Bangkok or Delhi?

Neither city is a place for swimming. Bangkok at least has the coast within reach: Bang Saen and Pattaya are under two hours by road for a long day of warm sea, and the islands or Hua Hin can be added for a few nights.

Delhi is hundreds of kilometres inland on the northern plains, so a beach means a flight to Goa or Kerala. In both cities, everyday swimming happens in a hotel pool, and Bangkok's rooftop pools make that the more appealing option.

Both are great eating cities, but Bangkok goes further. Thai cooking reaches you at every hour and on every pavement, from boat noodles to som tam pounded to order. Market halls such as Or Tor Kor, a deep tier of ambitious regional Thai restaurants, and serious cocktail and coffee scenes come on top.

Delhi's strength is concentrated in Old Delhi's lanes around Chandni Chowk, with parathas, nihari, kebabs and the Mughlai and Punjabi dishes the city invented, plus chaat at street carts. Its restaurant scene for regional Indian cooking is excellent. Street eating calls for a little more care, though, so stick to busy stalls cooking food hot in front of you.

The two are close in depth but very different in character. Bangkok's sights are living temples packed into the old centre and along the river: the Grand Palace, Wat Pho, Wat Arun and the Thonburi canals. Monks and worshippers go about their day around the gilt and mirrored tiles.

Delhi's sights are monuments from many eras spread across a huge city. They include three UNESCO sites in the Red Fort, Humayun's Tomb and the Qutb Minar, plus the imperial avenue of New Delhi and the national art collections. There is more of it and it goes back further in time, but each day needs planning, whereas Bangkok's highlights fit into a couple of riverside walks.

Bangkok is one of Asia's great nights out and Delhi is not. Bangkok gives you a choice of whole districts: polished cocktail bars and clubs in Thonglor and Ekkamai, the cheap, noisy street party of Khao San, Silom's gay scene and the rooftop bars over the river. Street food keeps going after closing time.

Delhi offers pockets of evening life rather than a scene. You can try the rooftop bars of Hauz Khas Village, the pubs of Connaught Place or the clubs out in Gurugram, reached by taxi door to door. Nights finish earlier, and a good evening there is a pleasant extra rather than a reason to visit.

Outdoor time in either city means a park and an early start, and the parks differ more in character than in number. Bangkok's are lush and humid, with monitor lizards along the lake in Lumphini and raised paths through the palms and orchards of Bang Krachao, which make a good afternoon's cycling. Humidity makes long activity at midday hard going, and the forests of Khao Yai or the limestone country around Kanchanaburi need an overnight trip.

Delhi's green spaces are drier and full of old buildings, with tombs among the lawns of Lodhi Gardens, the scrubby Ridge forest and fine winter birdwatching at Okhla and Sultanpur. From late autumn, smog often makes exercising outdoors unwise, and real hiking means the Himalayan hill stations on a longer trip.

Each city has one outstanding excursion and a handful of good ones. From Bangkok it's Ayutthaya's ruined capital, best seen by bicycle. Canal country adds floating markets, the Maeklong railway market and Nakhon Pathom's great stupa.

From Delhi, the express train puts the Taj Mahal and Agra Fort within an easy day, which is the single most famous outing either city offers, and Fatehpur Sikri can be added. Mathura and Vrindavan add pilgrim towns. Delhi's road trips are slower, though, so Bangkok gives the wider choice of days out without a long drive.

In both cities local people make a fuss of children, but Bangkok is clearly the easier place to bring them. It has aquariums, theme parks, KidZania and cool indoor play areas in the malls. Families who base themselves near a Skytrain station and keep a hotel pool for the afternoon can get through the heat.

Delhi has engaging places for children, such as the National Rail Museum's steam locomotives, the zoo and the Akshardham water show. The practical side is the harder part: fierce summers, winter smog, chaotic traffic and a real risk of stomach upsets. The short late-winter window is the only easy time.

Both depend on rail, and both rail systems are good. Bangkok combines the Skytrain and underground with Chao Phraya river boats, which are the natural way to reach the Grand Palace and Wat Arun. Its weak spot is the old city, which the trains barely reach.

The Delhi Metro covers more of what a visitor wants. It has stations near most major monuments, an airport express and women-only carriages. The catch is distance, because Delhi's sights are spread far wider. In both cities walking is hard work and road traffic crawls, so plan each day around one area.

They are equally rewarding, but you buy very different things. Bangkok is about malls and markets. The Siam and Ratchaprasong malls are linked by Skytrain walkways, and Chatuchak's thousands of weekend stalls are a must. Thai silk, celadon and benjarong are the things to take home.

Delhi is the place for Indian crafts. Dilli Haat and the fixed-price state emporiums bring together textiles and woodwork from across the country, while Old Delhi's specialist bazaars run to spices and wedding trimmings. Khan Market and Shahpur Jat stock Indian designer clothes and block-print homeware. You haggle in the markets in both cities.

Both are cheap by any Western standard, and Delhi is a touch easier still on simple meals, metro rides and mid-range guesthouses. In Bangkok, the comfort you get for your money stands out more: riverside hotels with rooftop pools, late-night massages and tailoring all cost far less than you'd expect.

The pattern of costs is alike in both. Imported alcohol and the grand hotels charge international prices, and foreigners pay more to enter the top sights. In Bangkok that is mainly the Grand Palace, while in Delhi it covers the major monuments.

In both cities the classical traditions are more rewarding than the shows staged for visitors. Bangkok's highlight is khon, the masked Ramakien drama, at the Sala Chalermkrung and the National Theatre. The music and ritual around Muay Thai at Rajadamnern and Lumpinee draw people as much as the fighting, and jazz and blues bars in the old city and Sukhumvit keep live music going on a small scale.

Delhi's stage life is built around recitals and follows the seasons. Through the cooler months, Hindustani music and Kathak and Bharatanatyam dance fill the auditoriums around Mandi House, and the National School of Drama makes the city India's theatre capital, though most plays are in Hindi. The evening many visitors remember is the free qawwali sung at the Nizamuddin shrine, traditionally on Thursdays.

This is where the two are furthest apart. In Bangkok, massage is part of daily life, from the traditional school at Wat Pho to shopfront parlours open late and some of Asia's most refined hotel spas. A restorative hour fits into almost any day, even if the city around it is never calm.

Delhi offers Ayurvedic treatments in its large hotels and some yoga centres in South Delhi. Otherwise, rest comes from quiet early mornings in Lodhi Gardens or inside a gurudwara. With constant noise and winter smog, most people save their retreat for Rishikesh or Kerala afterwards.