Asheville or Charleston?

Charleston is the only one of the two with a real beach. Folly Beach, Sullivan's Island and Isle of Palms are all within about half an hour of the old town, and the summer Atlantic is warm enough for long swims. That makes it easy to split a stay between the town and the sand, though the water is tidal and greenish rather than clear.

Asheville is several hours from the sea. Swimming there means mountain water: waterfall pools in Pisgah, the natural rock slide at Sliding Rock, tubing on the French Broad and a small sandy beach at Lake Lure. All of it is cold, and it makes a summer afternoon out rather than a beach trip.

Both cities eat well above their size, but Charleston has the stronger and more distinctive food. Lowcountry cooking, with its shrimp and grits, she-crab soup, Carolina Gold rice and winter oyster roasts, has Gullah Geechee and West African roots that give the city a cuisine of its own. You can eat it anywhere from townhouse dining rooms on the peninsula to seafood shacks on Shem Creek.

Asheville is stronger on drink. It has more breweries than Charleston, spread across downtown, the South Slope and West Asheville, and its kitchens rely on Appalachian farm produce such as trout, heirloom beans, ramps and sorghum. In both cities international cooking is thin and the best tables need booking.

In Charleston the whole historic peninsula is the sight, with street after street of Georgian and antebellum houses south of Broad. Its museums deal directly with slavery and the Civil War, from Fort Sumter out in the harbour to the International African American Museum, which gives a visit weight as well as beauty.

Asheville has one great showpiece, the Biltmore Estate, which fills a full day. Its downtown of Art Deco and Beaux-Arts buildings is also worth an unhurried walk. Beyond those the list is short, and in both cities two or three days covers the main sights.

Neither city is made for a late night, and both run on bars rather than clubs. The difference is the mood. Asheville's evenings are spent in taprooms, cocktail bars and dives on the South Slope and Haywood Road, and they are relaxed and mostly over by midnight. Charleston's upper King Street is louder and younger, with rooftop bars and weekend groups out until about 2am.

For time outdoors, Asheville is far ahead. The Blue Ridge Parkway, Pisgah National Forest and the Great Smoky Mountains are all within about an hour. There are ridge hikes over grassy balds, the summit of Mount Mitchell, serious mountain biking, and whitewater rafting on the Nantahala and Pigeon rivers.

Charleston's landscape is flat Lowcountry of marsh, tidal creeks and live oaks, best seen from a kayak and often with dolphins nearby. It is lovely and gentle, but there are no hills, and the summer heat and mosquitoes leave spring and autumn as the good seasons.

Charleston has the better choice of day trips. The Ashley River plantations, including Middleton Place, Magnolia and Drayton Hall, are about half an hour away. Savannah and Beaufort each make a full day out, with Savannah's squares, Beaufort's antebellum streets and the Gullah culture of the sea islands.

From Asheville most outings are into the mountains themselves, passing small towns such as Brevard, Black Mountain and Hendersonville. The standout is Cherokee, where the Museum of the Cherokee Indian gives the region's deepest look at its original people. Both cities need a car for day trips.

Both cities are calm and easy with children, though Charleston has a little more laid on for them. The South Carolina Aquarium, the Children's Museum of the Lowcountry and the aircraft carrier at Patriots Point are all close to the harbour, and the beaches are a short drive away.

Asheville is better for active children, with the black bears and red wolves at the Western North Carolina Nature Center, river tubing, Sliding Rock and zip lines. Neither city has a theme park close by, and Asheville's sights are more spread out.

Charleston is the easier city without a car, at least on the peninsula. It is flat and compact, with pedicabs and a free shuttle, so a stay in the old town can be managed almost entirely on foot. The beaches and plantations still need a car or a ride.

Asheville's walkable downtown is small and hilly. Almost everything visitors come for, from Biltmore to the trailheads on the Parkway, lies along slow mountain roads that the buses barely reach, so plan on hiring a car.

Charleston has the more varied shopping street. King Street runs from antiques dealers and galleries through national fashion brands to independent boutiques. At City Market, Gullah artisans weave and sell sweetgrass baskets, the city's signature craft.

Asheville is the better place to buy something handmade, with pottery, glass, weaving and woodwork from the River Arts District studios and the Folk Art Center, and vintage shops and outdoor gear around Lexington Avenue. Neither city has much in the way of luxury shopping.

Neither city is cheap, but Asheville is easier on the budget. Its inns are expensive on autumn weekends, and Biltmore and a hire car add up. Midweek and winter stays cost less, though, and the trails and the Parkway are free.

Charleston's hotels on the peninsula charge what much larger cities do, its well-known restaurants are priced to match, and tours, parking and taxis mount up. Staying in Mount Pleasant saves money but means driving in every day.

Asheville has more live music on an ordinary night. Touring rock and Americana acts play its downtown venues, bluegrass and old-time jams fill the pubs, and Shindig on the Green brings fiddle music and clogging outdoors in summer. The Mountain Dance and Folk Festival has run since 1928.

Charleston's year centres on Spoleto Festival USA, which fills late spring with opera, dance, theatre and jazz. Outside the festival, the Dock Street Theatre, the Gaillard Center and Gullah storytelling make up a smaller programme.

Asheville grew partly on visitors seeking rest cures in its mountain air. That history lives on in its retreats, yoga studios, alternative therapies and large resort spas on the hillsides. Hot Springs, about forty minutes away, has mineral water in riverside tubs.

Charleston has hotel spas and resort spas on Kiawah Island but no bathing tradition. Its calm comes instead from shaded gardens, quiet church courtyards and evenings at White Point Garden.