Breckenridge or Fort Collins?

Neither town is a swimming destination. Fort Collins has the edge, because Horsetooth Reservoir has a designated swim beach and warms up enough in July and August for a summer afternoon on the water.

At Breckenridge's altitude, Lake Dillon and the alpine lakes stay far too cold to swim in. Swimming there means the recreation centre's indoor pools or a hot tub.

Both towns serve casual food with no real culinary tradition, but Fort Collins is the better place to eat and especially to drink. Its long-established breweries and many smaller taprooms make beer a reason to come, and the summer farmers' markets bring in Colorado produce such as Palisade peaches.

Breckenridge brews and distils too, and a few chef-led kitchens cook elk, trout and bison. Most of its menus are built to feed hungry skiers, though, tables are hard to get in peak weeks, and some kitchens close between seasons.

Neither is a sightseeing destination, and each fills an afternoon or a day. They differ in flavour. Breckenridge tells a gold-rush story through its painted Victorian storefronts, miners' cabins, a mine tour with gold panning and the old dredge remains on the Blue River.

Fort Collins has a red-brick Old Town around a pedestrian square and a few more indoor options, such as the Museum of Discovery, the Avery House and the university's art museum.

Fort Collins has the livelier evenings over a normal week. Thanks to its students, pubs, rooftop patios, cocktail bars and taprooms are busy around the main square, and there are a handful of dance clubs.

Breckenridge's evenings are après-ski in ski boots, with saloons and brewpubs that can run past midnight on a winter Saturday. Most of the crowd heads to bed early, and in spring and autumn the town is silent after dinner.

Both are excellent bases for the outdoors, but Breckenridge is surrounded by high mountains. Its ski terrain climbs above the treeline, four more resorts are close, and summer brings 4,000m Quandary Peak and trails through aspen and wildflower meadows straight from town. The cost is altitude, which needs a day or two of adjustment.

Fort Collins sits at the meeting of the plains and the foothills. It offers Horsetooth Mountain and Lory State Park, rafting and fly fishing in the Poudre canyon, and Rocky Mountain National Park about an hour and a half away. There is no downhill skiing nearby.

Fort Collins has slightly more variety within reach: Boulder beneath the Flatirons, Denver's big museums, Estes Park, Golden, and Cheyenne's frontier museum across the Wyoming line, though nearly all need a car.

Breckenridge's best outings are mining towns, with silver-boom Leadville over Hoosier Pass and Georgetown's narrow-gauge railway. Otherwise it is mostly neighbouring ski resorts, and winter weather can lengthen any drive.

Breckenridge is the stronger family choice, provided the family skis. Ski schools take young children, the beginner slopes are gentle, and in summer the mountain turns into an activity park with an alpine coaster and climbing walls. Altitude sickness and the hassle of winter gear are the real drawbacks.

Fort Collins is easier going but has less of a headline. Its draws are flat river cycle paths, the farm at Lee Martinez Park, the children's garden at Gardens on Spring Creek and summer days at the reservoir.

Breckenridge is easier once you arrive. The historic centre is compact, a free gondola runs to the ski base, and free town and county buses reach Frisco, Keystone and Copper Mountain, so many visitors never drive. The catch is the two-hour road from Denver's airport, which snow and traffic can stretch badly.

Fort Collins has a flat, bike-friendly centre with a rapid-bus line and long off-street trails. Beyond that it spreads into suburbs, and the foothills and canyon really need a hire car.

Shopping is a browse in both, not a reason to visit. Breckenridge leans towards ski and outdoor gear, galleries of Western landscapes and souvenirs at resort prices, with outlet malls in Silverthorne nearby. Fort Collins has more independent character in Old Town, with bookshops, cycling shops, vintage clothing and Colorado-made gifts.

This is the widest gap between the two, and it favours Fort Collins. A winter week in Breckenridge piles slope-side lodging on top of lift access, lessons and equipment hire, and the festive and spring-break weeks push the bill higher still. Booking lift access ahead takes some of the sting out, summer and the shoulder months cost far less, and the free gondola and buses mean there is no car to pay for.

Fort Collins spends your money differently. There are no lift passes, but a hire car is close to essential and becomes the largest single extra, and sit-down dinners grow once tax and tip are added. Room rates jump on university graduation and football weekends, while wandering Old Town costs nothing at all.

The two are broadly level, but their seasons differ. Breckenridge comes alive in July and August, when a festival orchestra and a national orchestra academy play at the open-sided Riverwalk Center by the river. In winter there is little beyond bar bands.

Fort Collins spreads its programme across the year, with touring Broadway, dance and the symphony at the Lincoln Center, university concerts and opera, and indie and bluegrass bands on Old Town stages.

Neither has a bathing tradition, and the nearest natural springs are in Idaho Springs for both, though Breckenridge is a little closer. Breckenridge offers resort spas and nightly outdoor hot tubs in the snow, but full ski days and thin air leave many visitors tired. Fort Collins has only ordinary day spas and yoga studios, but its unhurried pace and shaded river paths make it a gentler place to slow down.