Annecy or Portofino?

Neither place has a classic sandy beach, and they offer very different kinds of swimming. Annecy swims in a lake. In town you get grassy lawns with short strips of shingle and jetties, plus small village beaches around the shore, and the water is clean and around 22-24°C by July. The swimming season is short, from late June to early September.

Portofino swims in the sea, mostly from rock platforms and ladders into deep, clear water along the path to the lighthouse. Paraggi's small sandy bay is mostly given over to paid beach clubs, and there are pebbles at San Fruttuoso. The sea stays warm longer than the lake, but in both places the best spots fill up early.

Annecy eats better and with more variety. It has hearty Savoyard cheese dishes, féra and char from the lake, and Savoie whites to go with them. Market mornings in the arcaded old town are a real pleasure, and the most serious cooking is in the lakeside villages of Talloires and Veyrier.

Portofino has the Ligurian classics, such as trofie with pesto and Recco's cheese focaccia. But the harbour restaurants charge for the view more than the cooking, and there is no market or casual everyday food. Keen eaters head to Camogli or the trattorie in the hills.

Annecy gives a sightseeing day more to work with. The canal-lined old town is a sight in its own right, with the Palais de l'Isle, the old island prison, at its centre. Above it the Château d'Annecy has a proper museum of regional art and Alpine life, and the town hosts a well-known international animation film festival.

Portofino has no museum of any size. Its sights are the painted horseshoe of houses, San Giorgio and Castello Brown. Add the walk or boat ride to the medieval abbey at San Fruttuoso and you have seen it all.

An evening in Portofino is an aperitivo and a long dinner facing the yachts, with people dressed up to be seen. After that there are no clubs and very little else. Annecy goes on a little later. Its students keep a few pubs, wine and cocktail bars and one or two small clubs going, though it is quiet outside summer.

For a proper night out, Annecy looks to Geneva or Lyon. From Portofino you go to Santa Margherita, Rapallo or Genoa.

Annecy offers a much wider range of things to do outdoors. Short climbs from town lead to Mont Veyrier and Mont Baron, the Semnoz on the western side of the lake makes a separate outing, and the Parmelan and the Tournette are full mountain days of their own. The Col de la Forclaz is a famous paragliding launch, the lake suits sailing and paddleboarding, and in winter there is skiing in the Aravis.

Portofino's protected headland has dramatic cliff paths through holm oak and pine to San Fruttuoso and Camogli, some sections with chains. Its real advantage is underwater, in a marine reserve known for its diving.

Portofino has the edge for outings, mainly because getting there by boat is half the fun. Summer ferries leave the harbour for Camogli, the Cinque Terre and Portovenere, and Genoa's medieval centre and Renaissance palaces are under an hour away. Out of season it takes more planning, and the trains do most of the work.

Annecy also has good options. Geneva, Chambéry and the spa town of Aix-les-Bains are all close, and Yvoire and Lyon make longer days out. A trip to Chamonix under Mont Blanc, though, goes much more easily with a car.

Annecy is clearly the better family choice. The old town is flat enough for pushchairs, and Le Pâquier and the Jardins de l'Europe give children space to run. Summer adds pedal boats, lake cruises and the shoreline cycle path, with toboggan runs and treetop courses in the hills nearby. The main gaps are a zoo or theme park, and the summer crowds.

Portofino is calm and safe but made for adults. Its paths are steep steps that do not suit pushchairs, there are no playgrounds, and most of the sand is in paid clubs. Families usually stay in Santa Margherita or Rapallo and visit Genoa's aquarium.

Annecy is easier to get around. The station, the old town and the lakefront are a short walk apart, buses cover the rest, and a bike path runs down the western shore. Lake boats link several villages in summer, but a car helps for trailheads and the Alpine passes.

Portofino is a few minutes from end to end, though the climbs to the castle and lighthouse are steep. Getting in and out is the problem: one narrow coastal road runs about 5km to Santa Margherita's station, and parking is scarce. The bus and the spring-to-autumn ferries make more sense than a car.

Annecy's best buys are edible, while Portofino's are made to be worn. In Annecy the market brings Savoyard cheeses, sausages, génépi and honey, and around Rue Sainte-Claire there are independent shops, kitchenware and outdoor gear.

Portofino fits big fashion and jewellery houses and resort clothes for the yacht crowd into a few lanes, along with some Ligurian lace and pesto, and you can see it all in under an hour. For a longer browse, Annecy's shoppers go to Geneva, and Portofino's go to Chiavari or Genoa.

Annecy is expensive for a town its size, but Portofino is in another league. Its few hotels are mostly luxury properties, and the piazzetta, the Paraggi loungers and boat hire all charge heavily. Many visitors sleep in Camogli or Rapallo and come in for the day.

In Annecy, the shoulder seasons and self-catering apartments make a stay noticeably cheaper. The lake beaches, parks, cycle path and mountain trails cost nothing.

Annecy has a real stage in Bonlieu by the lake, with contemporary theatre, dance, circus and concerts through the season. Summer adds a classical festival and the Fête du Lac fireworks over the water in August.

Portofino offers little more than the odd summer concert in the piazzetta or at the castle. For opera or a full concert season, Annecy's visitors go to Geneva or Lyon, and Portofino's go to the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa.

Both towns are restful mainly because of their pace, and neither has public baths of its own. Annecy has the advantage of real thermal bathing close by, at historic Aix-les-Bains and at Saint-Gervais under Mont Blanc, as well as hotel spas on quiet shores at Talloires and Veyrier.

Portofino's wellness comes from the luxury hotel spas on the hillside and shaded walks with only the sea for company. That calm belongs to early mornings, evenings and the off-season, because tour-boat crowds fill the harbour at midday in summer.