Ayutthaya or Pai?

Neither town is anywhere near the sea, so the beach part of a Thai trip has to happen somewhere else. The difference is what you can do with the water nearby. In Ayutthaya the rivers are working waterways, so swimming means the hotel pool.

In Pai you can float down the river on an inner tube in the hot season or splash under Mo Paeng waterfall. It is modest swimming, but it is outdoors.

Ayutthaya has the stronger local cooking. It has its own dishes: boat noodles eaten several bowls at a time, giant river prawns grilled beside the water, and roti sai mai pancakes from the old Muslim quarter. On top of that come the island's night markets and the Chao Phrom market.

Pai's walking street has good khao soi and Shan dishes, and Santichon adds Yunnanese noodles. Much of the rest, though, is smoothie bowls, pizza and vegan plates aimed at long-staying travellers. It is easy eating rather than a taste of the region.

This is where the two differ most. Ayutthaya was the capital of Siam for four centuries, and its ruins are some of the great sights of Southeast Asia: the three chedis of Wat Phra Si Sanphet, the Buddha head held in tree roots at Wat Mahathat, Wat Chaiwatthanaram at sunset, and the crypt gold in the national museum.

Pai has the white Buddha of Wat Phra That Mae Yen, a few Shan-style temples, the wartime iron bridge and the mud-brick village of Santichon. That adds up to a pleasant half day, not a reason to make the journey.

Pai has the livelier evenings by some distance. Reggae bars, fairy-lit garden bars and the odd party out of town fill with backpackers after the night market. It is still a small-town scene, though, with no clubs, and the centre is mostly finished soon after midnight.

Ayutthaya's evenings are a short strip of guesthouse bars and a drink at a riverside restaurant, looking across at the floodlit temples. Most people are in bed early.

Pai is the place for landscape. It is a green valley ringed by forested hills, with the narrow ridges of Pai Canyon, the waterfalls, morning mist at Yun Lai, hill-tribe treks and the river cave of Tham Lod about an hour away.

Ayutthaya sits on a flat river plain. Its pleasures are a bike ride under shady trees, a long-tail boat around the island and egrets over the paddies. For forest you have to go to Khao Yai, about two hours away.

Ayutthaya makes a much better base for day trips. Bangkok is about an hour and a half away by train, the mixed Thai and European summer palace at Bang Pa-In is about twenty minutes, and Lopburi has Khmer temples and its famous macaques.

Pai is tucked away in the mountains. Apart from the Lahu and Lisu villages around Soppong, the nearby towns are three hours away on very twisty roads. Most people treat Pai as one stop on a northern loop rather than a base.

The two towns suit different children rather than one suiting them better. Ayutthaya is the easier short stop. A morning at the ruins, the Buddha head in the tree roots and a boat around the island will hold most children's interest, and the town is relaxed with families. The open sites have little shade, though, and the midday heat is hard on small ones.

Pai is better for older children who like being outdoors, with waterfalls, hot springs, farm visits and gentle tubing on the river. The catch is getting there and getting about. The winding road in makes many people carsick, most outings need a scooter or a driver, and the evenings centre on backpackers.

Ayutthaya is the easier town to get around. The island is flat and a few kilometres across, so a hired bicycle or a tuk-tuk circuit reaches most of the ruins, and small ferries cross to the far banks. Bangkok is a short train ride away.

In Pai you can walk the centre in minutes, but the sights are spread across the valley and no public transport reaches them. That leaves a scooter on hill roads, which is risky for beginners, or a hired songthaew. Getting there at all means a long minibus ride up from Chiang Mai.

Ayutthaya's stalls sell for temple visitors, and Pai's are aimed at travellers who stay a while. Ayutthaya's browsing is mostly amulets, clothes and souvenirs outside the ruins, and its one real speciality is the woven crafts at Bang Sai, downriver.

Pai's evening walking street is more enjoyable to wander, with hill-tribe textiles, handmade jewellery and small art prints, much of it made locally. Neither town has much range, though. In Pai the same stock turns up from stall to stall, and for anything more you need Chiang Mai.

Both are very cheap, and a modest budget goes a long way in either. Your money goes on different things. In Ayutthaya the main costs are the separate entrance fees at each ruin and a tuk-tuk for the day. In Pai the sights are mostly free, but scooter hire adds up, prices in the tourist centre run above those of ordinary northern towns, and they climb around the new year.

Pai has more live music, though it is informal. Most nights a few bars host acoustic, blues or reggae jams by musicians passing through, and you come across them over a drink.

Ayutthaya has almost nothing on most evenings. The exception is its annual World Heritage fair, when light-and-sound shows and traditional dance are staged among the ruins.

Pai is built for unwinding. You can soak in the hot springs at Tha Pai in the cool morning, sign up for a yoga, meditation or detox retreat, find an inexpensive massage on every street, or spend long afternoons in a hammock looking over the rice fields. The spring haze takes some of the shine off.

Ayutthaya's rest is simpler. A shophouse foot massage after a day of cycling and a quiet evening on a riverside terrace once the tour buses have left are pleasant, but there are no springs or retreats.