Bilbao or Santiago de Compostela?

Neither city has sand of its own, but Bilbao's coast is far easier to reach and use. The metro runs straight to Ereaga, Arrigunaga, Sopelana and the sheltered bay at Plentzia, and late summer brings water warm enough for a proper swim. Sopelana's open swell also draws surfers.

Santiago's nearest beaches are about 35km away, so a beach day needs a bus or a car. The calm white-sand inlets of the Muros e Noia and Arousa rías are lovely, but the water stays cold and the season is short. In both cities a beach day is a side trip rather than the reason to go, though more so in Santiago.

Both cities live by one regional cuisine and offer little beyond it, but Bilbao does more with its own. The bar-to-bar pintxo habit in the Casco Viejo, Plaza Nueva and Ensanche keeps the everyday standard high. Above it come the txuleta asadores and a cluster of Michelin-starred kitchens in and around the city.

Santiago's strength is seafood: pulpo á feira, scallops and percebes, with the Mercado de Abastos at its centre and some stalls that will cook what you buy. The taverns of Rúa do Franco serve honest, generous plates with Albariño, and there is only a thin modern tier on top.

Santiago has the deeper historic setting. The cathedral, with the Pórtico da Gloria and the shrine of Saint James, and the Praza do Obradoiro in front of it, sit at the heart of a UNESCO-listed granite old town of monasteries and convent squares. The whole city feels like the monument.

Bilbao's draw is modern and found in its museums: Gehry's Guggenheim, a strong Bellas Artes collection and the Basque Museum. Its Siete Calles are pleasant rather than grand. Each needs about two or three days, but Santiago gives you atmosphere and history, while Bilbao gives you art and architecture.

Bilbao goes out harder. The pintxo bars of the Casco Viejo stay busy late, Licenciado Poza draws a younger crowd, and Aste Nagusia in August turns the riverbanks into nine days of bar stalls. The club scene is still small.

Santiago's nights belong to its students: pub-like bars around Rúa da Raíña and the Praza de Cervantes, folk sessions and a big Thursday night. In summer, when term ends, the pilgrims take over and the old town goes to bed earlier.

Bilbao has the wider range of landscape. Proper mountain walking in the limestone of Urkiola and the beech woods of Gorbea lies within an hour. The coast offers cliff paths, the Urdaibai reserve, the stairway to San Juan de Gaztelugatxe and the famous Mundaka wave.

Santiago's countryside is gentler: rain-fed hills, Camino paths that lead straight out of town, the ancient Fragas do Eume woodland, and the wild Costa da Morte further off. It has no high mountains, and it is the wetter of the two.

Both make good bases, with Bilbao slightly ahead on variety. From Bilbao you can reach San Sebastián's pintxo bars, Gernika's oak tree, the Basque fishing ports, Vitoria's medieval quarter, the Rioja wine country and Cantabria's Santillana del Mar.

Santiago is better served by train. A Coruña's Roman lighthouse, Pontevedra and Ourense are all quick rides, and Lugo's complete Roman walls make a full day. The Albariño villages and the Camino's end at Fisterra are easier by car or on a tour.

Both are safe and welcome children out late, but Bilbao is easier for them. The flat riverside suits pushchairs and scooters, Doña Casilda Park and the funicular fill a morning, and the metro reaches family-friendly beaches. Neither city has a zoo or theme park.

Santiago's sights are mostly churches and museums on cobbled slopes, and long runs of rain make it hard going with small children. Families usually head to the aquarium in A Coruña or to the coast after a day or two.

Bilbao is easier to get around. The sights line a flat stretch of riverbank served by a tram, and Foster's metro runs down both banks to the beaches and the Vizcaya Bridge, so you rarely need a car.

Santiago's old town is small enough to cross on foot in about twenty minutes, but the granite streets climb and get slippery in the rain. Trains cover the Galician cities well, yet the beaches, wine villages and Costa da Morte really need a car or a tour.

Bilbao offers a bit more. The Gran Vía has the chains and a department store, and the Casco Viejo has family shops selling berets, espadrilles and cookware alongside independent design stores. Fashion is still limited.

Santiago is mostly crafts and food. Look for jet carvings in the Azabachería, silver near the Praterías and Sargadelos ceramics, though much of the old town is given over to pilgrim souvenirs. In both cities the best things to take home are edible: anchovies and Idiazabal in Bilbao, tetilla cheese and tarta de Santiago in Santiago.

Santiago is the cheaper stay by a clear margin. Tapas often come free with a drink, set lunches are generous, seafood costs less than in the big Spanish cities, and pensiones and pilgrim hostels keep rooms cheap outside the busy days around the July feast.

Bilbao is on the expensive side for Spain, with central hotels costing more, especially near the Guggenheim and during the Great Week. A pintxo crawl is still good value, but the asadores and starred kitchens are where the money goes.

Bilbao has the fuller programme. The ABAO opera season and the Bilbao Symphony play the Euskalduna, the Arriaga and Campos Elíseos theatres stage drama and dance, and BBK Live brings international bands to Mount Cobetas each July.

Santiago has a respected orchestra in the Real Filharmonía de Galicia but no opera to speak of. What makes it worth hearing is the street: bagpipe sessions in old-town bars and caped student tunas singing under the arcades.

Neither city has a bathing tradition of its own, but Santiago has more spa options close by. The old spa towns of Caldas de Reis and Cuntis are about half an hour away, and Ourense's riverside thermal pools are a short train ride, an easy half day for tired legs.

In Bilbao, relaxing mostly means hotel spas, long lunches and riverside walks. The Basque balnearios are a separate trip rather than an easy afternoon out.