Bled or San Marino?

Neither place has a beach of its own, so the swimming is very different. In Bled you swim in the lake itself, from grassy lidos and wooden piers or straight off the rocks along the path, and some people swim out to the island. Bohinj's colder pebble shores are nearby for a wilder swim.

From San Marino you go down to the sea. The sandy Romagna beaches at Rimini and Riccione are about half an hour away, with rows of umbrellas and shallow, warm water. It makes a beach afternoon out rather than a swim before breakfast.

San Marino eats noticeably better. It shares the cooking of Romagna, with hand-rolled tagliatelle, passatelli in broth, piadina and grilled meats, and pours wine from the republic's own small vineyards. The good tables are in the family trattorias of Borgo Maggiore rather than up on the summit.

In Bled you will remember the kremšnita cream slice eaten by the lake. The rest is mostly hotel dining rooms and pizzerias, with trout and žlikrofi at the inns. The better meals are out in the valley farm inns.

San Marino has more to see, and a better story to go with it. The whole walled town strung along Monte Titano is the sight: towers you can climb linked by a cliffside path, and the Palazzo Pubblico and Basilica telling the story of one of the oldest surviving republics. Half a day covers it, but it is time well spent.

Bled's sights are fewer and more postcard-like. There is the castle on its cliff with a small museum, and the pletna boat ride to the baroque island church with its wishing bell. Most visitors finish within a day and go to Ljubljana for anything more.

Both places go quiet after dark. In Bled the evening is a drink on a lakeside terrace and a walk along the lit shore, and for a proper night out you have to go to Ljubljana. San Marino's summit has a few wine bars that look down on the lights of the coast. The difference is that the late Riviera bars and clubs of Rimini and Riccione are only a short drive below.

This is where the two are furthest apart. Bled sits at the edge of the Julian Alps, with the Vintgar Gorge just north of the village and Triglav National Park, Lake Bohinj and the Pokljuka plateau about half an hour away. There is hiking at every level, plus canyoning, rafting, paragliding and skiing in winter.

San Marino's limestone ridge is pretty but small. You get cliff views to the Adriatic, woodland paths down to Borgo Maggiore and quiet cycling roads in the Montefeltro hills. A morning walk covers it, and there are no high peaks or adventure sports nearby.

Both make good bases, but for different kinds of outing. From Bled you can see most of a small country: Ljubljana in under an hour, medieval Radovljica nearby, the Postojna cave and Predjama Castle, the harbour town of Piran, and even the Wörthersee across the Austrian border.

San Marino's excursions are Italian art and fortress towns: San Leo on its rock, ducal Urbino, Ravenna's mosaics and the castle at Gradara. Outside Rimini you really need a car, whereas Bled at least has buses to Ljubljana and Radovljica.

Bled is the easier place with children. The flat lake path suits pushchairs and small bikes, and rowing out to ring the island bell is a favourite. Add shallow lidos, the toboggan run on Straža and the gorge walkways for older children, though a wet day is hard to fill.

San Marino's towers, battlements and cable car thrill children, but steps and summer crowds make pushchairs a struggle. The family attractions are down on the coast, such as Italia in Miniatura, Fiabilandia and the waterparks, so it works best for families with a car.

Bled is simpler to get around. The village is compact and level, the shoreline path links everything, regional buses run to Ljubljana and Bohinj, and two railway stations sit close by. You only need a car for the high passes and the Soča valley.

San Marino's centre is car-free and short, but nearly every street climbs or drops by steps, and a cable car connects the summit to Borgo Maggiore. The only regular way in is the bus from Rimini, and the hill towns beyond are realistically for drivers only.

San Marino has far more to buy. Lower taxes than in Italy bring perfume, watches, leather goods and spirits to its main streets, there is an outlet centre on the valley floor, and collectors seek out its stamps and coins. Bled has a few lakeside stalls selling honey, lace and painted beehive panels, and little else.

San Marino is a little easier on the budget. Prices are those of provincial central Italy, the sights are inexpensive, and trattorias in the lower villages are fairly priced. Only the summit view terraces and hotels charge extra.

As Slovenia's best-known resort, Bled charges for its lake views, especially in July and August. Boat trips to the island, the castle and the gorge all add up. On the other hand the trails and viewpoints cost nothing, and staying in Radovljica or Bohinj lowers the bill.

Neither has much of a stage, and both send serious audiences elsewhere, Bled to Ljubljana and San Marino to Bologna or Pesaro. San Marino has the slight edge. It has a small theatre, open-air music in its squares, and the summer Medieval Days festival of costumed musicians and flag-throwers. Bled offers only occasional summer concerts in the castle or churches.

Bled was built for this. It grew up as a nineteenth-century health resort around Arnold Rikli's air and sun cures, and its large lakeside hotels still run spas fed by the lake's mild springs. Early walks around the still water set the pace, especially outside high summer.

San Marino offers a few hotel spas and some calm in the evenings, when the walls empty after the coaches leave. Summer days around the towers are crowded, though, and the thermal spas are a separate trip to the coast or the Apennines.