Arles or Monaco?

Monaco is the better place to swim, even though it has only one real beach. Larvotto is groomed, sheltered and clear, with beach clubs and rock platforms nearby, and the long beaches of Menton and Nice are a short train ride away.

Arles is a river town, and its sea is about 40km away across the Camargue. The beaches there at Saintes-Maries, Piémanson and Beauduc are wide and wild, with lots of space but little shade, and you need a car to reach them. They make a good day trip, while in Monaco you can swim every day.

Monaco has the edge, but mostly at the top end. It has starred hotel restaurants cooking Riviera and Ligurian food, polished Italian places and harbour terraces, with barbagiuan and socca at the Condamine market for something simpler. Casual eating is hard to find.

Arles is more rustic: gardiane bull stew, Camargue rice, tellines and a Saturday market more than a kilometre long. It is better for long, unhurried lunches than for range, and many restaurants close in winter.

Arles has far more history to see. Its Roman arena, theatre, cryptoporticus and the Alyscamps, together with the Romanesque carving at Saint-Trophime, form a UNESCO-listed group within a short walk. On top of that come the Roman barge in the archaeology museum, the Van Gogh links and the Luma tower by Frank Gehry.

Monaco's sights are more about setting: the Prince's Palace, the cathedral where Grace Kelly is buried, the Belle Époque Oceanographic Museum and the Casino. Each place takes a day or two, but Arles has much more depth.

Neither is a party town, but Monaco gives you more to do after dark. There are hotel bars around the Casino square and glossy clubs along Larvotto and the port, all at their busiest in summer. You need to dress up, and there are hardly any casual bars.

In Arles, an evening usually means dinner on a square and a drink on the Place du Forum, and then the town goes quiet. The exception is the Easter and September ferias, when bodegas fill the streets.

The outdoors is equally good in both, but the landscapes could hardly be more different. Arles opens onto the flat Camargue delta of lagoons, salt flats and reed beds, best explored on horseback, by bike along the dykes or with binoculars, with the Alpilles nearby for hiking.

Monaco is all steep limestone. Mule paths climb to Èze, there are views from Tête de Chien and coastal walks round Cap Martin, and the clear water suits snorkelling and diving.

Both are excellent bases, and what differs is the kind of trip. From Arles you reach Roman and papal Provence: Avignon and Nîmes by train, the Pont du Gard, Les Baux, Saint-Rémy and the walls of Aigues-Mortes, although the villages are much easier with a car.

From Monaco the coastal train and buses run to Nice, Villefranche, Menton and Èze, further on to Antibes, Grasse and Saint-Paul-de-Vence, and across the border to Sanremo and Dolceacqua. You hardly need to drive.

Monaco is easier with children. It is small and spotless, the aquarium is a real draw, the water at Larvotto is gentle, and lifts and escalators save little legs on the hills. Its formal restaurants and adult feel mean the fun runs out after a few days.

Arles suits older children who like history and animals: climbing the arena towers, the dark cryptoporticus, flamingos and pony rides in the Camargue. It is harder with small children, because of the summer heat, the mosquitoes and the cobbled streets, and most outings need a car.

Monaco is easier to get around on foot. It is only about 3km end to end, free public lifts and escalators help with the climbs, a solar ferry crosses the harbour, and the station links you to the whole coast without a car.

Arles has a flat, compact centre and a good station, but things get harder once you leave town. Buses to Les Baux or Saintes-Maries are infrequent, and the Camargue really calls for a hire car or a bike.

Monaco has more to offer here, but almost all of it is luxury. Fashion houses and jewellers are clustered in the Carré d'Or around the Casino gardens, with a small mall below for mainstream labels.

Arles is small-scale and Provençal: the Saturday market for olive oil, Camargue salt and linens, printed cottons, santons, gardian shirts and good bookshops full of photography titles. Come here for souvenirs that show where they come from, not for fashion.

Arles costs far less. It is one of the cheaper bases in Provence, with provincial prices for rooms and lunches, although car hire and the festival weeks add to the bill.

Monaco is among the most expensive places in the world to stay, eat or even have a coffee. Walking the Rock and the gardens costs nothing, but many visitors sleep in Menton, Nice or Beausoleil and come in for the day.

Monaco is the clear choice for a night at a performance. The Monte-Carlo Opera plays in the gilded Salle Garnier, and the Philharmonic and Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo are known internationally. The main season runs from winter to spring, with concerts by the sea in summer.

Arles is mostly about summer evenings in the open air: concerts in the Roman theatre, the Les Suds world music festival and the course camarguaise in the arena. Out of season, the serious stages are in Avignon or Marseille.

Monaco offers proper treatments. A large thalassotherapy centre with heated seawater pools stands beside the Casino, and the grand hotels have spas, while the Japanese Garden is good for a quiet morning.

Arles has no spa culture to speak of. It relaxes you through its pace instead: siestas, shaded squares, evenings by the Rhône and converted farmhouses with pools out in the Camargue and the Alpilles.