Breckenridge or Taos?

Neither town has anything like a beach. Both sit high up in the interior, far from any sea. Where they differ is in how you get wet: Breckenridge has paddling on cold Lake Dillon and the indoor pools at its recreation centre, while Taos has rafting on the Rio Grande and hot springs for a warm soak.

Neither is a place to travel for food, but they eat very differently. Breckenridge offers resort dining built for hungry skiers along Main Street, from steakhouses and sushi to Colorado elk and bison, and its strongest suit is the locally brewed beer and distilled whiskey.

Taos has a regional kitchen with real roots: northern New Mexican enchiladas, posole and carne adovada under red or green chile at family-run places around the plaza, plus bread from the Pueblo's hornos. Taos has more character and Breckenridge more range, and in both a week covers most of what there is.

Here Taos is in another league. Taos Pueblo, a UNESCO-listed adobe village still home to a Tiwa-speaking community, is a sight of real weight. The buttressed church at Ranchos de Taos, the Harwood and Millicent Rogers museums and the old artists' homes fill two or three more days.

Breckenridge has its gold-rush story: a large historic district of painted Victorian storefronts and miners' cabins, and a mine tour where you can pan for gold. It makes a pleasant afternoon, but there are no museums of note to build a stay around.

Breckenridge has the livelier evenings. Après-ski spills from the lift bases onto Main Street, and on winter Saturdays the brewpubs, the saloons in old Victorian buildings and a couple of dance bars stay busy past midnight, though it is still a small-town scene with no clubs.

Taos winds down soon after dinner, with a margarita in an adobe hotel bar, a brewery taproom or a band in a saloon. In winter the après crowd up at the ski valley is its only real stir.

Both are superb bases for the outdoors, but the landscapes differ. Breckenridge has ski terrain on five peaks directly above town, with Keystone, Copper Mountain, Arapahoe Basin and Vail all close. In summer, trails and a paved bike path start at the edge of town, and Quandary Peak is a short drive away.

Taos combines mountain and desert. On one side are the steep runs of Taos Ski Valley and the climb up Wheeler Peak; on the other are the Rio Grande gorge, spring rafting through the Taos Box and the open sagebrush plateau under huge skies. Breckenridge has more skiing within easy reach and Taos more variety. Both sit high enough that the first day or two should be gentle.

Taos has the better outings. The High Road to Santa Fe passes old adobe villages and the sanctuary at Chimayó before reaching Canyon Road and the O'Keeffe Museum, and Abiquiu and Ghost Ranch lead into O'Keeffe country. All of it needs a car.

From Breckenridge the best day is Leadville, with its silver-boom streets and mining museum, and Georgetown's narrow-gauge railway and Vail Village are also close. Beyond those, most places within reach are other ski resorts, and Denver is two hours away on a road that winter weather and traffic can stretch.

Breckenridge is the easier choice with children, as long as the trip centres on the mountain. Ski schools take children from a young age and the beginner slopes are wide. In summer the mountain adds an alpine coaster, mazes and climbing walls, and the town has pools and an ice rink.

Taos has gentle float trips, horse riding and a good ski school, and the town is relaxed about children, but almost nothing is made for them and most days involve a drive. Altitude can tire young children in both places, more so in Breckenridge at almost 3,000m.

You can manage Breckenridge without a car. The centre is walkable, a free gondola runs to the ski base, and free buses cover the town and continue to Frisco, Keystone and Copper Mountain. Getting there is the hard part: a shuttle or drive of about two hours from Denver along I-70.

In Taos only the area around the plaza is walkable. The Pueblo, the gorge, the ski valley and every day trip need your own transport, and with a drive of about two and a half hours from Albuquerque, a hire car is effectively part of the trip.

Taos is the better place to buy something worth keeping. Its galleries, turquoise and silver jewellery, micaceous pottery, Rio Grande weaving and carved santos make it a real destination for craft lovers, and at the Pueblo you can buy directly from the makers.

Breckenridge's Main Street is strongest on ski gear and technical clothing, with Western landscape galleries and souvenirs alongside, and outlet malls in Silverthorne for anything more. Neither town has fashion streets or department stores.

Neither is cheap, but Taos is the gentler on the budget. Simple motels and New Mexican diners are fairly priced, though the hire car adds to the cost of every stay and the historic inns charge resort rates.

Breckenridge in ski season costs as much as skiing anywhere: slope-side lodging, lift tickets, lessons and gear hire all add up, and the Christmas and spring-break weeks cost the most. Summer is far kinder, and free local transport helps.

Breckenridge has the fuller programme. Through July and August the festival orchestra and a national orchestra academy fill the Riverwalk Center by the Blue River, and a local theatre company stages plays for much of the year.

Taos has a summer chamber music festival too, but its most memorable performances are the traditional dances at Taos Pueblo on feast days such as San Gerónimo, watched quietly and without cameras. Outside those, both fall back on bands in bars.

Taos is the place to slow down. It has real bathing at the mineral pools of Ojo Caliente, about fifty minutes away under the cliffs, and at the primitive springs at the bottom of the Rio Grande gorge. In town there are yoga studios, day spas and retreat centres.

In Breckenridge, relaxing means a resort spa or an outdoor hot tub in the snow after skiing, and the nearest natural springs are an hour away at Idaho Springs. Winter days there are active and the thin air is tiring, so its calmest moments are summer evenings by the river.