Cairo or Tel Aviv?

Cairo has the Nile, and nobody swims in it. In the city, swimming means a hotel pool. The nearest sea is the Red Sea at Ain Sokhna, about 130km east, where the shore is lined with resort compounds, so it works better as a separate stay than as a day out.

In Tel Aviv the beach is part of daily life. A near-continuous strip of pale sand runs from the old port down to Jaffa, with breakwaters and lifeguard stations, and you can reach it on foot from the centre. Locals go for sunset swims and paddle-ball as well as on their days off.

Both cities eat well on the street, and even their falafel differs: Cairo's green taameya is made with fava beans, Tel Aviv's with chickpeas. In Cairo, koshari shops, ful carts and feteer bakeries are the real attraction, and the ahwa coffeehouse sets the rhythm of the day. Beyond that the cooking is limited, fine dining is thin and alcohol sits on the edge of things.

Tel Aviv goes much further. Hummus counters, sabich stands and Yemenite and Iraqi home cooking sit next to a confident chef-driven scene built on excellent produce. Carmel Market is good for grazing, and Galilee wines are easy to find.

Here Cairo is in another league. The Giza pyramids and the Sphinx are on its edge, Tutankhamun's gold and the royal mummies are in its museums, and Islamic Cairo has Al-Muizz Street, the Citadel and the Sultan Hassan Mosque. Coptic Cairo adds churches and a synagogue. It takes many days to see properly.

Tel Aviv's main sight is the UNESCO-listed Bauhaus architecture of the White City, which you see by walking along Rothschild Boulevard. Add Jaffa's stone lanes, Neve Tzedek and a short list of museums, and you have a pleasant couple of days rather than the reason for a trip.

Cairo stays up late, but over tea and shisha. Its nights are about packed ahwas, families strolling the corniche and crowds on the Qasr el-Nil bridge. Drinking is confined to Zamalek's bars, the big hotels and a few river boats, and it costs far more than anything else in the city.

Going out is one of Tel Aviv's main draws. Cocktail and wine bars along Rothschild and around Lilienblum and Allenby spill onto the pavements, Thursday runs until dawn, and the house and techno clubs in the south are serious. The city also has one of the most open gay scenes in the region.

Neither city is a nature destination, but Tel Aviv makes outdoor time easier. The seafront promenade and cycle path, surfing and paddleboarding off the beaches and the lawns of Yarkon Park are all on the doorstep. The Carmel ridge and the canyons of Ein Gedi are a drive away.

Cairo's green space comes down to Al-Azhar Park and a felucca at sunset. Its real landscape is desert: the canyons of Wadi Degla, the lakes and dunes of the Fayoum and the whale fossils of Wadi Al-Hitan, all best visited between October and April.

Tel Aviv has the richer and easier range. Jerusalem's Old City is half an hour away by fast train, and Haifa's Baha'i Gardens are reached by rail too. Caesarea, Acre and a long day to Masada and the Dead Sea fill out the list. Remember that public transport stops for Shabbat.

Cairo's best outings go deeper into ancient Egypt: the Step Pyramid at Saqqara, the near-empty pyramids of Dahshur and the ruins of Memphis, all within an hour. Alexandria and the Wadi Natrun monasteries are further afield. Most of these trips need a hired driver.

Cairo gives children unforgettable moments: the pyramids, a camel ride and the mummies. Egyptians are warm towards families. Between those highlights, though, the traffic, missing pavements, touts and heat make it hard going, and a driver plus a hotel pool become essential.

Tel Aviv is far simpler with children. The lifeguarded beaches, Luna Park in Yarkon Park and the Ramat Gan Safari keep the days full. The flat centre suits a pushchair, and restaurants happily seat children late into the evening.

Getting around Cairo is hard work. The metro is cheap but goes neither to the pyramids nor really into Islamic Cairo, so most journeys mean ride-hailing through some of the worst traffic anywhere. Walking only works in short stretches, such as Al-Muizz Street or leafy Zamalek.

Tel Aviv's centre is compact and flat. You can walk from the port through the White City to Jaffa, with bike-share, a light-rail line and fast trains to fill the gaps. The one big catch is Shabbat, when buses and trains stop.

The two are about level, but the shopping is very different. In Cairo it means the old bazaar: the lanes of Khan el-Khalili, the appliqué stitchers on the Street of the Tentmakers and the coppersmiths' alley, with haggling expected and plenty of patience needed.

In Tel Aviv you are buying from local designers. Boutiques line Dizengoff and Sheinkin, the Nahalat Binyamin crafts market opens on fair days, and the Jaffa flea market mixes antiques with junk. Expect to pay well for most of it.

This is where the two differ most. Cairo is one of the cheapest major cities you can visit. Meals, transport and good mid-range hotels cost very little, and the main expenses are the foreigners' entry prices at the big sites, guided tours and alcohol.

Tel Aviv is among the most expensive cities in the Mediterranean region, with costly hotels and Western European prices for meals out and cocktails. Falafel stands, the free beaches and walking the White City help, but a tight budget needs careful planning.

Tel Aviv has the deeper stage. The Israel Philharmonic and the Israeli Opera have long seasons, Batsheva is one of the world's best-known dance companies, and the Suzanne Dellal Centre is given over to dance. There is also rock, jazz and Mizrahi pop in the clubs of the south, and summer concerts in Yarkon Park.

Cairo's formal music and ballet are at the Opera House on Gezira Island. Its most memorable performance is the tanoura, the whirling Sufi dance staged in the medieval Wikala of al-Ghouri. Theatre in both cities is in the local language.

Neither city is restful, though Tel Aviv gives you more chances to slow down. Shabbat empties its streets, the seafront promenade is good for slow mornings, yoga classes are common, and the Dead Sea's mud spas are about an hour and a half away.

Cairo's noise and dust rarely let up, and its old hammams have mostly fallen out of use. Rest there means a Nile hotel spa or an evening on a felucca. Many visitors add a few days by the Red Sea afterwards.