguilla's version of rest is the more polished one. Its luxury resorts have extensive spas, some with treatment rooms open to the sea breeze, and days slip by between the beach, lunch and an early night.

St John's calm is simpler and wilder: a hillside villa above the water, tree frogs at night, a massage therapist who comes to the villa and a few small yoga studios. It suits people who want to switch off surrounded by nature rather than be looked after. Neither island has a bathing tradition of its own.