Branson or Orange Beach?

In Branson, swimming is a summer bonus on Table Rock Lake. The water is clear and warm in the coves and at the public swim areas, which often use sand brought in by truck. Lake Taneycomo is too cold to swim in, and the whole beach scene disappears once the warm months end.

Orange Beach is built around the real thing: a long white quartz shore on the Gulf, with green, clear water and a gentle slope that suits children. Rip currents and the hurricane season need respect, but for a beach vacation there is no contest.

Neither town is a food destination, but you eat better in Orange Beach. In Branson it is mostly buffets, chains along Highway 76 and set menus at the dinner theatres. The Ozark touches are the best of it: skillet cooking, cinnamon bread and trout from the lake.

Orange Beach has a clear local speciality in Gulf seafood: Royal Red shrimp, oysters raw or chargrilled, snapper and West Indies salad, eaten on a deck over the back bays. The choice beyond that is narrow, so plan around a few good seafood dinners rather than expecting a week of fine eating.

Branson has a little more to see, though neither is a sightseeing town. The strip has wax museums and novelty galleries. The real interest is the frontier craft demonstrations at the 1880s-themed park and the eclectic Ralph Foster Museum at College of the Ozarks.

Orange Beach has only a small local museum of Native American and fishing history. Any serious heritage on this coast means driving out of town.

Orange Beach is the place for a night out. The sprawling roadhouse on the Alabama-Florida line has drawn late crowds for generations, and the bars around the marina and Perdido Pass fill up on warm evenings. It is loudest in spring break and summer, though there are no clubs.

In Branson the show is the evening. Once the theatres empty the town turns in, leaving a few brewpubs by the lake and some hotel lounges.

The two are evenly matched outdoors but look nothing alike. Branson has hills: forested Ozark ridges, limestone bluffs, caves and trails through Hercules Glades. There is bass fishing and paddling on Table Rock Lake, trout on cold Taneycomo, and the bluffs of the Buffalo National River are within reach.

Orange Beach is flat and watery, all salt marsh, dunes and coastal forest. A paved trail past alligator ponds suits bikes, the back bays suit kayaks, and there are dolphin cruises and serious charter fishing offshore. Hikers will lean towards Branson, paddlers and birdwatchers towards the coast.

Orange Beach has the slightly better day trips. The best are Pensacola, with its Spanish colonial quarter, naval aviation museum and brick forts, and Mobile, with its antebellum streets and battleship park. Fort Morgan and the ferry to Dauphin Island are closer to hand.

From Branson the highlights are Eureka Springs, a Victorian town built on a steep hillside, and the Crystal Bridges art museum in Bentonville, a little further away. Both lists need a car, and nothing on either is worth the journey by itself.

Both towns are built for children, in different ways. Branson keeps families busy with attractions: the Ozarks theme park and its rides, water parks, an aquarium, a showboat, caves, and dinner shows with horses and stunts.

Orange Beach runs on sand and sea. Rented condos come with kitchens and pools, the shallow water suits toddlers, and the dolphin boats and the Ferris wheel at the marina make a change from the beach. Older children who want rides may prefer Branson, while young ones happy with a bucket and spade will love the Gulf.

You need a car in both. Branson spreads its theatres and hotels along hilly Highway 76, where evening traffic crawls and locals use the colour-coded back roads. Only the lakefront district and the old downtown are walkable.

Orange Beach stretches along one flat coastal highway that clogs up in summer, but its paved trails and side roads make a bicycle handy for short trips.

Branson has more worth buying. Beyond the stores at Branson Landing and the outlet malls, its Ozark crafts stand out: hand-blown glass, quilts, pottery and ironwork, often made while you watch.

Orange Beach sells beachwear, souvenirs and fishing gear along the main road and at the marina, and its only real draw is the outlet mall in Foley, inland. Neither town has luxury or independent fashion.

Branson is easier on the budget. Plenty of motels, condos and lake cabins keep rooms reasonable, and buffet meals are modest. The bill grows with show tickets, park entry and boat hire, though show and hotel packages can soften it.

Orange Beach costs more in summer, when beachfront condos and seafood dinners carry resort prices. The free beach helps, as does sharing a large rental and doing some cooking, and from late autumn to early spring rates drop steeply.

Live shows are Branson's speciality. Dozens of theatres put on country, bluegrass, gospel, tribute and variety shows several times a day, along with large biblical productions and a Christmas season as busy as summer. The range is narrow, with no opera or serious drama, but the performers are skilled.

Orange Beach has touring country, rock and pop acts at the marina amphitheatre in the warmer months, cover bands in the beach bars, and its November songwriters' festival around the state line. It gives you a good night's entertainment, but it is not a reason to come.

Neither town has a spa culture, and in both how restful your stay is depends on where and when you go. In Branson that means a lodge resort with a full spa, or a cabin on a quiet cove of Table Rock Lake, well away from the neon of the strip.

In Orange Beach it is a matter of timing. Autumn to spring brings empty mornings and sunsets over the back bays, while summer weekends and spring break are loud.