Budva or Salerno?

Budva has the better beaches and many more of them. Slovenska Plaza runs along the town front, and a string of bays follows down the coast: Mogren, Becici, Jaz and the sand facing Sveti Stefan. The shore is fine pebble or coarse sand, and in high summer it is packed with sunbeds and music.

Salerno's grey-sand city beaches are fine for a dip, but the water near the port is cloudy. A proper beach day means taking the long sandy lidos towards Paestum or a ferry to the clear, pebbly coves of the Amalfi Coast.

Salerno is far stronger for eating. Buffalo mozzarella comes fresh from the plain towards Paestum, colatura comes from Cetara next door, and the old town is full of friggitorie, wood-fired pizza and lemon pastries, all priced for locals.

Budva's best food is regional, such as Njegusi ham, mountain cheese, grilled squid at family konobas and Vranac red wine. Around them, though, the promenade restaurants are uneven and the range is narrow for anyone who travels to eat.

Salerno has more to see. There is the Norman cathedral with Saint Matthew's crypt, the Giardino della Minerva linked to Europe's earliest medical school, and the Arechi Castle above the gulf, which together fill a day or two of stepped lanes and churches.

Budva's walled Stari Grad, with its small churches, Citadel and archaeological museum, takes an hour or two. Much of it was rebuilt after the 1979 earthquake.

Budva has the bigger night out. In summer, beach bars and terrace clubs line Slovenska Plaza and a big open-air club on the hill runs until dawn, which is why groups come from across the Balkans. It all shuts down from October.

Salerno is more about drinking outside wine bars and pubs around Largo Campo and the evening passeggiata. It is sociable and easy-going, but for clubbing you have to head out along the coast or to Naples.

Both sit where limestone mountains meet the sea, but Salerno's surroundings go further. The Amalfi Coast's cliffs and lemon terraces, the Path of the Gods and Valle delle Ferriere trails, and the gorges and headlands of the Cilento give real variety for walkers.

Budva has a dramatic backdrop and good options on the water, including sea kayaking, cliff boat trips and paragliding above Becici. Its bigger landscapes, Lovcen's beech forests and the reeds of Lake Skadar, are each about an hour's drive away.

Day trips are the main reason to choose Salerno. Paestum's temples, Pompeii, Naples, Herculaneum and Caserta are all easy by train, and ferries run to Amalfi and Positano, with Ravello just above.

Budva is a sound base for the Montenegrin coast. Kotor and Perast are close, and you can also reach Cetinje, Lake Skadar's wine villages and Ulcinj. Most of these need the busy coast road, and Dubrovnik means a long day with a border crossing.

Both are reasonable with children and neither has a zoo or aquarium, so the difference is in kind. Budva offers gently shelving beaches, calmer bays at Becici and a water park. Salerno has a long, flat, car-free promenade with playgrounds, shallow sandy beaches to the south and Pompeii for older children, though its old town is all steps and the summer heat at the ruins can be hard going.

Salerno is easier to get around. The centre is walkable end to end, and regional trains run straight to Naples, Pompeii and Paestum, while ferries handle the Amalfi Coast in summer, so most visitors never need a car.

Budva's compact centre is just as walkable, but there is no railway. One coast road carries the buses and jams badly in summer, and Lovcen or Cetinje are far easier to reach with a car or driver.

Salerno offers more, without being a shopping destination. Corso Vittorio Emanuele has Italian chains and clothing, and nearby Vietri sul Mare sells hand-painted majolica, plus there is limoncello and colatura to take home. Budva's shopping stops at souvenirs, beachwear, silver filigree, rakija and a modest mall by the marina.

Overall costs are much the same, and both get pricier in July and August. Budva's premium falls on the seafront and its sunbeds, and apartments a few streets back are good value. Salerno is a cheap base next to the expensive Amalfi villages, but ferries, lidos and entry to the big archaeological sites add up over a stay.

Budva's stage life comes down to one summer. Grad Teatar, a festival that has run for decades, turns the squares of the walled old town into open-air venues for plays, readings and concerts in the warm months. Outside that window you get cover bands on the seafront, and from autumn to spring there is no programme at all.

Salerno gives you a reason to dress up at any time of year. The Teatro Verdi, an ornate opera house built in the image of the San Carlo in Naples, runs a proper season of opera, ballet and orchestral music, so a spring or autumn visit can include a night at the theatre. In summer the music moves outside, and a concert on Ravello's terraces high above the sea is an easy outing from the city.

Neither has its own bathing tradition, but Salerno is slightly more restful. It has sunset walks along the palm-lined promenade, quiet morning lanes and the open-air sulphur pools of Contursi Terme an hour inland.

Budva's wellness means the spas of the big Becici and Sveti Stefan resorts. In high summer, music from the seafront carries late into the night, so a slow stay works best in May, June or late September.