Baden-Baden or Dijon?

Neither works for a beach trip, and you should not choose between them on this. In Baden-Baden summer swimming means the flooded gravel pits out on the Rhine plain or an outdoor pool. Dijon has Lac Kir on the edge of town, a reservoir with a supervised lawn-and-sand bathing area that is the nearest thing to a beach in either place.

Baden-Baden eats well within a small frame: Flammkuchen, venison, Black Forest ham and cherry gateau, with Riesling and Pinot Noir from the Rebland wine taverns just outside town. In the centre, though, most of it is hotel dining and cafés serving cake, and the celebrated restaurants are a drive away in the Black Forest.

Dijon is the better place to eat and drink. It is the capital of Burgundian cooking and has its own mustard, cassis and pain d'épices. The iron market hall feeds the city on market days, and the vineyards start so close that village wines are poured by the glass in town. Expect regional French cooking rather than variety.

Baden-Baden's main sight is the town itself, a Belle Époque spa resort with the Kurhaus, the Trinkhalle and the villas of the aristocratic summer set. The Frieder Burda and the Kunsthalle add good modern art. A day or two covers it.

Dijon has more depth and more history. Its centre is the palace of the medieval Dukes of Burgundy, home to the Musée des Beaux-Arts and the ducal tombs with their carved mourners. Around it, streets of half-timbered houses lead to Notre-Dame's gargoyles and lucky owl, and Sluter's Well of Moses is out at Champmol, enough for two or three full days.

Evenings in Baden-Baden are formal and end early. A night at the casino in its gilded rooms is the highlight, followed by a hotel or wine bar among an older crowd. Dijon's university keeps things noticeably busier, with small bars and pubs along Rue Berbisey and terraces on Place Émile Zola. Even there it is a night of wine and beer rather than clubbing, and it is quieter outside term time.

Baden-Baden has the better outdoors on its doorstep. The Merkur funicular and the Battert cliffs open straight onto the fir forests of the northern Black Forest, and the High Road runs on past the Mummelsee to the Hornisgrinde moors, with mountain biking and some skiing in winter.

Dijon's countryside is softer. The limestone combes west of town have short trails and climbing cliffs, the Burgundy Canal towpath is flat and easy to cycle, and the wildest landscape, the Morvan, is about an hour and a half away.

Both make excellent bases. The difference is the kind of outing. Baden-Baden's trips cross a border and take in cities: Strasbourg's cathedral and Petite France, the Alsace wine villages around Colmar, and Heidelberg and Freiburg by train.

From Dijon the trips stay deep in Burgundy and centre on wine. The Route des Grands Crus runs to Beaune, and Fontenay Abbey, Semur-en-Auxois and Vézelay lie to the west. Both need a car for the vineyards.

Baden-Baden does slightly better for children, mostly because Europa-Park, one of Europe's biggest theme parks, is about an hour away and Karlsruhe zoo is closer still. The funicular and forest trails help too, though the Friedrichsbad is closed to young children. Dijon is calm and safe, with a planetarium and natural history museum at the Arquebuse and paddling at Lac Kir, but its tastings and fine-art museums are really for the parents.

Dijon is easier to get around. You can walk from the station to the market, the palace and the cathedral in minutes, trams run to the outskirts and Lac Kir, and regional trains go along the wine route to Beaune. Baden-Baden's centre is also walkable but hilly, its station is a bus ride out in Oos, and the High Road and Alsace really call for a car.

Neither is a big shopping destination, and the difference is in what you would buy. Baden-Baden's Sophienstraße and Lange Straße are smart and polished, with jewellers, watchmakers and boutiques aimed at spa guests. Dijon's best buys are things to eat and drink: mustard, cassis, Burgundy from the cellars and cheese from Les Halles, plus a department store and antique shops off Rue de la Liberté.

Dijon is easier on a budget. Hotels are moderate, bistro set lunches are a good way to eat well, and wine by the glass is cheap even by French standards. Baden-Baden was built for wealthy guests and still caters to them. The grand hotels set the tone and every visit to the baths is paid for separately, although simple guesthouses and wine taverns help keep costs down.

Baden-Baden has the more remarkable stage for a town of its size. The Festspielhaus, built into the old railway station, is one of Germany's largest opera and concert houses and draws international orchestras and soloists. The Kurhaus has its own philharmonic, and the town still keeps the memory of Brahms, who spent his summers here.

Dijon's season is smaller but covers more kinds of performance. Its Opéra runs both the Grand Théâtre and the Auditorium, and the city also has a national drama centre and a venue for touring bands, though the programme slows down in summer.

This is where the two are furthest apart. Baden-Baden exists because of its hot springs. The domed Friedrichsbad leads you through a silent series of hot rooms and pools, Caracalla has indoor and outdoor thermal pools, and the whole town is built around rest. Dijon has no bathing tradition and only a few hotel spas, some offering grape-based treatments. What rest it offers comes from long lunches and quiet squares.