British Virgin Islands or Sint Maarten?

Both are outstanding for swimming, in the same warm, clear water. The difference is in how the beaches are laid out. In the British Virgin Islands they are spread across many islands, and many are best reached by boat: the granite boulder pools of The Baths on Virgin Gorda, White Bay on Jost Van Dyke where yachts anchor off, and the empty reef-lined sand of Anegada.

Sint Maarten puts all its beaches on one island, within a short drive, from Mullet Bay and Dawn Beach to Orient Bay and Pinel Island over the French border. Its beaches are busier and more social, with the jet landings at Maho, but cruise days crowd Great Bay. The Virgin Islands reward those who move by sea with more solitude.

Sint Maarten is the better island for eating, mainly because of its French half. Grand Case puts French and Creole restaurants and smoky lolo barbecue stalls along one seafront, and Marigot's bakeries take care of breakfast.

The British Virgin Islands have a few memorable moments, such as spiny lobster grilled on drums on Anegada and a painkiller on Jost Van Dyke. Otherwise the cooking is simple and shore-side, with little choice outside Road Town.

Neither island is a sightseeing destination, and each has a morning's worth of history at most. The Virgin Islands offer working-island remains, such as the stone-shed rum distillery at Cane Garden Bay and the Cornish engine house on Virgin Gorda's headland. Sint Maarten's are colonial landmarks, such as Philipsburg's 1793 Courthouse and the forts above Great Bay and Marigot.

Sint Maarten goes out properly, by Caribbean standards. Simpson Bay and Maho have sunset beach bars, late casinos, cocktail lounges and a few clubs open into the small hours, and Grand Case adds slower evenings on the French side.

Evenings in the British Virgin Islands follow the yachts: rum punch and dinghy rides between bars at Great Harbour, White Bay and the Bight. The big events are the full-moon parties at Trellis Bay and New Year on Jost Van Dyke. There are no clubs, and sailors call it a night early.

The British Virgin Islands have the stronger outdoors, and most of it is on the water. The islands lie so close to one another around the Sir Francis Drake Channel that a week can pass sailing from one calm anchorage to the next, each crossing short and protected by the islands around it. Under the water are the wreck of the RMS Rhone, the Caves at Norman Island and the reef around Anegada. On land, the trails on Sage Mountain and Gorda Peak and the scramble through the boulders of The Baths are soon done.

Sint Maarten has much the same on a smaller scale: dives in the Man of War Shoal marine park, snorkelling at Creole Rock and Tintamarre, and kitesurfing in Orient Bay to match Trellis Bay on Tortola. Its sailing is mostly catamaran day trips from one island rather than a chain of islands to cruise through. Its walks on Sentry Hill and Pic Paradis come with zip lines rather than wild country. On both islands, summer heat and the autumn hurricane season limit what you can plan outdoors.

Sint Maarten makes the better base for days out. Its own French half is an outing in itself, and ferries reach St Barths and Gustavia, Anguilla's quiet beaches and steep, volcanic Saba within an hour or two.

From the British Virgin Islands, most outings end at a beach or an anchorage, since Spanish Town and Great Harbour are tiny. The one real town nearby is Charlotte Amalie on St Thomas, which is across the border in the US Virgin Islands, so you need your passport.

Both islands suit children who love the water, and both have little to offer on a rainy day. Sint Maarten makes things easier with resort kids' clubs, self-catering apartments around Simpson Bay, and zip lines and treetop courses for a change from the beach. The British Virgin Islands have nothing built for children, but a charter yacht and reef snorkelling straight from the shore can make a trip older children will remember. Boat transfers and winding roads take more managing with small ones.

Both are awkward, in different ways. In the British Virgin Islands the challenge is crossing water: ferries to Virgin Gorda and Jost Van Dyke, few sailings to Anegada, and steep left-hand driving on Tortola. That is why many people simply live aboard a charter boat.

Sint Maarten is one compact island where a hire car gets you everywhere, including the French side. The catch is traffic at Simpson Bay, the causeway and Philipsburg, and minibuses that run without timetables.

Sint Maarten has the shopping, because it is a duty-free port. Front Street in Philipsburg is lined with jewellers, watch sellers and liquor shops, and Marigot adds French perfume, fashion boutiques and a harbour market. The British Virgin Islands have a few craft and rum shops on Road Town's Main Street and marina stores selling sailing gear. Serious shoppers there take the ferry to St Thomas.

Neither island is cheap, but Sint Maarten gives you more ways to save. You can rent an apartment around Simpson Bay, shop at the supermarkets, ride the minibuses, eat at the Grand Case lolos and travel in the cheaper summer and autumn months. In the British Virgin Islands nearly everything is imported, taxis cost a lot and the classic charter is a big outlay even when shared. Simple guesthouses on Tortola only take the edge off.

There is no stage life to plan around on either island, so the music to look for is folk and festival. In the British Virgin Islands that means fungi scratch bands on washboards and gourds, and the Emancipation Festival in late summer. Sint Maarten's high point is its spring Carnival, a large one with calypso and soca contests, steel pan and late-night jump-ups.

The British Virgin Islands are much better at stillness. Secluded resorts on Virgin Gorda's North Sound and the private islands combine open-air spas and yoga above the sea with little to do but swim and read.

Sint Maarten has capable hotel spas and some yoga at beach resorts. Real calm, though, means staying near Dawn Beach or on the French side, away from the Dutch side's traffic and cruise-day crowds.