Bergamo or Pula?

Bergamo has no coast at all. Summer swimming means a drive or train to Lake Iseo, where Sarnico and Lovere have grassy lidos, or to the Lecco arm of Lake Como. It is a good escape from a hot day rather than a reason to choose the city.

Pula puts the open Adriatic right on its doorstep. The shores are rocks, platforms and pebble coves rather than sand, much like the lakes, but the water is far clearer and the setting wilder, above all at Kamenjak with its cliff ledges and islets. Pack water shoes for the urchins. The sheltered, shallow bays of Medulin suit small children.

Both cities eat well, and the difference is mountain against sea. Bergamo cooks Lombard upland food: casoncelli in butter and sage, polenta with braised meat and game, and valley cheeses such as Taleggio and Strachitunt, with Valcalepio and Franciacorta to drink. The Città Alta has the trattorias and pastry shops, and the province has a fine-dining side that Pula lacks.

Pula's table is Istrian, with truffle pasta, scampi buzara, grilled squid, pršut, Malvazija and Teran. Inside the town the choice is narrower and leans towards tourist menus near the Arena. The best meals are a drive away, in konobas in the hinterland villages and by the coastal harbours.

Bergamo gives more to see. Its whole upper town survives inside UNESCO-listed Venetian walls, with Piazza Vecchia, Santa Maria Maggiore and the marble front of the Cappella Colleoni set close together. Below the hill, the Accademia Carrara adds Mantegna, Lotto and Raphael, which makes it a gallery visit as much as a townscape.

Pula's strength is Roman. The Arena is one of the most complete amphitheatres anywhere, and the Temple of Augustus and the Arch of the Sergii are still standing. The Habsburg naval forts add a later layer. It is an outstanding single monument with a pleasant old town around it, but there is no art collection to match Bergamo's.

Neither city is built for going out, but Pula has a bit more life in summer. On warm weekends its evenings move from terraces by the Forum to beach bars on Verudela and in Medulin, and a few small clubs stay open late. Out of season it goes as quiet as Bergamo.

Bergamo's evenings are steadier all year and more grown-up: a long aperitivo, then wine bars along Via XX Settembre or in Borgo Santa Caterina, or drinks on the walls of the upper town in summer. Most nights end around midnight, and anyone wanting clubs takes the train to Milan.

Bergamo has the real mountains. Paths climb from the upper town through the Colli park to San Vigilio, and to the north Val Brembana and Val Seriana lead into the Orobie Alps, with rifugi, high lakes, summer hiking and small ski areas in winter. The lakes add sailing and shoreline cycling.

Pula's outdoors is low and coastal. The draws are macchia, pine and the car-free cliffs of Kamenjak, with dinosaur footprints along the shore, plus sea kayaking, windsurfing at Premantura and wreck diving. The nearest proper hills are on Učka, an hour and a half away.

Bergamo is the stronger base, mostly because so much of it can be done by train. Milan's Duomo and Last Supper are under an hour away, and Brescia, Lecco and the Lake Como towns are as close or closer. Verona and Cremona make easy full days. Crespi d'Adda and Monte Isola on Lake Iseo add quieter outings.

Pula has a fine list of its own: Venetian Rovinj, the Byzantine mosaics of Poreč, the hilltop villages of Motovun and Hum with their truffle country, and the Brijuni islands by boat from Fažana. The catch is that nearly all of them need a car.

Children are comfortable in both, but the days look different. In Pula they are spent by the sea, in the shallow bays of Medulin and Premantura, with the aquarium in a Habsburg fort and the Arena's underground passages to explore. Rocky shores and summer heat take some managing, though.

Bergamo turns on the funicular rides, gelato on the walls and outings to Leolandia's miniature Italy or the animals at Le Cornelle. Buggies struggle on the cobbled upper-town lanes, and the lakes and valleys round out a longer stay.

Bergamo is much easier without a car. Funiculars link the lower town, the Città Alta and San Vigilio, buses run to the airport and the station, a light-rail line runs up Val Seriana, and trains run direct to Milan, Brescia and Lecco.

Pula's flat centre is quick to walk, and buses reach Verudela. Beyond the city, though, the slow railway and sparse regional buses leave visitors dependent on a car or scooter, and parking is tight in summer.

Bergamo offers more, though it is no fashion destination. The arcades of Via XX Settembre and the Sentierone have mid-range Italian labels, and the main lane of the upper town is lined with cheese shops, salumi counters and wine sellers. Milan is under an hour away for anything grander.

Pula's shopping is mostly edible: olive oil, truffle products, honey, rakija and pršut from the market hall or straight from the farms. The old-town street has little beyond chains and souvenirs.

Overall costs are much the same, but they change through the year in different ways. Bergamo is steady: lower-town hotels are fair for a base, buses and the funicular are cheap, and only the Città Alta and summer weekends push prices up.

Pula changes more with the season. Private apartments and konobas make spring and autumn good value, while July and August rooms cost as much as on Western European coasts. Car hire and boat trips add to the bill.

Bergamo has the fuller programme, built on its native composer. The Teatro Donizetti stages opera, concerts and theatre through the season, and its autumn Donizetti festival draws dedicated opera fans. The Teatro Sociale and the spring Bergamo Jazz festival add to the programme, and La Scala is an evening's train ride away.

Pula has one great setting. On summer nights the Arena hosts touring concerts, classical galas and film festival screenings under the Roman arches. The rest of the year is thin: Croatian-language drama and visiting productions at the Istrian National Theatre, the odd concert and a few bars with live bands.

Bergamo has proper spa towns within easy reach. San Pellegrino Terme's Belle Époque baths are about forty minutes up Val Brembana, and Trescore Balneario has sulphur springs used since Roman times. The upper town is very calm in the early morning.

Pula has no thermal tradition, so wellness means the pools and saunas of the resort hotels on Verudela and in Medulin. Its own way to slow down is long coffees on the Forum and evening walks under the coastal pines.