Athens or Nafplio?

The swimming is close to equal, but the setting differs. Athens has a long stretch of Riviera reached by tram and bus, with organised lidos, free rocky stretches between them and clearer coves the farther south you go towards Vouliagmeni. Aegina and Agistri are close enough for a quieter swim.

Nafplio's beaches are smaller but closer to hand: pebbly Arvanitia below the cliffs, sandy Karathona in a pine-backed bay and the longer, busier strand at Tolo. Here a swim fits naturally into the day. In Athens it means a trip out of the centre.

Athens is one of the better places in Greece to eat. Mezedopoleia in Psyrri, Koukaki, Pangrati and Exarchia serve shared plates with ouzo and tsipouro, bakeries and souvlaki counters cover the day, and there is a proper fine-dining tier above that.

Nafplio has pleasant Peloponnesian cooking, with gulf fish, slow-cooked lamb, Argolid citrus and Nemea agiorgitiko. The old town's busiest squares fall back on tourist menus, though. The better meals are in Tolo or the villages of the plain, and you will find no street food and little variety.

The gap here is wide. Athens has the Acropolis, the Ancient Agora, Kerameikos and the Olympian Zeus temple along one walkable promenade, and the Acropolis Museum and National Archaeological Museum rank among the world's great collections of ancient art.

Nafplio's strength is the town itself. As modern Greece's first capital it has one of the country's best-kept old towns, with Palamidi, Akronafplia and the Bourtzi as its fortresses. Its museums are small, and two or three days cover them.

Athens goes out late and properly. There are rooftop bars facing the lit Acropolis around Monastiraki, clubs and a long-standing gay scene in Gazi, the alternative crowd in Exarchia, bouzouki clubs, and open-air summer venues down the coast.

Nafplio has harbour-front bars and a few cocktail spots that stay busy on summer weekends, but no clubs, and it goes quiet in winter.

Athens has a slight edge for proper walking. Mount Parnitha's fir forest and the pine trails on Hymettus give real hikes, and the Saronic Gulf is good for sailing and day charters.

Nafplio's outdoors begins at the edge of the old town, with the path around Akronafplia, the coastal trail to Karathona, limestone for climbers and kayaking off Tolo. Arcadia's mountains are further away. In both places, the summer heat pushes activity into early mornings.

Both bases are outstanding for day trips, and the difference is which sites are close. Nafplio sits inside the Argolid, with Tiryns ten minutes away, Mycenae under half an hour and Epidaurus about forty minutes. From Athens, those same sites take a long day.

Athens is better placed for Delphi, Cape Sounion and the Saronic islands. Aegina, Poros and Hydra are an easy ferry ride from Piraeus without a car, while from Nafplio you need to drive to the coast first.

Athens gives families more to fill the days, with the Attica Zoological Park, the Eugenides Planetarium, Hellenic Cosmos and the park at the Stavros Niarchos centre, plus calm Riviera beaches. The trade-off is broken pavements, steep steps and a hot Acropolis climb.

Nafplio is gentler and easy to manage. The old town is mostly free of traffic, Karathona has shallow water and the boat to the Bourtzi is a small adventure. Beyond that it has no zoos or attractions built for children.

Athens is the easier place to manage without a car. Its metro comes from the airport and Piraeus, a tram runs to the coast and taxis are plentiful, though the pavements are poor and the streets hilly.

Nafplio's flat old town takes only minutes to cross on foot, but regional buses are thin. Most visitors hire a car for the ancient sites and beaches, then struggle to park near the walls in summer.

Athens has real range: chain fashion on Ermou, Greek designers in Kolonaki, the Monastiraki flea market at weekends, and leather sandals, herbs and ancient-style jewellery around Athinas.

Nafplio's lanes take an hour or two to browse and are mostly souvenirs and beachwear. The worthwhile buys are komboloi, Nemea wine and Argolid olive oil and honey.

Overall costs are much the same, and in both places the bed is the expensive part. In Athens, central rooms with Acropolis views are what push the bill up, and site fees add up over several days. Staying in Koukaki or Pangrati helps.

Nafplio's prices follow the Athenian weekend crowd, so the restored old-town guesthouses rise on Fridays and Saturdays and fall midweek. Its site fees are lower, but a hire car adds to the cost.

Both towns share the festival theatre at Epidaurus, which is about forty minutes from Nafplio and two hours from Athens. Athens also has the Odeon of Herodes Atticus beneath the Acropolis, the Greek National Opera and the Megaron for the rest of the year, and late rebetiko in Piraeus tavernas.

Outside its summer classical festival in historic buildings, Nafplio offers little more than occasional concerts and taverna bouzouki.

Neither is a spa destination, but Athens has one real place to soak. Lake Vouliagmeni, on the Riviera, is fed by warm mineral springs and is mild enough to bathe in all year, and the city also has hammam-style bathhouses.

Nafplio's calm comes from its pace, with long lunches and evening walks around the headland, rather than from facilities. For thermal water you drive about an hour to Loutraki or further to Methana.