Bari or Kalambaka?

There is no real contest. Bari has Pane e Pomodoro, a sandy beach just beyond the centre, and rocky lidos towards Torre Quetta. The clear water of the Polignano and Monopoli coves is a short train ride away.

Kalambaka sits deep inland on the Thessalian plain, more than two hours from the sea. Swimming means a hotel pool or a chilly dip in a Pindos river, so beach days belong elsewhere on the itinerary.

Bari is the one to plan meals around. Its street food is particular to the city, from focaccia barese and panzerotti to fried sgagliozze. Nothing inland matches the raw sea urchins and octopus at the fishermen's pier. Sit-down meals of tiella and orecchiette with turnip tops come with Primitivo or Negroamaro.

Kalambaka feeds you well but simply, with grilled lamb and pork, bean soups, pies and tsipouro with meze in family tavernas. The menus repeat from one place to the next. What it adds is the view of the pillars at sunset from the tables in Kastraki.

Each gives about two days of strong sightseeing, but of very different kinds. Bari's is an urban old town. The Romanesque Basilica di San Nicola and its pilgrims, the cathedral and the Norman-Swabian castle sit inside the whitewashed lanes of Bari Vecchia, with the nineteenth-century Murat grid and the Pinacoteca beyond.

Kalambaka's culture is almost entirely Meteora, a group of working monasteries on sandstone pillars. Their frescoed churches, refectories and icon collections are reached by rock-cut steps. It is one single, astonishing sight rather than a town to wander, and it asks for modest dress.

Bari has a genuine night out and Kalambaka does not. In Bari the evening starts late in Piazza Mercantile and Piazza Ferrarese and carries on in the Umbertino bars and along the seafront. In high summer it moves to beach clubs down the coast.

Kalambaka winds down after dinner with a drink at the café-bars on the central square. Anyone wanting more has to drive half an hour to Trikala's bar street.

Here Kalambaka is far ahead. The Meteora rocks begin where the town ends, with footpaths through oak woods and ravines and some of Europe's best-known conglomerate climbing. To the west lie the Pindos fir forests, rafting in the Aspropotamos valley and Metsovo's small ski slopes.

Bari's outdoors is gentler and further off. It has the long seafront promenade, the open karst grassland of Alta Murgia about an hour inland, the Grotte di Castellana and easy cycling in the Valle d'Itria. With no mountains near, it suits a stroll or a bike ride rather than a serious hike.

Bari is a natural base for excursions, and its range is far wider than Kalambaka's. Matera's cave city, the trulli of Alberobello, the white towns of the Valle d'Itria, Castel del Monte, Trani's cathedral on the sea and Baroque Lecce each fit into a day.

Kalambaka's outings are pleasant but fewer: riverside Trikala, the stone village of Metsovo over the Pindos, and Ioannina on its lake, with Zagori at the outer edge. A car helps from both, but from Kalambaka it is close to a requirement.

Bari is the easier family choice. Children get a sandy city beach, traffic-free lanes, gelato and the evening passeggiata. Outings to the Grotte di Castellana and the Fasano safari park make up for how little in the city is built for them.

Kalambaka works for older children who can manage the trails or a beginners' climb. For younger ones, the monasteries mean long staircases, hushed interiors and dress rules. Most families keep it to a night or two.

Bari is simpler to manage without a car. The old town, the Murat streets and the seafront lie side by side on flat ground, and a train runs to the airport. Regional lines reach Polignano, Trani and Matera, if slowly.

Kalambaka's town is small and walkable, and its rail branch connects to the Athens to Thessaloniki line. The catch is the monasteries, strung along a winding road several kilometres above town with an infrequent bus. Unless they hike up, most visitors rely on a hire car, taxis or a tour.

Neither is a shopping destination. Bari at least has a real high street in Via Sparano, with Italian chains and a few smarter boutiques. Its best buys are edible ones like dried orecchiette, taralli and olive oil, along with Puglian ceramics.

Kalambaka has a souvenir street of painted icons, carvings, honey, herbs and tsipouro, plus religious items sold by the monasteries themselves. It is fine for a gift but not worth an afternoon.

Both are easy on the wallet, and Kalambaka is a little cheaper day to day. Its family guesthouses and taverna meals cost little and the monasteries ask only small entry fees. Prices rise at the rooms facing the rocks and over Orthodox Easter.

Bari is good value for Italy, with cheap street food, local wine and a free old town and basilica. Rooms get harder to find in July and August, though, and beach clubs and car hire for day trips add up.

Bari offers a real evening out at the Teatro Petruzzelli, one of Italy's largest opera houses, with seasons of opera, ballet and symphonic music. In summer there are concerts in the piazzas and at the castle, and a long-running jazz festival.

Kalambaka has almost nothing on stage. Its most memorable music is Byzantine chant at a monastery service, which is worship to attend respectfully rather than a show.

Neither is a spa destination, and in both, treatments mean a hotel facility. The calm they offer differs. Bari's is a sociable southern rhythm of long lunches, the afternoon break and the seafront stroll at dusk, with restored country estates nearby for anyone who wants pampering.

Kalambaka's is silence. The town sleeps early, and the dawn and evening light on the rocks sets the pace for slow mornings. It suits a couple of quiet nights rather than a long restorative stay.