Cannes or Lyon?

Here the two cities are hardly comparable. Cannes has a curve of fine sand on calm water along the Croisette, plus the wider, mostly free Plage du Midi west of the port. Rocky swimming spots on the Lérins islands and the red coves of the Esterel are close by.

Lyon is inland. A swim means the supervised lake at Miribel-Jonage or a day out to Lake Annecy, and the Rhône quays are for lying in the sun, not for swimming.

Lyon is the place to travel to for food. Its bouchons serve cooking that is entirely its own, from quenelles in crayfish sauce to praline tart. Generous set lunches make the fine-dining tradition left by the Mères lyonnaises and the city's chefs easy to try, and Beaujolais and the northern Rhône are on the doorstep.

Cannes eats well at the Forville market and in the bistros of Le Suquet, with grilled fish, socca and rosé on a terrace. But the range is narrow, and much of the seafront cooks for passing crowds.

Lyon has far more to see, and it needs a few full days. There are the Roman theatres of Lugdunum on Fourvière, the traboules and cathedral of Vieux Lyon, the Musée des Beaux-Arts in its former abbey and the silk-weavers' hill of Croix-Rousse.

Cannes is good to look at but has few sights. The castle museum on Le Suquet, the Belle Époque palace hotels and the red-carpet steps of the Palais des Festivals make a pleasant morning. For serious art you have to travel along the coast.

Lyon is the livelier and more relaxed place to go out, helped by its students. There are wine and cocktail bars on the Presqu'île, pubs in Vieux Lyon, barges on the Rhône that turn into clubs, and an electronic scene towards Gerland and the Confluence.

Nights in Cannes are dressier, with champagne and beach clubs on the Croisette. That only lasts from June to September and during the festivals, and the rest of the year the town goes to bed early.

Cannes has the more dramatic landscape close at hand. The red volcanic rock of the Esterel, the pine paths of Sainte-Marguerite and the wild limestone shore of Cap d'Antibes are all near. The sea adds sailing, kayaking and diving, though fire risk can close forest trails in high summer.

Lyon's outdoors is gentler and more urban: running and cycling on the car-free Rhône quays, boating in the Parc de la Tête d'Or and walking in the Monts d'Or. The Chartreuse and Vercors massifs are further out and need a car.

Both make good bases, but Cannes has the richer string of outings. Antibes, Nice, Villefranche, Monaco and Menton follow one another along a single coastal railway line. Grasse, the perched villages and the monastery on the Lérins islands are close as well.

Lyon's day trips lean towards wine and old towns. Roman Vienne is a short train ride south, and medieval Pérouges and the golden-stone villages of the Beaujolais are near. Annecy and Beaune make longer days out.

Lyon gives children a little more to do. The Parc de la Tête d'Or has a free zoo, pony rides and pedalos, the Musée des Confluences has dinosaur skeletons, and Guignol still plays in small puppet theatres. The stepped lanes of the hills are hard going with a pushchair, though.

Cannes is mostly about the beach, where gentle sand and calm water suit small children and the flat Croisette is good for scooters. Little in the town itself is made for children, and the midsummer heat shapes the day.

Lyon is the easier city to get around. The metro, trams, funiculars and bike-share all work together, the flat Presqu'île is pleasant to walk, and you never need a car in the city.

Central Cannes is small enough to cover on foot, and its central station makes the coastal towns simple to reach. The hill villages and the Esterel corniche are easier by car, though, and summer traffic and scarce parking make driving a chore.

The two are roughly level for shopping but differ in style. Cannes packs the great Paris fashion and jewellery houses along the seafront, with Rue d'Antibes behind them and olive oil, soaps and Provençal fabrics on Rue Meynadier.

Lyon's shopping is broader and more everyday, with chains on rue de la République and a large mall at Part-Dieu. It also has the better independent finds: silk from its weaving past, designer workshops on Croix-Rousse and antique dealers on rue Auguste Comte.

Lyon is the cheaper place to stay, though it is no budget city. Hotels are reasonable for most of the year apart from trade-fair weeks and the Fête des Lumières, and set lunches in bouchons make eating well affordable.

Cannes is priced for a wealthy crowd near the Croisette, and room rates jump in summer and during the festival and trade-fair weeks. Public beaches, picnics from the market, cheap coastal trains and a visit in spring or autumn all help keep costs down.

Lyon has a much fuller stage life. The glass-vaulted Opéra, the national orchestra at the Auditorium, the Célestins playhouse and the Maison de la Danse all perform through the season. In summer, the Nuits de Fourvière festival stages shows in the Roman theatres above the city.

Cannes is famous for a film festival that most visitors can only share through the free screenings on the beach. Beyond that there are shows at the Palais, summer concerts in the castle courtyard on Le Suquet and a dance festival, with jazz at nearby Juan-les-Pins.

Neither city has its own bathing tradition, so rest comes more from the pace than from the facilities. Cannes adds palace-hotel spas and seawater thalassotherapy, and its calm seafront in spring and autumn suits slow mornings, but August and festival weeks are noisy.

Lyon offers hammams, day spas, a large open-air pool on the Rhône quays and quiet Sunday mornings by the Saône. For real thermal baths, Aix-les-Bains makes an easy day out.