Bavaria or Lake Como?

Neither destination has a sea, so in both this means swimming in a lake, and Lake Como does it a little better. Its lidos at Bellagio, Lenno and Menaggio fit easily into a day of ferry hops, and the open shores of the upper lake around Gravedona and Domaso have more space. Its summers are also slightly warmer, though the water gets cold quickly below the surface.

In Bavaria the swimming is spread across separate lakes south of Munich, such as the Starnberger See, Ammersee and Chiemsee, with grassy meadows and wooden jetties. In Munich itself there are the gravel banks of the Isar. The shallow Staffelsee warms up fastest, but here a swim is more often a side activity than part of the day's routine.

Bavaria has more to explore at the table, mostly because of what it drinks. There are Munich's beer gardens and beer halls, the village breweries and smoked beer of Upper Franconia around Bamberg, and Silvaner poured in Würzburg's wine taverns. Munich adds fine dining and the Viktualienmarkt to a menu that is otherwise roast pork, dumplings and sausages.

Lake Como's cooking is smaller in scope: perch in butter and sage on risotto, salted missoltini, polenta and Valtellina cheeses. It is best eaten in hill-village trattorias and the rock-cellar crotti rather than at the lakefront terraces, which tend to be generic.

This is one of the widest gaps between the two. Bavaria has Old Masters at the Alte Pinakothek, the Deutsches Museum and the Residenz in Munich, and the UNESCO-listed medieval centres of Bamberg and Regensburg. It also has Tiepolo's ceiling at Würzburg, the walls of Rothenburg and Ludwig II's castles. You could spend a fortnight on it without repeating yourself.

Lake Como's heritage is mainly its villas and gardens. Villa Carlotta, Balbianello and Melzi are reached by boat, and Como town adds its marble cathedral, Romanesque churches and Terragni's rationalist buildings. The pleasure lies in the setting rather than the collections, and there are no major museums.

Bavaria gives you a real night out, almost all of it in Munich. There are cocktail bars in Glockenbachviertel and Maxvorstadt, a respectable club scene and loud evenings in the beer halls, with Oktoberfest on top in late September. Bamberg, Würzburg and Regensburg have student pub streets.

Lake Como's evenings end with dinner and a glass on a terrace. Como town has a few wine and cocktail bars, but Bellagio and Varenna empty once the last ferry leaves, and anyone after more heads to Milan.

Both are superb for the outdoors, but the landscapes differ in kind. Bavaria spreads its mountains along a whole Alpine border, from the Zugspitze above Garmisch and the Königssee in Berchtesgaden to the hut-to-hut routes of the Allgäu, with skiing once the snow comes. Further north are the wild woods of the Bavarian Forest, the crags of Franconian Switzerland and long riverside cycle paths, so most days outdoors here are spent on foot, on a bike or on skis.

Lake Como puts its scenery in one frame, with mountains rising straight out of the water. A morning on the Sentiero del Viandante or the Grigna can end with an afternoon on the lake, and the water is where Como has the edge. The reliable afternoon wind on the upper lake draws windsurfers and kitesurfers, and a day can just as easily go to a kayak, a sailing boat or a paraglider as to a trail.

Bavaria has more within easy reach without leaving the region. From Munich, Augsburg is about half an hour away and Nuremberg about an hour, and Regensburg, the Chiemsee and Salzburg are close too. Franconia works as a second base for Bamberg, the Main wine villages and the Romantic Road towns.

Lake Como's best outings mostly leave the lake. Milan's Duomo and the Last Supper are about an hour away, and so are Bergamo's upper town and Lugano. Closer to base, a ferry loop between Bellagio, Varenna, Menaggio and Tremezzo fills a day with no planning.

Bavaria is much easier with children. Beer gardens have playgrounds, and the Deutsches Museum has a large hands-on section. Munich's Hellabrunn and Nuremberg's zoos, Legoland at Günzburg and the summer toboggan runs in the Alps fill the days well, and inns welcome families.

Lake Como is calm and safe, and the boat rides, the Brunate funicular and gelato please younger children. The villages are hard work, though, with steep stepped lanes and shore roads without pavements, and many hotels are aimed at couples. The flatter upper lake around Domaso and Colico, with its campsites, is the family base.

Bavaria is the easier place to travel without a car. Munich has the U-Bahn, S-Bahn and trams, and regional trains run to Garmisch, Füssen, Berchtesgaden and the lakes, with a day ticket covering much of the state. Rural valleys rely on sparse buses, and the roads towards the Alps jam on summer weekends.

On Lake Como the ferries are a pleasure, and the central triangle of Bellagio, Varenna and Menaggio works well without a car. Beyond it things slow down: the narrow, winding shore roads clog in summer, village parking is scarce, and the length of the lake takes most of a day by boat.

Bavaria offers both serious shopping and crafts. Munich has the luxury houses on Maximilianstrasse and the department stores between Marienplatz and Karlsplatz. Around the region you can buy Dirndl and Lederhosen, Oberammergau woodcarving, Bavarian Forest glass and Nuremberg gingerbread, and the Christmas markets come in December.

Lake Como has one real speciality, Como silk. Scarves, ties and fabrics are sold in town and at mill outlets, with the Silk Museum explaining the trade. Bellagio's boutiques are pretty but pricey, and for serious fashion people go to Milan.

Neither is cheap, but Bavaria gives you more ways to keep costs down. Munich is expensive, and especially so during Oktoberfest and the trade fairs. Franconian towns, the Bavarian Forest and Alpine guesthouses are moderate, though. Regional day tickets make train travel cheap, and beer gardens let you bring your own food.

On Lake Como the central lake around Bellagio, Tremezzo and Cernobbio charges for the view at almost every turn, from hotels to boat taxis. The savings are in Como town and Lecco, on the upper lake's campsites and in spring and autumn.

Bavaria is far ahead here. Munich has the Bavarian State Opera most nights in season, two orchestras of international rank and the rococo Cuvilliés Theatre. Beyond Munich are Wagner's festival at Bayreuth and the Mozart festival in Würzburg's Residenz.

Lake Como has Como's handsome Teatro Sociale, with a genuine season, and summer concerts in villas and churches around the lake. Anything more ambitious means an evening at La Scala in Milan and a late train back.

Bavaria has a proper bathing culture. You can take the cure in Bad Kissingen's colonnades, breathe brine at Bad Reichenhall, soak in the thermal waters of Bad Füssing or wade Kneipp pools where the method began at Bad Wörishofen. Near Munich are the vast saunas at Erding, taken mixed and mostly nude in the German way.

On Lake Como the rest comes from the pace. There are slow days between garden, terrace and ferry, and the grand villa hotels have spas with pools floating on or above the water. There are no thermal baths, so this suits doing very little rather than taking a cure.