Bruges or Liverpool?

Neither city is a beach destination, but Bruges does slightly better. Blankenberge is a short train ride away, and the coast tram links a continuous line of wide, flat sands and promenades where a quick dip in August is realistic.

Liverpool's shore is for walking. Crosby has Gormley's iron figures on the tidal flats and Formby has its pine-backed dunes, but the tide goes out a long way, and soft mud and currents make parts of the coast unsafe for swimming.

Bruges has the stronger reason to eat and drink, and the reason is beer: long lists of Trappist and abbey ales in wood-panelled cafés, alongside mussels with frites, beef stewed in beer and chocolate in every street. The catch is the set menus on the main squares, so it pays to eat a few streets away.

Liverpool has less of its own to offer beyond scouse with pickled red cabbage, but it has more variety. Bold Street's small international kitchens, the street-food halls of the Baltic Triangle and Chinatown give a broader mix, and its gin palaces and backstreet pubs are a pleasure in their own right.

Bruges is the richer sightseeing city, because the town itself is the attraction: a medieval centre of canals, guildhalls and stepped gables, with Van Eyck at the Groeninge, Memling in St John's Hospital and a Michelangelo Madonna in the Church of Our Lady. The art is world class, though the summer crowds by late morning take some of the pleasure away.

Liverpool's culture tells the story of a great port. The Three Graces and the Albert Dock warehouses frame the Maritime and International Slavery museums, the Walker holds Pre-Raphaelite paintings, and its two 20th-century cathedrals face each other along Hope Street. It is a city of museums and history rather than one complete historic townscape.

Liverpool is far stronger after dark. Concert Square and the streets around Seel Street fill at weekends, the Baltic Triangle runs late electronic nights in converted warehouses, Lark Lane has relaxed local bars, and many nights end well after 2am.

Bruges offers a different kind of evening: a long session over strong ales in a brown café or vaulted cellar bar around the Eiermarkt, then a walk along the lit canals. There are only one or two small clubs, so anyone hoping to dance into the night will find little.

Liverpool has more to offer outdoors. Sefton Park and the Mersey promenade are within the city, the pinewoods at Formby shelter red squirrels, and the Wirral Way leads to wading birds on the Dee estuary, with North Wales and the Lake District within reach for a longer outing.

Bruges's countryside is flat polder, but it is ideal for gentle cycling, especially the tree-lined towpath to Damme, and the Zwin salt marsh near Knokke is good for birdwatching. It makes a pleasant afternoon rather than anything wild.

Bruges is clearly the better base. Ghent is under half an hour by train, Brussels about an hour and Antwerp a little further, so three great Flemish cities are easy day trips, with Ypres and the First World War memorials, Mechelen, Leuven and Lille to add.

Liverpool has a good handful of outings: Chester's Roman walls and Rows, Manchester's museums, the model village of Port Sunlight and Southport's pier. Beyond those, Conwy and the Lake District mean a long day by car, and the choice thins quickly.

Both work about equally well with children, but in different ways. Bruges offers small, outdoor pleasures, with canal boats, horse-drawn carriages, feeding the swans at the Minnewater, Boudewijn Seapark and sandcastles on the coast, although the cobbles are hard work with a pushchair.

Liverpool is better on a rainy day, with free museums where the World Museum's dinosaurs, aquarium and planetarium keep children busy. Chester Zoo and Knowsley Safari Park make big days out, though the loud weekend centre is something to plan around.

Bruges is the easier city to get around. You can walk across the whole canal ring in about half an hour on flat, largely car-free streets, and hiring a bike is simple, although the cobbles are tough on suitcases.

Liverpool's main sights lie within about 2km of each other, but Hope Street and the university quarter are up a hill. Merseyrail serves the coast and the Wirral well, but with no metro across the city, places like Sefton Park and Anfield mean using the less intuitive buses.

Liverpool is a little stronger for a proper shopping trip. Liverpool ONE gathers the major British chains and department stores in open-air streets near the docks, and Bold Street adds vintage clothes, records and independent boutiques.

Shopping in Bruges is mostly edible: pralines from chocolate makers, Belgian beers and glasses from specialist shops, and bobbin lace, though much of that is imported. The Saturday market on 't Zand and the flea market by the Dijver are pleasant for browsing.

Liverpool makes the money go further. Its major museums are free, and hotels cost less than in Britain's most visited cities, except on big match weekends, Grand National week and around large concerts. Pub meals are fair value.

Bruges is costly for its size. Rooms inside the canal ring are priced for a constant flow of visitors and the restaurants on the main squares charge a lot. Staying midweek or near the station, and eating on the side streets, helps.

Liverpool has much more to offer here. Bands play most nights around Mathew Street and Seel Street, the Cavern keeps up its cellar gigs, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic plays a full season on Hope Street, and the Everyman and Playhouse produce their own theatre.

Bruges is narrower but distinctive. Its Concertgebouw specialises in early music, chamber music and contemporary dance, and its summer early-music festival draws listeners from across Europe, with the Belfry carillon ringing out above the rooftops. For more choice, Ghent and Brussels are close by train.

Bruges is the better place to slow down, though neither city has a spa tradition beyond hotel spas. In the early morning and the evening the Begijnhof, the Minnewater park and the canals are deeply peaceful, and the Sint-Anna and Langestraat streets stay calm even at midday.

In Liverpool, rest means a long walk in Sefton Park, a slow ferry crossing or an afternoon in the galleries, set against loud weekend nights. For a truly restful stay, the Wirral or the coast is a better base than the centre.