Auckland or Wellington?

Auckland is the clear choice for swimming. Its east-coast bays along Tamaki Drive and on the North Shore are calm, sandy and safe for children, the gulf warms to around 20°C in late summer, and the black-sand west coast at Piha and Muriwai adds proper surf.

Wellington's Oriental Bay and the Miramar coves are pleasant for a walk or a quick dip on a still day, but the Cook Strait water stays several degrees cooler and the wind often decides the afternoon. There the beach is an outing, not the reason to come.

The two eat equally well, but in different ways. Auckland's strength is breadth: regional Chinese, Korean and Malaysian cooking along Dominion Road and in the suburbs, Pacific food at the markets, green-lipped mussels and snapper by the sea, and wine on Waiheke a ferry ride away.

Wellington is smaller and more concentrated, with its eating packed into Cuba Street and Courtenay Place, and it leads on coffee and craft beer, with taprooms scattered around Te Aro. Its local accent comes from inland as well as the sea, with Wairarapa lamb and Martinborough pinot noir beside Cook Strait fish, and the weekend night markets make easy street food.

Auckland's War Memorial Museum, on the crest of the Domain, holds a carved meeting house and a war canoe among its Māori and Pacific treasures, and Wellington answers with Te Papa on the waterfront, free to enter and strong on the country's story. In each city that one museum carries the sightseeing, and with little historic streetscape in either, two or three days covers the main sights.

What differs is the setting around them. Auckland's other sights lean towards landscape, with Māori pā earthworks on the volcanic cones and the Sky Tower over the skyline, while Wellington, as the capital, adds the Beehive, Parliament and the wooden Old St Paul's within a short walk.

Neither is a club city, and both are quiet midweek. The real difference is layout: Auckland's evenings are split between Ponsonby Road, K Road and the Viaduct, often with a taxi between them, while in Wellington Courtenay Place and the Cuba Street lanes sit side by side, so a night of craft-beer bars and cocktail rooms can be done entirely on foot.

Both have outstanding nature close at hand, and the difference is sea against hills. Auckland's is maritime and volcanic: Rangitoto and the birds of Tiritiri Matangi by ferry, sailing and dolphin watching in the Hauraki Gulf, and kauri rainforest and waterfalls in the Waitākere Ranges.

Wellington's wild country starts at the end of the street, with the town belt, Zealandia's native birds and the fur seals at Red Rocks, and it is the better city for mountain biking. Its strong winds and quick changes, though, make outdoor plans less certain.

Auckland has more to fill a day: Waiheke's vineyards and beaches by ferry, Devonport across the harbour, the wineries and farmers' market around Matakana to the north, and Hobbiton for a long day south.

Wellington's best outing is over the Remutaka hills to Martinborough and the colonial main streets of Greytown and Featherston. Beyond the Wairarapa and the Kāpiti Coast little is within easy reach, so the city works better as a stop on a longer route than as a base.

Auckland gives children more to do: a zoo with a large native section, an aquarium tunnel beneath sharks and rays, MOTAT's trams and planes, the Rainbow's End theme park and calm beaches for swimming. The price is driving between them.

Wellington keeps things closer together, with Te Papa's earthquake house and giant squid, the cable car to the Botanic Garden and the waterfront playgrounds all near each other. It has no theme park or large aquarium, though, and wind, rain and steep steps call for a wet-weather plan.

Wellington is far easier to get around. Its flat central strip from the railway station to Courtenay Place holds most of the sights and can be walked in under half an hour, with the cable car, suburban trains and buses covering the rest.

Auckland's centre is walkable and its harbour ferries are a pleasure, but the city sprawls, buses and trains reach only part of it, and the west coast, the ranges and the northern wineries really need a car or a tour.

Neither is a shopping destination, and both sell the same things worth taking home: merino, pounamu and Pacific crafts. Auckland leans towards New Zealand designer labels in Ponsonby and Newmarket and has the Pacific-flavoured Ōtara market, while Wellington's character lies in the vintage clothing, record shops and second-hand books of Cuba Street.

Both are expensive, with costly central hotels and dear drinks, so choosing one over the other will not save much. The savings come in different forms: in Auckland, free volcanic cones and beaches and cheap Asian food courts, offset by ferries and car hire; in Wellington, a walkable centre that cuts transport costs and a free national museum.

Wellington has the stronger stage. It is home to the New Zealand Symphony Orchestra and the Royal New Zealand Ballet, its theatre runs from mainstream plays to fringe work in black-box venues, and small music venues around Cuba Street host bands and jazz.

Auckland's calendar is steady rather than deep: the Philharmonia in the Town Hall, opera seasons and touring musicals at the ornate Civic. Its highlight is the Pasifika Festival, which brings a Pacific music and dance flavour of its own.

Auckland is the better place to unwind, mainly because hot springs are within reach: the thermal pools at Parakai are about an hour away, and Waiheke's slower pace and retreats are a ferry ride off.

Wellington has no thermal water nearby, so relaxing there means a day spa, the heated harbourside pool at Oriental Bay or a quiet walk in the Botanic Garden.