Boulder or Durango, Colorado?

Neither town offers a beach, so treat swimming as a summer afternoon's add-on. Boulder has a sandy swim area at the reservoir and tubing on Boulder Creek, while Durango spreads its options more widely, from Lake Nighthorse and Vallecito Lake to floating the Animas through town, though its mountain water stays colder even in July.

The two are on a par, and both rely on good ingredients rather than a cuisine of their own. Boulder leans health-conscious: farm-to-table menus, plenty of vegetarian and vegan cooking, bakeries, a Saturday farmers' market by the creek and lunch in the hand-carved Dushanbe Teahouse.

Durango is heartier and more Western, with green-chile Southwestern plates, steakhouses, and Colorado lamb and trout on the better menus. Beer is a strength in both, though Durango's taprooms are the busier end-of-day ritual. For real range, Boulder has Denver within easy reach.

Both are thin on sights, and an afternoon covers either town. Boulder's appeal is architectural and institutional: the 1898 Chautauqua colony under the Flatirons, the sandstone and red-tile campus, and I.M. Pei's atmospheric research laboratory on the mesa.

Durango's heritage is more theatrical. The steam locomotives and roundhouse museum at the old depot, the Victorian hotels and saloons of the mining boom and the college's Native American collection give it a stronger sense of frontier history, and the great Puebloan sites lie just beyond town.

Boulder gives you more to do after dark. Taprooms, cocktail bars and pubs fill the streets around Pearl Street, the student bars on University Hill are loud and cheerful during term, and a couple of venues pass for clubs. Denver is close enough for a bigger night.

Durango's evenings are a patio pint on Main Avenue or a drink in an old saloon with a piano player. It has charm but little dancing, and the town is mostly asleep well before midnight.

Both towns are built for the outdoors, and the difference lies in character. Boulder's strength is access: the Flatirons rise straight behind town, the open-space trails start at Chautauqua, Eldorado Canyon is a world-class climbing wall ten minutes away, and road cyclists come to train on the canyon climbs. Rocky Mountain National Park is about an hour off.

Durango feels wilder. The San Juans are higher and more rugged, the singletrack makes it a mountain-biking centre, the Colorado Trail begins just north, and rafters run the Animas through the middle of town. Winter is stronger here too, with a full ski resort and deep snow half an hour away.

Durango has the more memorable days out. Mesa Verde's cliff dwellings, the narrow-gauge steam train up the canyon to Silverton, Ouray beneath its cliffs and the Aztec ruins within the Chaco listing make a rich mix of history and scenery, though nearly all of it needs a car.

Boulder's outings are pleasant rather than remarkable. Denver, with its art museum and Union Station, is the main draw and reachable by bus, while Golden, Fort Collins and the silver-mining towns of Georgetown and Idaho Springs fill a half-day each by car.

Both suit outdoor families equally well, with a different emphasis. Boulder has more for curious children on a wet day, with the planetarium, natural history museum and free weather exhibits, plus street performers on Pearl Street, and Denver's zoo and aquarium are close by.

Durango has the bigger thrills: the steam train, gentle rafting, an alpine coaster and ziplines at the ski resort, and climbing ladders at Mesa Verde. Its altitude of about 2,000m is noticeably higher than Boulder's 1,655m, and the long drives can test younger children.

Boulder is much easier without a car. Its off-street bike paths along the creek, bike share and local buses link downtown, the campus and Chautauqua, and an express bus runs to Denver and its airport connections. Only the trailheads further out and the national park really call for a hire car.

Durango's centre is small and flat, with a riverside trail and a trolley on the main corridor, but almost everything else, from the ski area to Mesa Verde, lies along mountain highways with thin public transport. Most visitors drive in or rent at the regional airport.

Boulder has the wider choice. The Pearl Street Mall offers independent bookshops, galleries and boutiques, the Twenty Ninth Street district adds chain stores, and its climbing, running and cycling shops are exceptional for a town its size.

Durango is a single stroll down Main Avenue, and its best buys are distinctly regional: Navajo and Pueblo silver, turquoise jewellery, rugs and Western boots, alongside good bike and fishing shops. Neither town has luxury or fashion shopping.

Durango is the gentler on the wallet, though neither town is cheap. Boulder is one of the wealthier towns in the country, with scarce hotel rooms that climb further on graduation and football weekends, and many visitors save by staying in Denver.

Durango's rooms also tighten in summer and at the ski peak, and the steam train, guided trips and an almost compulsory hire car add up. Coming in spring or late autumn brings costs down noticeably. In both towns the trails themselves are free.

Boulder has far more on stage. Small and mid-sized rooms book touring rock, bluegrass and roots acts most nights, the 1898 Chautauqua Auditorium hosts the Colorado Music Festival in summer, and the Shakespeare festival plays outdoors on campus. Red Rocks Amphitheatre is within an easy drive.

Durango's offering is smaller and mostly seasonal: a summer chamber and orchestral festival, touring acts at the college concert hall, a boo-the-villain Victorian melodrama and cowboy music with a chuckwagon supper. Outside summer, evenings are quiet.

The two are close, but they unwind in different ways. Boulder is a town of yoga and meditation studios, with a Buddhist-inspired university giving its contemplative side real depth. For a proper soak, though, you face an hour's drive to Idaho Springs.

Durango is the place for bathing. Natural mineral pools sit a few minutes north of town, and the terraced pools at Pagosa Springs and the springs at Ouray make easy outings. After a long ride or a day on the slopes, that counts for a lot.