Antibes or La Spezia?

Antibes has what most of both coasts lacks: long, gently shelving sand at Juan-les-Pins and La Salis, right in town, plus rocky coves such as La Garoupe around the cape. Private beach clubs take much of the sand, but a swim needs no planning.

La Spezia's waterfront is a port, so every beach day is an outing. The reward is variety: sheltered sand and pebble at San Terenzo and Lerici, clear rocky water off Palmaria and Portovenere, and Monterosso's long sandy beach a train ride away. Most spots are small and pebbly, and paid bathing establishments cover much of the shore.

La Spezia eats a little better. Its Ligurian cooking has a clear identity: farinata from wood ovens, trofie with pesto, stuffed mussels from the gulf and crisp Cinque Terre whites, and prices in town stay fair. Neither town offers much fine dining.

Antibes relies on Niçoise cooking such as socca, pissaladière and grilled fish, and on the covered market on Cours Masséna. Cap d'Antibes has serious restaurants, but the lanes near the port lean on tourist menus, so eating well takes more care.

Neither is a heritage destination, and a day or two covers each. Antibes has the stronger single sight, the Picasso works in the Château Grimaldi above the sea, and an old town of narrow lanes and ramparts, with Fort Carré across the harbour.

La Spezia is a nineteenth-century naval city of arcades and Liberty facades rather than a medieval core. Its collections are quieter: early Italian painting at the Museo Amedeo Lia, the naval museum, and the Lunigiana stele statues in the Castello San Giorgio.

Antibes offers more of a night out, though only in summer. In July and August, Juan-les-Pins runs late with beach bars and a few clubs, and yacht crews keep the pubs near Port Vauban busy. Out of season, people go to Nice.

La Spezia is an aperitivo town. Evenings mean a spritz or a glass of Vermentino on Via del Prione or the Lerici waterfront, followed by an early night before the trails.

La Spezia is the stronger choice for the outdoors, because the landscape is the main event. The terraced cliffs and Cinque Terre footpaths, from the Sentiero Azzurro to the quieter ridge paths, start minutes away. Palmaria has its loop past old forts and sea caves, and the Apuan Alps offer serious hiking an hour inland.

Antibes has the coastal path round its cape, clear water for snorkelling and diving, and sailing in the bay. For proper hiking you drive to the Esterel, the Gorges du Loup or the hills above Grasse, because the land around the town is flat and built up.

Both are among the best bases on their coasts, but the trips differ in kind. From Antibes, the train links a string of towns: Nice, Cannes, Monaco and Menton. Inland are the art and perfume of Saint-Paul-de-Vence and Grasse, and Italy is within a day.

From La Spezia, the days lean towards villages and landscape: the five Cinque Terre villages, Portovenere and Lerici. Pisa and Lucca are about an hour away, and Portofino is along the Riviera.

Antibes suits younger children better, mainly because the sandy, shallow beaches at Juan-les-Pins and La Salis are close at hand and the town is small and easy to manage. Neither town has much built for children.

In La Spezia, the flat centre is easy with a pushchair and the beaches at San Terenzo and Lerici are sheltered, but they mean a bus ride. The region's steep villages, crowded trains and long walks suit older children better.

La Spezia is easier to manage without a car. The station, market and seafront are a short, flat walk apart, trains run through the Cinque Terre and inland to Pisa, and buses and ferries cover the gulf. Only the packed summer trains spoil it.

Antibes works well on foot and by the coastal railway, but buses to Cap d'Antibes and the hill villages are slow. Grasse and the Esterel really need a car, and then you face summer traffic and parking.

Neither is a shopping destination, but the shopping differs in kind. Antibes leans Provençal, with a covered market for olive oil and soaps and boutiques selling linens and ceramics. Biot glass and Vallauris pottery are nearby, and Cannes is the place for fashion.

La Spezia is an everyday Italian high street, with clothing chains and shoe shops along Via del Prione. The best things to take home are pesto, Cinque Terre wine and anchovies.

La Spezia is the cheaper base by some way. Its rooms cost less than in the Cinque Terre villages, everyday food is fair value and local transport costs little, though trail passes, boat trips and bathing establishments add up.

Antibes is expensive. Summer rooms near Juan-les-Pins and on the cape are priced like a luxury resort, and beach loungers are costly. In both towns, spring and autumn bring the bill down markedly.

Antibes has the bigger draw in Jazz à Juan, one of Europe's oldest jazz festivals, held each July under the pines by the sea. The Anthéa theatre covers the rest of the year with plays and dance.

La Spezia has its own summer jazz festival and open-air concerts in castle courtyards, but the season at the Teatro Civico is modest. For opera you go to Genoa or Pisa, just as you would go to Nice from Antibes.

Antibes offers more for pampering. It has a seawater thalassotherapy centre, and the grand hotel spas on Cap d'Antibes are often open to non-guests. La Spezia has hotel spas and the small thermal baths at Equi Terme, an hour inland.

In both, real rest comes outside high summer. In Antibes that means market mornings and walks along the ramparts. Near La Spezia it means a long lunch in Tellaro or a quiet day on Palmaria.