Bamberg or Bergamo?

Neither town has a beach, but Bergamo has the better swimming. Lake Iseo and the Lecco arm of Lake Como are close enough for a full summer day on pebble, grass or lido platforms. Bamberg has the river bathing spot in the Hain park and the gravel-pit lakes on its edge, which are fine for cooling off but not for a lakeside day out.

The two are evenly matched at the table, but for different reasons. In Bamberg, drink leads. Smoked Rauchbier from the old brewery taverns and long evenings in the hillside beer cellars matter as much as the plate, and the plate is solid Franconian food: Schäufele, dumplings and Bratwurst.

Bergamo eats with more variety and drinks wine. You get casoncelli with butter and sage, polenta with braised meat and game, and cheeses such as Taleggio and Strachitunt from the valleys, with Valcalepio or Franciacorta in the glass. It also has a fine-dining tier that Bamberg mostly lacks. Neither offers much beyond its own regional cooking.

Both towns offer a historic centre preserved almost whole and listed by UNESCO, and each rises over hills. Bamberg's appeal is spread across a larger townscape: the four-towered cathedral with the Bamberg Horseman, the frescoed Town Hall on its island, Little Venice and the market gardens. Its museums are small.

Bergamo packs its finest buildings into the walled Città Alta, around Piazza Vecchia and the marble front of the Cappella Colleoni. It also has what Bamberg does not: the Accademia Carrara, with Raphael, Bellini and Mantegna. If you love painting, that tips the balance. If you would rather simply walk the streets, Bamberg gives you more of them.

Both are early-to-bed towns where a big night means taking the train, to Nuremberg from Bamberg and to Milan from Bergamo. In Bamberg, evenings centre on beer: brewery taverns after work, the student bars of the Sand quarter in term time, and the beer cellars in summer. Bergamo goes out for a long aperitivo and then wine bars around Borgo Santa Caterina, or drinks in the upper-town squares on summer nights.

Bergamo has much more to offer outdoors. The Colli di Bergamo park climbs straight from the upper town, and beyond it Val Brembana and Val Seriana lead into the Orobie Alps, with rifugi, high lakes, serious hiking and small ski areas in winter. The lakes add sailing and shoreline walks, although the mountains are much easier with a car.

Bamberg's countryside is gentler. The rock towers and caves of Franconian Switzerland, the Steigerwald beech woods and the cycle paths along the Main and Regnitz make for pleasant walking and cycling, but there are no mountains or big views.

From Bamberg, the main Franconian rail line takes you from one historic town to the next. Coburg's fortress and ducal palaces are about an hour away. The baroque basilica of Vierzehnheiligen and Banz Abbey face each other across the upper Main valley, closer still. The walled towns of Rothenburg ob der Tauber and Dinkelsbühl make a long day out, with the Franconian wine villages along the way. It is a good list, but the outings tend to look alike: old towns, churches and rolling countryside.

Bergamo has more trips to choose from, and they differ more from one another. Crespi d'Adda, a UNESCO-listed factory village, is half an hour away. Direct trains reach Brescia's Roman and Lombard remains in about an hour. Cremona, with its violin-making tradition, and Verona are both around an hour and a half away, the Franciacorta wine country fills an afternoon, and Mantua is worth the long day. You could go somewhere different every morning for a week.

Bergamo keeps children busier. The funiculars up to the Città Alta and San Vigilio are a treat in themselves. Leolandia and the Le Cornelle wildlife park are both short drives away, and the lakes and valleys add easy days out.

Bamberg works best for families who like a slow pace. There are playgrounds and boat hire in the Hain park, a pool with slides for wet days, and beer gardens where children play among the tables. Both towns have steep cobbled climbs that are hard work with a pushchair.

Both are easy to manage without much transport, but they are laid out differently. Bamberg is compact and walkable. The island town, the cathedral hill and Little Venice are minutes apart, bikes suit the flat lower town, and the train covers the rest of Franconia, so you never need a car.

Bergamo is a town on two levels, linked by funiculars, with a short bus ride to the airport and direct trains to Milan and Lecco. Walking up between the two levels is steep, and the upper valleys and lake shores are much easier by car.

Neither is a shopping destination, but Bergamo has a little more to offer. The arcaded Sentierone and Via XX Settembre have Italian mid-range fashion. The main lane of the upper town is lined with cheese shops, delicatessens and wine sellers, and Milan is close for serious fashion. Bamberg's best finds are smaller: bottled smoked beer, produce from the market gardens and the antique dealers near the cathedral.

Costs are much the same in both, comfortable rather than cheap. Bamberg saves money on beer and filling tavern meals, but old-town rooms get tighter at weekends and during the Christmas market. In Bergamo, staying in the lower town keeps prices fair, while rooms and restaurants inside the Città Alta cost more.

The two towns have stage scenes of a similar size but a different kind. Bamberg's strength is orchestral: the Bamberg Symphony has an international name, there are choral concerts in the cathedral, and Bayreuth's Wagner festival is an hour away.

Bergamo leans towards opera. It is Donizetti's birthplace, the Teatro Donizetti stages an autumn festival of his works, Bergamo Jazz runs every spring, and La Scala in Milan is within reach for an evening.

Bergamo has the better spas nearby. San Pellegrino Terme, a grand Belle Époque spa town, is up Val Brembana, and Trescore Balneario's sulphur springs have been used since Roman times. In Bamberg, relaxing mostly means the slow pace by the river and in the beer gardens. For thermal bathing, the brine pools of Bad Staffelstein are about half an hour away by train.