Brno or Dresden?

Neither city works for a beach vacation, so the real question is where to cool off on a hot afternoon. Brno has a swimming spot of its own, the reservoir on the Svratka, reached by tram and river boat, with grassy banks and small beaches, although algae can spoil the water there in long hot spells. The Nove Mlyny lakes below the Palava hills are the alternative, about an hour south.

Dresden's Elbe has sandy banks for deckchairs, but shipping and strong currents make it no place to swim. Locals cool off in outdoor pools, in the flooded gravel pits on the edge of the city and in the ponds around Moritzburg instead.

Both kitchens are hearty, meat-and-dumpling affairs with little fine dining, so the real difference is in the drinks and the sweet course. Brno is the place for the glass: Frankovka reds and light Moravian whites from vineyards just south, careful cocktails, and a specialty coffee scene unusual for a city its size.

Dresden's strength is the cake plate. It is the home of Christstollen, Eierschecke comes with a serious afternoon coffee ritual, and dry Elbe valley wines from Radebeul and Meissen fill the lists. Eat in the Neustadt rather than around the Frauenkirche, where tourist menus dominate.

Brno makes a focused visit of two or three days. Villa Tugendhat and the functionalist villas and office blocks around it draw anyone interested in modern architecture. The Capuchin Crypt, Spilberk and the Mendel Museum fill in the rest, but the galleries are regional in scope.

Dresden is in another league for art and grand architecture. The Zwinger's Old Masters, the jewelled treasures of the Green Vault and the Romantic painting at the Albertinum surround the rebuilt Frauenkirche, and seeing them properly takes three or four days. Much of what you see is reconstruction next to post-war blocks, which still does not lessen what the collections hold.

The two are evenly matched for going out, and both suit long evenings more than all-night parties. Brno's draw is its cocktail bars, small rooms behind unmarked doors or down cellar steps around Jakubske namesti, plus wine bars pouring Moravian wine.

Dresden puts everything into one district, the Äußere Neustadt, where students drink at beer kiosks and on the pavements and a few clubs occupy old industrial buildings. Summer is when the two part ways. Brno goes quiet once the students leave in July and August, while Dresden's Neustadt is at its liveliest on warm nights.

Dresden has the more dramatic landscape on its doorstep. Saxon Switzerland's sandstone towers, the view from the Bastei and the multi-day Malerweg are under an hour away by suburban train, and the rock towers are some of the oldest free-climbing ground anywhere. The Ore Mountains add summer hiking and some cross-country skiing.

Brno's country is gentler. The Moravian Karst, half an hour north, has the boat ride through the Punkva Caves beneath the Macocha Abyss, and the Palava hills and Podyji's river valley suit walkers and cyclists in wine country. There are no mountains and little snow.

Both cities make excellent bases, and the difference lies in what surrounds them. From Brno, a cluster of UNESCO sites is within an hour or two: the Lednice-Valtice estate, Kromeriz, Trebic and Telc. Austerlitz is close by, and both Vienna and Bratislava are about an hour and a half by train.

Dresden's trips follow the Elbe: porcelain and the cathedral at Meissen, the Königstein fortress and Moritzburg's lakeside lodge. Leipzig, Bautzen and Görlitz are an hour or so away, while Prague is a stretch at a little over two hours.

Brno is safe and simple with children but has few things made for them. The VIDA science centre, the hillside zoo and the Anthropos mammoths cover a couple of days, and the underground boat in the Punkva Caves is the outing that sticks.

Dresden keeps children busy for longer. The Großer Garten has a zoo and a miniature railway staffed largely by children, the Transport Museum is full of trams and trains, and the Hygiene Museum has a hands-on section on the senses. Paddle-steamer trips and the rocks of Saxon Switzerland make good outdoor days, even if the art museums will test younger patience.

Both are compact, walkable cities with dense trams, and neither needs a car. Brno's advantage is its single ticket, which covers the trams and regional trains across South Moravia and makes the wine towns and castles easy to reach. Expect some steep streets around Spilberk and the cathedral hill.

In Dresden, much of a stay runs on foot between the old town and the Neustadt over the Augustus Bridge. Suburban trains go along the river to Meissen and the sandstone country, and the paddle steamers make a slow, scenic way to reach Pillnitz.

Brno offers little beyond high-street chains on Ceska and Masarykova and a scattering of vintage and design shops. The best souvenirs are bottles bought straight from Moravian cellars and flowers from the Zelny trh market.

Dresden has more worth carrying home. Meissen porcelain is sold in old-town showrooms, wooden Ore Mountain toys and Christmas figures are a local craft, and the Neustadt has second-hand clothes and the Kunsthofpassage courtyards. In Advent the Striezelmarkt fills the Altmarkt, though neither city is a place for fashion or luxury.

Brno stretches a budget further. Weekday pub lunch menus, beer, local wine, museum entries and transport all cost little, and only the cocktail bars and specialty coffee charge noticeably more. Watch for big trade fairs at the exhibition grounds, which can fill rooms.

Dresden is moderately priced for Germany, and eating in the Neustadt is fair value. But each major museum charges its own entry, so a culture-heavy stay adds up, and old-town rooms rise in Christmas market season.

Brno's stage life centres on Leos Janacek. His operas lead the programme at the modernist Janacek Theatre, the Reduta still stands where the young Mozart played, and the Philharmonic gives a full season. Most drama is in Czech, so opera, ballet and concerts are the visitor's choices.

Dresden's musical heritage runs deeper and draws more visitors. The Semperoper, where Wagner and Strauss premiered works, is home to the centuries-old Staatskapelle. The Kreuzchor sings in the Kreuzkirche, Bach is performed at the Frauenkirche, and the Music Festival and the Dixieland festival mark the year.

Brno has no spa tradition or thermal springs of its own, and it offers less for a restful break. In town, relaxing means a public swimming complex with a sauna, a hotel spa, or a slow afternoon in Luzanky park or on the Spilberk slopes. For warm water you have to head south. A thermal water park sits by the Nove Mlyny lakes, about forty minutes away, and fits well with a day among the Palava vineyards.

Dresden comes closer to a proper rest. Its municipal baths keep up the German sauna habit of heat followed by cold plunges, and the thermal pool at Bad Schandau is the natural end to a walk in Saxon Switzerland. Back in the city, the wide Elbe meadows and coffee on a terrace above the river keep the pace unhurried.