Antibes or Barcelona?

Both have real sand and a sea of about the same warmth in August, so the difference is in the kind of beach. Antibes has natural, gently shelving beaches at Juan-les-Pins and La Salis, and the rocky coves of Cap d'Antibes for swimming off flat rocks into very clear water. Private clubs take much of the sand.

Barcelona's beaches are man-made and run for kilometres from Barceloneta to Mar Bella. Their strength is that they are a metro ride from the centre. In high summer they are packed and you need to watch your bags, and the better sand is a train ride away at Sitges or along the Maresme.

Barcelona is worth the trip for its food alone, and Antibes is not. Barcelona has Catalan cooking, the late-morning vermouth habit, counter meals in the Santa Caterina and Sant Antoni markets and a serious tasting-menu scene. Prices range from cheap set lunches upwards, and Gràcia, Poble Sec and the Eixample are the best areas to eat.

Antibes is pleasant rather than memorable. It has Niçoise dishes such as socca and pissaladière, grilled fish and rosé, and a fine morning market on Cours Masséna. But the choice is that of a coastal town, and the streets by the port lean on tourist menus.

The gap here is wide. Barcelona has the Sagrada Família, La Pedrera and the rest of its Modernista buildings, a Gothic Quarter with Roman walls, the church of Santa Maria del Mar, and museums from the MNAC to the MACBA. That is easily a week's worth.

Antibes has one outstanding sight, the Picasso Museum in the Château Grimaldi, with the old town, Fort Carré and the Villa Eilenroc around it, and two days is enough. Both have a Picasso Museum, and they make a neat contrast: Antibes holds the work of a single autumn by the sea, while Barcelona's traces his early years.

Barcelona's nights start late and run to dawn: dinner, then bars, then clubs. Each district has its own crowd, from cocktail bars in the Born's old cellars to drinking outdoors in Gràcia's squares and serious electronic club nights. It stays busy midweek and outside the summer.

Antibes goes out mostly in July and August. Then Juan-les-Pins has beach bars and a few late clubs, and yacht crews fill the pubs near Port Vauban. Out of season it closes early, and people head to Nice for a bigger night.

Both combine sea with hills within reach, but in different ways. In Antibes the outdoors means the coast: the path around Cap d'Antibes over wind-carved limestone, clear water for snorkelling and diving, and the red Esterel cliffs and the Gorges du Loup a drive away.

Barcelona has wild country at its edge, where the trails of Collserola start from Sarrià and Gràcia. Bigger landscapes lie further out at Montserrat, the Garraf and the Costa Brava. Summers are too hot for serious hiking, so it suits walkers best in spring and autumn.

Antibes is the better base for touring. The coastal railway puts Nice, Cannes, Monaco and Menton within easy reach, and boats cross to the Lérins Islands. The hill villages of Saint-Paul-de-Vence, Eze and Grasse are close by, and Biot and Vallauris are right next door.

Barcelona's trips are fewer and longer but still strong. Fast trains go to Girona and to Figueres for the Dalí museum, and further south to Roman Tarragona. Closer in are Montserrat, Sitges and the cava cellars of the Penedès.

Barcelona gives children much more to do. There is the aquarium, the CosmoCaixa science museum, the zoo and the funfair on Tibidabo, and PortAventura is about an hour south. Children are welcome in restaurants late into the evening, though the crowded old town is hard work with a pushchair.

Antibes is simpler. Its gently shelving sand suits small children well and the small town is easy to manage. Beyond the beach and the boats in Port Vauban, though, there is little built for children.

Barcelona is easier to get around. The centre is flat and walkable, and the metro is simple, with buses, trams and local trains on the same tickets. Bike lanes cover the longer flat stretches. Only the hilltops of Park Güell, Montjuïc and Tibidabo take extra effort.

Antibes is small enough to walk, and its two stations on the coastal line make the Riviera towns easy without a car. Away from the railway the buses are slow, so Grasse and the Esterel are much simpler by car, and summer traffic on the coast road is heavy.

Barcelona is a proper shopping city. Luxury and Spanish fashion houses line the Passeig de Gràcia, a big department store stands on Plaça de Catalunya, the Born has independent designers and the Raval has vintage shops. Espadrilles, ceramics and cava make good things to take home.

Shopping in Antibes is small-scale: Provençal linens, olive oil and soaps from the market and the old-town boutiques. For fashion you go to Cannes or Nice, and Biot glass and Vallauris pottery are best bought in their own villages.

Neither is cheap, but your money goes further in Barcelona. Hotels and the entry fees for the Gaudí buildings add up, but weekday set lunches, tapas bars and transport passes keep daily costs reasonable.

In July and August, Antibes is priced like a luxury resort, and beach-club loungers and seafront terraces cost a lot too. Hotel rates drop sharply in spring and autumn, and buying food at the market and using the coastal trains help.

Barcelona has a full programme all year: opera and ballet at the Liceu, concerts at the Palau de la Música Catalana and L'Auditori, serious theatre, jazz cellars and flamenco. The Sónar and Primavera Sound festivals come in early summer.

Antibes has one great event, Jazz à Juan, held each July under the pines since 1960. Beyond that there is the regional programme at the Anthéa theatre and some open-air events in summer. For opera you go to Nice.

Neither is a spa destination, and they relax in different ways. Antibes has a seawater thalassotherapy centre and the spas of the grand hotels on the cape. In May, June and September the town itself is restful.

Barcelona offers Arab-style bath houses in the old town and hotel spas, but the centre is noisy and stays up late. Calm there means long lunches, terraces in Gràcia and evening walks in Collserola or on Montjuïc.