Breckenridge or Denver?

Neither city is anywhere near the sea, and swimming is a minor part of a visit to either. The difference is in kind. Breckenridge's Lake Dillon is for sailing and paddling rather than swimming, so a swim there means the recreation centre's indoor pools or a hot tub. Denver, with much hotter summers, has sandy reservoir beaches at Cherry Creek and Chatfield where locals actually go into the water, as well as outdoor public pools.

Both share the Colorado basics of green chile, breakfast burritos, lamb, bison and plenty of craft beer, but Denver eats far better. It has chef-run restaurants in Highland and LoHi, taprooms in the old warehouses of RiNo, and a long run of Vietnamese and Mexican cooking along Federal Boulevard. That gives a visitor some genuine exploring to do.

Breckenridge serves resort dining aimed at hungry skiers: steakhouses, pizza and sushi along Main Street, with a few more ambitious kitchens. Tables are hard to get on winter weekends, and some places close between seasons.

Both grew out of the same gold rush, but only Denver became a city with institutions to match. Around Civic Center Park you can visit the Denver Art Museum, with its Native American collection, the Clyfford Still Museum and History Colorado. Union Station and LoDo's brick warehouses are worth a wander too. Together they make two or three full days.

Breckenridge's culture is its large Victorian historic district, a gold-mine tour with panning and the old river dredges. That is a pleasant afternoon, and the town has no museums of real weight.

Denver gives you more choice and more nights worth going out. You can find sports crowds in LoDo on game nights, cocktail bars in RiNo, late dives on East Colfax and easy neighbourhood bars in Highland, with bars open until 2am.

Breckenridge's evenings centre on après-ski. Boots-on crowds fill the bars at the lift bases, and on a winter Saturday the Victorian saloons and a couple of dance bars carry on past midnight. In spring and autumn the town is silent after dinner. In both places the altitude makes drinks stronger than visitors expect.

Both are gateways to the Rockies, but Breckenridge puts you inside them. Its ski terrain covers five peaks above the town. Summer trails climb through aspen and wildflower meadows from the edge of the streets, Quandary Peak is a short drive away, and a paved path runs to Frisco and Lake Dillon. The price is nearly 3,000m of altitude, which takes a day or two to adjust to.

From Denver the mountains are a skyline and a drive. Red Rocks and the foothills above Golden are about half an hour away, the Flatirons about 40 minutes and Rocky Mountain National Park around two hours. The city's own riverside bike trails make up some of the difference.

Denver's central position gives it the wider spread. Boulder under the Flatirons, Golden, Manitou Springs with Colorado Springs, Fort Collins and Estes Park are all within easy reach. So are the Victorian mining towns of Georgetown and Idaho Springs, which both cities share.

From Breckenridge, the outstanding outing is Leadville over Hoosier Pass, a weathered silver-boom town with a mining museum, and Vail is under an hour away. Beyond those the options are mostly other ski resorts, and winter roads can make any drive slow.

Denver is slightly the easier family base, because it has attractions built for children all year. The zoo and the Museum of Nature & Science, with its dinosaurs, share City Park, and the Children's Museum, an aquarium and an amusement park sit together near the South Platte.

Breckenridge is excellent if the family has come to ski, with gentle beginner slopes and lessons for young children. In summer it adds an alpine coaster and climbing walls on the mountain. Its altitude is harder on small children, though, and winter gear makes every outing a project.

Once you have arrived, Breckenridge is much simpler. The historic centre is small enough to walk, a free gondola climbs to the slopes, and free town and county buses reach the trailheads, Frisco, Keystone and Copper Mountain, so a car can stay parked all week. Arriving is the hard part: it is a two-hour road trip from the airport, with no rail option.

Denver has a train from the airport to Union Station, a walkable downtown with a free shuttle along the 16th Street Mall, and light rail to the suburbs. The mountains and most outings, though, really need a hired car.

Denver is the place to shop. Cherry Creek has a large upscale mall surrounded by boutiques, South Broadway is good for vintage clothes and records, and flagship outdoor stores sit alongside shops selling cowboy boots and hats.

Breckenridge has a browse along Main Street: ski shops, galleries of Western landscape art and souvenirs, all at resort prices. Shoppers there drive to the outlets in Silverthorne.

Denver costs ordinary big-city money. Downtown hotels can be dear and a hired car adds up, but taquerias, breweries and free trails keep the daily bill in check.

Breckenridge in ski season is a different scale of expense, with slopeside lodging, lift tickets, lessons and gear hire stacking up. The Christmas and spring-break weeks are the dearest of all. Summer and the shoulder months are much kinder, and the free gondola and buses help.

Denver has a real performing arts calendar. Red Rocks Amphitheatre, set between two sandstone monoliths, is a reason to plan a summer trip around a show. The Denver Center hosts theatre, touring musicals, the Colorado Symphony, opera and ballet, and Five Points keeps its jazz heritage alive.

Breckenridge's high point is the summer festival orchestra and its young professionals' academy at the Riverwalk Center in July and August. In winter the offer shrinks to bands in après bars.

Neither has a bathing tradition, and both rely on the historic hot springs at Idaho Springs, which are a little closer to Denver. Denver also has day spas, yoga studios and sunny parks where you can slow down.

In Breckenridge, relaxing means an outdoor hot tub in the falling snow or a resort spa after skiing. The early starts and thin air leave many visitors tired rather than rested, so the quiet summer evenings by the river are its calmest time.