Bilbao or Seville?

Bilbao has no beach of its own, but the sea fits easily into a city stay. The metro follows the right bank of the estuary to Ereaga and Arrigunaga in Getxo and on to the sheltered bay at Gorliz, so a morning in the Casco Viejo can end on the sand. The Biscay water stays cool until late summer, the sky can turn grey even in July, and Sopelana's open swell suits surfers better than small children.

Seville has nothing comparable. Matalascañas and Mazagón on the Huelva coast are more than an hour away by road, so reaching the sea takes a car or a coach and most of the day. In town, summer swimming means a hotel rooftop or a municipal pool, and anyone who wants regular beach time does better to spend a few nights on the coast.

Both cities eat standing at the counter and moving from bar to bar, but Bilbao has the edge. Its pintxos with txakoli are good even in plain bars in the Casco Viejo and around Plaza Nueva. Above that come asadores grilling txuleta and turbot and a set of Michelin-starred kitchens, and the Mercado de la Ribera shows off the produce it is all built on.

Seville's tapas are earthier and cheaper: spinach with chickpeas, pringá, pork cheek and fried fish, eaten with manzanilla or cold beer in the tiled bars of Triana and El Arenal. What it lacks is a serious top-end tier, and the streets around the cathedral are best avoided at mealtimes. Neither city offers much international food.

Seville is in a different league here. The Real Alcázar, the cathedral with its Giralda minaret and the Archivo de Indias form a UNESCO-listed group that spans the Islamic and Christian centuries. Around them come Santa Cruz, Plaza de España, Casa de Pilatos and a fine Murillo collection, enough to fill three or four days on foot.

Bilbao's draw is modern. Gehry's Guggenheim is a sight in itself, the Bellas Artes is a strong collection and the Vizcaya Bridge at Portugalete adds a second UNESCO site. Its medieval Siete Calles are pleasant rather than grand, though, and two or three days see the city well.

Seville offers more after dark. Dinner starts at ten and the night moves outdoors, to the Alameda de Hércules with its mixed and LGBT-friendly crowd, to Triana and the Alfalfa, and in summer to open-air bars by the river once the heat lifts.

In Bilbao the evening grows out of the pintxo crawl and centres on the old town and Licenciado Poza. It is lively from Thursday to Saturday and quiet midweek. Neither city is a clubbing destination. Each has one week when it goes wild: the April Fair in Seville and Aste Nagusia on Bilbao's riverbanks in August.

Bilbao is far better for the outdoors. A funicular climbs Artxanda, Pagasarri is a half-day hike from the suburbs, and the limestone peaks of Urkiola and the beech woods of Gorbea are about an hour away. The coast adds cliff walks, the Urdaibai reserve, the stairway to San Juan de Gaztelugatxe and the famous wave at Mundaka. The price is rain in every season.

Seville sits in flat farmland, so city nature means María Luisa Park and rowing or kayaking on the old river channel. Its big draw is Doñana, a great wetland of flamingos and migrating birds about an hour and a half away. The Sierra Norte and Aracena offer gentle hikes in spring and autumn, since summer is too hot.

Both make excellent bases, so the choice comes down to the kind of day out you want. From Bilbao it is San Sebastián's pintxo bars, Gernika's oak tree, the fishing ports from Bermeo to Lekeitio and the bodegas of Rioja Alavesa around Laguardia. Buses cover the main towns, but a car helps for wine country.

Seville's outings are monument towns, often linked by fast trains. Córdoba's Great Mosque is under an hour away, Carmona and Roman Itálica are almost on the doorstep, and Jerez and Cádiz lead on to the white villages. Granada is the one that really needs an overnight stay.

The two are equally easy with children, but they suit different seasons. Bilbao is flat, safe and compact, with Doña Casilda Park, the funicular up Artxanda and Puppy outside the Guggenheim. It has no zoo, aquarium or theme park, so rainy days take planning, but the metro beaches cover summer.

Seville has the attractions Bilbao lacks: a theme park with a summer water park on La Cartuja, an aquarium, and the maze in the Alcázar gardens. Its problem is heat above 40°C in July and August. For a summer family trip Bilbao is easier, and in spring and autumn Seville is.

Bilbao's transport is more complete. A flat riverside walk links the Casco Viejo to the Guggenheim and the tram runs alongside it. Foster's metro goes down both banks to the beaches and the Vizcaya Bridge, and Euskotren and Bizkaibus reach the coast and Gernika without a car.

Seville relies on its walkable centre, where almost everything is within half an hour on foot through narrow, often pedestrianised streets. The single metro line and short tram play a minor role, and the bike lanes and public bike scheme are the real alternative to walking. Summer heat makes walking at midday hard work.

Seville gives you more to bring home. Triana's workshops have been painting tiles and ceramics for centuries, and the shops around Sierpes and Cuna sell flamenco dresses, mantillas, fans and guitars to locals getting ready for the Fair. The Thursday flea market on Calle Feria adds some good browsing.

Bilbao is thinner on crafts. It has chains along the Gran Vía and old family shops in the Casco Viejo selling berets and espadrilles. Its best souvenirs are edible: Cantabrian anchovies, Idiazabal cheese and txakoli from the Ribera market and the delicatessens around it.

Seville is the cheaper trip. Tapas evenings and drinks cost little, the centre is walkable and some monuments are free at certain times. Hotels are moderate for most of the year and good value in the summer heat, though rates jump steeply for Holy Week and the April Fair.

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 a meal at an asador or a starred restaurant quickly drives up the bill.

Seville has flamenco, and that settles it. There are performances every night in the tablaos of Santa Cruz and Triana and in the peñas where local aficionados gather, and the Bienal brings the leading names every other autumn. The Maestranza adds opera in the city where Carmen and The Barber of Seville are set.

Bilbao's stage life is respectable but more seasonal. ABAO's opera and the symphony orchestra play at the Euskalduna, and the Arriaga and Campos Elíseos stage theatre, mostly in Spanish. Its standout event is BBK Live on Mount Cobetas each July.

Neither is a spa destination, but Seville has slightly more to offer. Arab-style bath houses in old mansions have warm and cold pools under arched ceilings and make an atmospheric evening, and the shaded courtyards and slow afternoons help too. Narrow streets can be noisy at night, though.

Bilbao has hotel and day spas and little else. For a proper spa stay you need the balnearios of the Basque interior. What it offers instead is a gentle rhythm of long lunches and riverside walks in cooler air.