Bergamo or Palermo?

There is no contest here. In Bergamo, swimming means a day out at Lake Iseo or the Lecco arm of Lake Como, from pebble shores, lawns and concrete platforms. It is pleasant in July but never a reason to come.

Palermo has proper sea swimming within half an hour. Mondello has pale sand and shallow turquoise water, the rocks at Sferracavallo and Capo Gallo give stronger swimmers deep water, and Cefalù's beach is an hour away by train. In neither city can you step from the hotel onto the sand, but only Palermo makes swimming part of the daily plan.

Both cities are Italian through and through, but they eat very differently. Bergamo's table is mountain Lombardy: casoncelli in butter and sage, polenta with braised meat and game, and valley cheeses such as Taleggio and Strachitunt. Its fine dining is also stronger than Palermo's.

Palermo is the better city to eat in, and much of the eating happens standing up. Panelle and arancine from the Ballarò and Capo markets, sweet-and-sour dishes that carry the Arab past, cannoli filled to order and brioche with granita make grazing the city a pastime in itself.

Bergamo's heritage is concentrated and easy to take in. There is the Venetian-walled Città Alta, Piazza Vecchia with the Cappella Colleoni and Santa Maria Maggiore, and the Raphaels and Bellinis of the Accademia Carrara, all seen comfortably in a day or two.

Palermo has more to see, and stranger things. The gold mosaics of the Palatine Chapel and the rest of the Arab-Norman route, Serpotta's stucco oratories, the Selinunte carvings in the Salinas museum and the Capuchin catacombs fill several days. They sit in an old centre that is partly crumbling, a long way from the polish of Bergamo's upper town.

A night out in Bergamo means an aperitivo, a wine bar in Borgo Santa Caterina or, in summer, a drink on the walls, and it is mostly over by midnight. For anything bigger, people take the train to Milan.

Palermo goes on later and louder. The Vucciria turns into an open-air bar with smoking grills and music, the Kalsa fills up after dinner, and in summer the dancing moves out to Mondello. Neither is a club city.

Bergamo looks north to the Alps, and Palermo looks out from a bowl of limestone onto the sea. From Bergamo, the Colli di Bergamo climb straight up from the upper town, and Val Brembana and Val Seriana lead into the Orobie, with rifugi, high lakes and proper summer hiking. The lakes add sailing and cycling, and small ski areas such as Foppolo open in winter.

In Palermo you can climb Monte Pellegrino from the edge of town. Capo Gallo and the Zingaro reserve combine cliff paths with snorkelling off the rocks, and the Madonie have beech woods and peaks near 2,000m. Bergamo's mountains are at their best in summer. Palermo's are better in spring and autumn, when the heat lets up.

From Bergamo, most outings are to cities and lakes, and the train does most of the work. Milan is under an hour away, and Lake Como, Lake Iseo with car-free Monte Isola, Brescia, Cremona and Verona are all within easy reach. You can fit the Franciacorta wine country into an afternoon.

From Palermo, the trips lead to ancient sites in open country. Monreale's golden mosaics are half an hour up the hill and Cefalù is an hour away by train. The Greek temples at Segesta, Selinunte and Agrigento, and hilltop Erice, are far easier with a hire car than by bus.

Bergamo is the easier city with children. It is calm and safe, the funiculars are an outing in themselves, and Leolandia and the Le Cornelle wildlife park are both a short drive away. The cobbles of the upper town are hard going with a buggy, though.

Palermo is warm towards children, and Mondello's shallow sandy bay and the puppet shows are real pleasures. Beyond those, little is built for children, traffic squeezes through lanes without pavements and summers are hot. Families usually do better with a seaside base than in the old town.

Bergamo is simpler to manage. A funicular links the lower town with the Città Alta, buses run to the station and the airport, and direct trains go to Milan, Brescia and Lecco. You only really need a car for the high valleys and the lake shores.

Palermo's main sights can be walked along Via Maqueda and Corso Vittorio Emanuele, but the side lanes bring scooters and missing pavements. Buses crawl through traffic and driving is stressful. Mondello, Cefalù and Bagheria are easy without a car, but Segesta, Erice and the interior need a hire car.

Neither city is a shopping destination, and most of what you take home will be food. Bergamo's best buys are the cheeses, salumi and Valcalepio wine from the delicatessens of the Città Alta. Mid-range fashion lines the Sentierone, and Milan's boutiques are under an hour away.

Palermo has a few more luxury labels along Via Libertà and a stronger craft tradition. Look for painted ceramics and moor's-head vases, marionettes from the puppet workshops, coral jewellery and the flea market near the cathedral, along with capers and pistachio pesto from the markets.

Your money goes further in Palermo. Market street food can make a whole meal for very little, trattorie and local wine cost less than in the north, and guesthouses in the old centre are fairly priced for most of the year. July and August at the seaside, and a hire car, push costs up.

Bergamo is comfortable rather than cheap. Lower-town hotels are fair value as a touring base and the buses and funiculars cost little, but rooms inside the Città Alta and summer weekends are dearer.

Opera is at the heart of both cities, on different scales. Bergamo has the theatre named after Donizetti, its native son, with an autumn festival of his works, plus Bergamo Jazz in spring and the small Teatro Sociale. La Scala is an evening trip away.

Palermo's Teatro Massimo runs a fuller season of opera, ballet and concerts, and the Politeama is home to the Sicilian symphony orchestra. The Opera dei Pupi, with armoured marionettes fighting Charlemagne's battles, is a tradition you will not find in Bergamo.

Bergamo is the more restful stay. San Pellegrino Terme's Belle Époque spa is forty minutes up Val Brembana, Trescore Balneario has sulphur springs used since Roman times, and the Città Alta is quiet early and late.

Palermo is loud with scooters, traffic and markets, and its nearest thermal waters at Termini Imerese are a train ride away. The city's calm comes in pockets: the Orto Botanico, the cloisters and the evening walk along the Foro Italico. Real rest usually means staying outside the city.