Atlantic City or Ocean City, Maryland?

Both towns grew up around the beach, and both have free Atlantic sand with lifeguards, but Ocean City's is the better beach to plan a stay around. One band of soft sand runs about 16km to the Delaware line, the surf is moderate, and Assateague adds undeveloped dune beach a short drive south.

Atlantic City's beach is broad and pale and runs under the Boardwalk. It gets quieter and more residential through Ventnor, Margate and Longport, and Brigantine feels more local. Surf and rip currents mean swimming between the flags, and with the casino towers behind the sand it feels more like a city beach.

Neither town is a food destination, and they eat at about the same level, but the flavours differ. Atlantic City's character is in Ducktown's Italian-American restaurants, huge subs on soft local rolls and boardwalk pizza, with polished steakhouses and buffets inside the casinos.

Ocean City's ritual is Maryland's own: steamed blue crabs dusted with Old Bay on brown paper, then crab cakes and local oysters, with vinegar fries and frozen custard on the boardwalk. Many of its kitchens close or cut back after summer, while the casino restaurants give Atlantic City steadier choice out of season.

Neither is a sightseeing town, but Atlantic City has more real heritage to fill a day. Its Boardwalk, laid in 1870, was the first of its kind, and the Monopoly street names are all here. Boardwalk Hall holds the world's largest pipe organ, and Lucy the Elephant and the climbable Absecon Lighthouse are close by.

Ocean City's history is mostly in the Life-Saving Station Museum and the early twentieth-century carousel at the inlet, and the boardwalk itself is its main piece of heritage. A morning is enough to see it.

Atlantic City has the bigger, later night out. Casino floors, lounges and bars stay open all night, and on summer weekends the resorts run nightclubs and pool parties. The weak point is the street, since the blocks between the resorts feel empty and uneasy after dark.

Ocean City is about bar-hopping rather than clubs: bayside bars with sand floors at sunset, then sports and dance bars along the Coastal Highway until closing at 2am, with a loud, young crowd in summer. Both towns go quiet in winter, but the casinos keep some life in Atlantic City.

Both sit on flat barrier islands of dune, marsh and back bay, but Ocean City has the finer wild place next door. Assateague's national seashore protects dunes and pine woods where wild ponies graze, with kayak routes through the bays, and the town is a well-known base for offshore marlin fishing.

Atlantic City's nearest equivalents are the Forsythe wildlife refuge, with a marsh loop full of herons and shorebirds, and the sandy trails and canoeing rivers of the Pine Barrens about an hour inland. Birders will enjoy them, but nothing here matches ponies on the dunes.

Atlantic City has the stronger day trips because a major city is within reach. Philadelphia, with Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell, is about an hour and a half away by train or car. Cape May's Victorian streets are an hour south, and Smithville, Batsto in the Pine Barrens and the Wildwood boardwalk are closer still.

From Ocean City the outings are to small towns on the Delmarva Peninsula: Berlin's historic main street, Chincoteague's pony herds, livelier Rehoboth Beach, and Lewes, where the ferry crosses to Cape May. They make pleasant days out, but none of them is a big city.

This is where the two differ most. Ocean City is built around children, with lifeguards along the whole beach, two old boardwalk amusement parks with a historic carousel, water parks, go-karts and mini-golf every few blocks. Condos with kitchens make longer stays easy, though peak weekends are crowded and graduating teenagers take over parts of town in early June.

Atlantic City is made for adults. The free beach, the rides on the Steel Pier and a climb inside Lucy the Elephant fill a day or two. Casino floors are closed to under-21s and some blocks away from the Boardwalk are run-down, so many families stay further down the shore.

Atlantic City is the easier of the two without a car. A rail line and regional buses link it with Philadelphia and New York, and jitneys run up and down Pacific Avenue day and night, beside the long, level Boardwalk.

Ocean City has no train, so nearly everyone drives in and keeps the car for the whole stay. Getting between neighbourhoods means the wide Coastal Highway, which is unpleasant on foot, though the summer bus and the boardwalk tram help if you stay near the sea. In both towns, the wildlife areas and nearby towns need a car.

Atlantic City's open-air outlet district sits just off the Boardwalk, so the big American brand stores are a short walk from the beach, and the casinos add arcades of fashion and gift shops under one roof. Ocean City's outlet centre is over the bridge on the mainland, which leaves the boardwalk's surf shops, sunglasses stands and T-shirt stalls, plus a few bayside villages selling beachwear and gifts. From either town, a box of saltwater taffy or fudge is the best thing to carry home.

Both have American prices, but Atlantic City can be the cheaper stay if you pick your dates. The casino hotels cut room rates hard midweek and out of season, and much of the entertainment is free. On summer weekends, resort fees, parking and tipping push costs up quickly.

Ocean City's savings come from sharing a condo, staying in an older motel a few blocks back from the sea, or coming in late May or September while the sea is still swimmable. Oceanfront rooms in high summer and crab feasts are where the money goes.

Atlantic City is the place to see a show. The casino arenas and showrooms book touring pop and rock acts and comedians, and Boardwalk Hall hosts big concerts, boxing and the occasional recital on its historic organ, so many visitors plan a weekend around one date.

Ocean City's live entertainment is lighter: comedians and tribute bands at the convention centre theatre, free summer concerts at the boardwalk bandstand, and cover bands in the bars. Neither town has an orchestra, an opera or a theatre company.

For a pampering afternoon, Atlantic City has the edge thanks to its casino resorts. Several have sizeable spas with saunas and indoor pools, though the sleepless gaming floors around them are far from restful. Ocean City has only a few hotel and day spas, and its summer traffic and late bar crowds are no calmer.

In both towns the real quiet comes out of season. In Atlantic City that means a winter walk along the empty Boardwalk beside a grey sea, and in Ocean City an early morning on the northern condo beaches.