Annecy or Verona?

Neither city has a sea, and both rely on a large, clear lake that warms to the low or mid twenties by July. What differs is the distance. In Annecy the swimming lawns at Albigny and Marquisats are a short walk from the old town, and there are small village beaches at Sevrier and Talloires around the shore, so a summer stay can revolve around the water.

From Verona, the southern shore of Lake Garda is about half an hour away, at Peschiera, Lazise or Sirmione with its flat limestone shelves, and has lidos with sunbeds. It works well as an outing, but not as a daily habit unless you move your base to the lake.

Verona eats and drinks better. Its osterie around Piazza delle Erbe and in Veronetta serve Amarone risotto, bigoli with duck and bollito with pearà. Valpolicella, Soave and Bardolino are all made a short drive away, and the wine alone shapes the evenings.

Annecy's cooking is Savoyard and heavy on cheese: tartiflette, fondue, and féra from the lake. It is at its best on market mornings in the arcaded old town and at the gastronomic tables in Talloires and Veyrier. The canal-side terraces are uneven, and in summer the melted cheese can feel out of place.

This is where the two cities differ most. Verona's centre is UNESCO-listed, with a Roman Arena and a Roman theatre, the Scaliger tombs, San Zeno and the art collection in Castelvecchio. That is enough for two or three full days without repeating yourself.

Annecy has one lovely set piece: the canals, the Palais de l'Isle and the château museum above them. It is a pleasure to wander, but one unhurried day covers it, and anyone wanting more history will find it on a trip to Chambéry, the old capital of Savoy.

Neither is a place for clubbing, but Verona gives its evenings more shape. Aperitivo in Piazza delle Erbe and along Corso Porta Borsari, followed by the cheaper student wine bars of Veronetta, keeps the centre going later. On summer opera nights the crowd leaving the Arena near midnight brings the streets back to life.

In Annecy an evening means a drink on a canal-side terrace or a glass of wine by the lake. In summer the waterfront stays lively, but for the rest of the year the town is quiet by midnight.

Annecy wins clearly. The mountains rise straight from the lake, so you can hike up Mont Veyrier or the Tournette in the morning, paddle in the afternoon and watch paragliders drift down from the Col de la Forclaz, all in one day. In winter, La Clusaz and Le Grand-Bornand are under an hour away.

Verona's outdoors is gentler and further off. There are vineyard walks in the Valpolicella, the long cycle route up the Adige valley and hikes on the Lessinia plateau, while Monte Baldo and the windsurfing at the north end of Garda are about an hour out.

Annecy's outings lean towards lakes and mountains. Geneva is under an hour by road, Chamonix makes a full day beneath Mont Blanc, and Yvoire and Évian sit on the shore of Lake Geneva. Chambéry and Aix-les-Bains are a short train ride south. Several of these are much simpler with a hire car.

Verona's great advantage is how many art cities lie along a single railway line. Vicenza, with Palladio's Teatro Olimpico, is under half an hour away, Padua's Scrovegni Chapel and Gonzaga Mantua are within the hour, and Venice is just beyond. Add Sirmione and Bardolino on Garda and the cellars of the Valpolicella, and a week can bring a different day out every morning without a car.

Both work well with children, in different ways. In Annecy the draw is the lake and the space around it: the lawns of Le Pâquier, pedal boats, the flat path along the shore and summer toboggan runs. But it has no zoo or theme park, and outside summer it loses much of its appeal for children.

Verona edges ahead for days out built for children. Gardaland and the drive-through safari at Parco Natura Viva are each about half an hour away, and the Arena tends to impress young visitors. Those attractions need a car or a transfer, though, and summer afternoons in town are hot.

Both centres are compact and easy to walk. Verona's flat, largely traffic-free centre inside the loop of the Adige links the main sights on foot, and its trains to Venice, Milan and Peschiera make day trips without a car easy.

Annecy is just as easy within town and adds a lakeside cycle path and summer lake boats. Trailheads, mountain passes and Chamonix are far simpler by car, though, and summer traffic around the lake can be slow.

Verona has more to browse. Marble-paved Via Mazzini is lined with Italian fashion labels between Piazza Bra and Piazza delle Erbe, the side streets add jewellers and shoe shops, and Amarone, Garda olive oil and pandoro are good things to take home.

In Annecy, shopping is mostly market stalls and small boutiques around Rue Sainte-Claire, and Savoyard cheese, génépi and honey are the best buys. Both send serious shoppers elsewhere: Annecy to Geneva and Verona to Milan.

Annecy is the dearer of the two. Wealthy Geneva next door keeps prices up all year, rooms by the lake and in the old town go at resort rates in summer, and dinner out costs what it would in a smart French resort. What eases the bill is how much of the day costs nothing: the swimming lawns, the shore path and the mountain trails. Renting an apartment in spring or autumn also helps.

Verona is kinder on day-to-day spending. A Valpolicella with a snack at a wine counter, or a meal in one of Veronetta's student osterie, costs less than a terrace dinner by Annecy's canals, and with every sight reachable on foot, transport adds almost nothing. Beds are where it catches up. Old-centre hotels get scarce and expensive on summer opera nights and during the big trade fairs, so a room across the Adige or near Porta Nuova makes more sense.

Verona has one of Europe's great summer spectacles: grand opera in the Roman Arena, with Verdi and Puccini performed to thousands seated on the stone tiers. Around it there is a summer festival of Shakespeare, dance and jazz in the Roman theatre, and an opera and concert season at the Teatro Filarmonico in the cooler months.

Annecy's stage is Bonlieu by the lake, with a respectable programme of contemporary theatre, dance and circus, plus a summer classical festival and the August fireworks over the water. For opera or a major orchestra, people in Annecy travel to Geneva or Lyon.

The two are equally restful, and in the same way: through their slow pace rather than any spa culture of their own, and both send you out of town for thermal water. From Annecy that means the historic baths of Aix-les-Bains or Saint-Gervais at the foot of Mont Blanc, while quiet hotel spas sit beside the lake at Talloires and Veyrier.

Verona's warm springs are closer and more varied: Sirmione's thermal pools facing Garda, a spring-fed lake in an old villa garden near Lazise, and springs at Caldiero used since Roman times. In town, the terraces of the Giardino Giusti and an evening walk by the river do the rest.