Big Bear Lake or Taos?

Neither is a beach destination, but at Big Bear Lake you can at least swim. In July and August the lake is cool but swimmable, and the supervised beach at Meadow Park gives families one safe spot. The rest of the mostly rocky shore has a few sandy patches and granite outcrops.

Taos has nothing like it. The Rio Grande is for rafting rather than swimming, the alpine lakes stay cold, and a hotel pool or a hot spring is the closest you will get to a dip.

Taos has a regional kitchen and Big Bear does not. Red and green chile, posole, carne adovada and blue-corn dishes give meals in Taos a real local identity, and the horno-baked bread from the Pueblo is something you can only eat there.

At Big Bear, food is about big portions after a day outdoors: diner breakfasts, burgers, barbecue and brewpubs, and many visitors cook in their cabins. Neither town has much variety, but only in Taos is eating part of the reason to go.

This is where the two differ most. Taos has a UNESCO-listed pueblo that has been lived in for about a thousand years, the buttressed adobe church at Ranchos de Taos, and a cluster of small art-colony museums and historic homes that fill two or three days.

Big Bear has the Discovery Center, a small history museum and the gold-rush remains of Holcomb Valley along a dirt-road drive, and its chalet-style Village is modern. Culture is a side note there.

Both towns are quiet after dark, and neither has clubs or anything open late. Big Bear's evenings rely on après-ski pubs in the Village and the cabin hot tub. Taos has a little more character, with margaritas in old adobe hotel bars off the plaza and the occasional saloon band.

Both are serious mountain bases, and the difference is in the terrain. Big Bear centres on its lake and pine forest. It has modest, reliable skiing backed by plenty of snowmaking, then kayaks, paddleboards, fishing and mountain-bike trails in summer, with the Pacific Crest Trail and San Gorgonio close by.

Taos is bigger and wilder. The ski valley is known for steep, demanding runs, Wheeler Peak and the alpine lakes draw summer hikers, and the Rio Grande gorge adds whitewater rafting and rim walks across open sagebrush country. Choose Big Bear for the water and gentle slopes, Taos for harder skiing and wider landscapes.

Taos is the far better base for excursions. Santa Fe by way of the High Road, past old village churches and the sanctuary at Chimayó, makes a full and varied day, and O'Keeffe country at Abiquiu and Ghost Ranch is a little over an hour away.

From Big Bear, winding mountain roads slow every outing. Lake Arrowhead and the Oak Glen orchards are pleasant and Riverside's Mission Inn is worth a look, but most visitors simply stay up the mountain.

Big Bear is set up for children in a way Taos is not. Snow-play hills, beginner lessons, the alpine zoo, the summer slide, mini-golf and go-karts give families an easy list of things to do, and roomy cabins help.

Taos suits families who like the outdoors, with a well-regarded ski school, gentle river floats, horse riding and a recreation centre pool. But nothing there is made for children, and nearly every outing involves a drive.

You need a car in both, but Big Bear relies on it a little less. The Village is walkable, and a local bus and a seasonal trolley reach the ski areas and parts of the lakeshore, though the steep highways up can slow to a crawl or require snow chains in winter.

Taos spreads its sights across a wide valley, from the Pueblo to the gorge bridge and the ski valley. Most visitors arrive after a drive of about two and a half hours from Albuquerque, so a hire car is part of the trip from the start.

Taos has real shopping if your taste runs to art and craft. The galleries around the plaza and Kit Carson Road, the turquoise and silver jewellery, the Rio Grande weaving and the micaceous pottery bought from makers at the Pueblo can keep collectors busy for days.

Big Bear's few Village blocks of fudge shops, bear souvenirs and outdoor outfitters make for a pleasant hour and little more.

Neither is cheap, and in both the season decides the bill. Big Bear can be economical midweek for a group sharing a cabin and cooking, but winter weekends bring sharp rate rises and lift-ticket costs. Taos has fairly priced motels and New Mexican diners, offset by resort rates at historic inns and the near-certain cost of a hire car, with spring and late autumn the gentlest times on the budget.

Taos has more worth seeing, though most of it happens at set times of year. The Pueblo's feast-day dances, such as San Gerónimo in late September, can be watched under strict rules, and a summer chamber music festival brings serious classical concerts.

At Big Bear, live performance means a community arts centre, free lakeside concerts in summer and the Bavarian bands of its autumn Oktoberfest.

Taos is the better place to slow down. Ojo Caliente's historic outdoor pools of different mineral waters are within an hour, primitive hot springs lie beside the Rio Grande at the bottom of the gorge, and yoga studios and retreat centres draw on the valley's spiritual reputation.

Big Bear offers a private hot tub on a cabin deck and a few day spas, which is restful midweek. But there are no springs, and the crowds on winter weekends break the calm.