Antwerp or Frankfurt?

Neither city is a beach destination, but Antwerp at least has the North Sea within reach. The train to Blankenberge or Knokke takes under two hours, which makes a long but realistic day at the coast. Closer in, Sint-Annastrand has a sandy promenade on the Scheldt, though the river is not for swimming.

Frankfurt has no coast within a day's travel. In its place are gravel-pit lakes such as the Langener Waldsee, which has sandy shores and is warm enough for swimming in July and August.

Antwerp eats and drinks better. Beer is its strength: the local amber ale comes in a round bolleke glass, and the brown cafés near the cathedral have long lists of Trappist beers. Alongside that are stoofvlees, mussels and frites from proper friteries, and modern kitchens in Het Zuid and Het Eilandje, a few of them starred.

Frankfurt's local food is a narrower set of dishes: tart Apfelwein from stoneware jugs at shared tables in Sachsenhausen, Grüne Soße and Handkäs mit Musik. Its other strength is variety, with the Kleinmarkthalle market hall and cheap Turkish and Asian kitchens in the Bahnhofsviertel.

Antwerp has more historic buildings that are still the originals. Rubens's altarpieces in the Cathedral of Our Lady, his house and studio, the Plantin-Moretus printing house and the guild houses of the Grote Markt all date from its golden age. Central Station's dome and the Art Nouveau streets of Zurenborg add a later layer.

Frankfurt's case rests on its museums, more than a dozen along the Museumsufer, led by the Städel. The Römer and the old-town lanes were rebuilt after 1944, and the skyline of towers is its most distinctive sight. Both cities fill two or three days.

The two are fairly evenly matched for going out, and both have a house and techno club tradition that is busiest at weekends. The difference is in the feel. Antwerp's bars have no fixed closing time, so brown cafés and student streets stay busy late, and it has one of the best-known gay scenes in the Low Countries.

In Frankfurt, nights out are spread across several districts. There are cocktail bars and late kiosks in the rough-edged Bahnhofsviertel, cider taverns in Alt-Sachsenhausen, neighbourhood bars on Berger Straße, and people drinking outside on the Main banks in summer.

Frankfurt has far more on its doorstep. The Taunus begins beyond the northern suburbs and rises to about 880m on the Großer Feldberg. The Stadtwald is a large forest within the city, and the Rheingau vineyards and the Rhine Gorge offer real scenery further out.

Antwerp's surroundings are flat and dominated by the port. The Kalmthoutse Heide heathland and the dyke rides through the Scheldt polders are pleasant by bike, but they make a half day out rather than a reason to come.

Both cities are excellent bases, and the difference is in what lies around them. From Antwerp you can reach one historic city after another: Mechelen, Ghent with the Van Eyck altarpiece, Bruges, Leuven and Brussels. Across the border are Rotterdam, Delft and the Kinderdijk windmills.

Frankfurt's trips mix towns with landscape. There is Heidelberg's castle, boat trips through the Rhine Gorge, Cologne cathedral by high-speed train, Würzburg's Residenz and Riesling tastings in the Rheingau.

Both cities are equally easy with children, and each has a central zoo. Antwerp's is right beside Central Station, and the free foot tunnel under the Scheldt, the Steen and the MAS rooftop make easy outings, though the frequent grey weather means you need indoor plans ready. Frankfurt's highlight is the dinosaur hall at the Senckenberg, with the Palmengarten glasshouses, boat trips past the skyline and the wildlife park in Kronberg for a day out.

Both centres are walkable, and a car is more trouble than help in either. Antwerp is the better city for cycling, with shared bikes and marked lanes, though cobbles and tram tracks need care. Trams, some running underground, cover the rest.

Frankfurt's advantage is reach. Its U-Bahn, S-Bahn and trams run as one network that extends to the Taunus, Wiesbaden and Mainz, and the airport is about a quarter of an hour from the centre by train.

Antwerp is the more rewarding city for shoppers because it has a speciality. The avant-garde designers from its fashion academy shaped the boutiques of the Nationalestraat, Kammenstraat and Het Zuid. The diamond quarter, the Kloosterstraat antiques and the secondhand auctions on the Vrijdagmarkt add variety.

Frankfurt is better for everyday shopping: department stores and malls on the Zeil, luxury houses on Goethestraße, and independent shops on Berger Straße and Schweizer Straße.

Neither city is cheap, but the costs fall in different places. In Antwerp, rooms usually cost less than in nearby capitals, while sit-down dinners carry high Belgian prices, so frites, café beers and lunch menus help a budget go further. Frankfurt is the reverse: tavern meals, Turkish grills and market food cost little, but hotels are priced for business travellers and soar during trade fairs, so weekend and summer stays work out best.

Frankfurt has the deeper performing arts scene. Its opera company is among Germany's most respected for adventurous productions, and the Alte Oper hosts the regional radio symphony orchestra. An English-language theatre and jazz cellars add more options, though summer is quiet.

Antwerp's strengths are more specialised: Opera Ballet Vlaanderen in the house on the Frankrijklei, contemporary dance at deSingel and early music at AMUZ in a Baroque church. Much of its theatre is in Dutch, which rules it out for many visitors.

Frankfurt is the better choice for rest, thanks to the spa towns around it. Wiesbaden's Art Nouveau Kaiser-Friedrich-Therme is fed by hot springs, and Bad Homburg has a large thermal bath complex at the foot of the Taunus. In town, the Palmengarten is the calmest spot.

Antwerp has no thermal springs or bathing tradition. Flanders has a real sauna culture, but the big complexes are in the suburbs and countryside and mostly need a car. In the city, unwinding usually means a park or a quiet afternoon in a brown café.