Cape May or Detroit?

Cape May is a real beach town. A long, continuous run of lifeguarded Atlantic sand follows the promenade, the beaches at the Point are quieter, and at Sunset Beach on the bay people hunt for Cape May diamonds. By August the sea is warm enough for long swims.

Detroit has fresh water rather than surf. There is a small beach on Belle Isle, and Lake St. Clair Metropark, a drive away, has calm, shallow water. It makes a pleasant summer afternoon but is not the point of the trip.

Cape May's strength is narrow but real. It is a working fishing port, so the meals to have are scallops, flounder and oysters, served on Victorian porches or at dockside shacks. Beyond seafood and breakfast, the choice thins out to fudge and taffy.

Detroit has more range and more character of its own, from Coney Island hot dogs and square Detroit-style pizza to Eastern Market on a Saturday. Its best eating is in Dearborn's Lebanese and Yemeni bakeries and grills, in Mexicantown and in Hamtramck's Polish bakeries, though many of those meals mean a drive.

In Cape May the town itself is the thing to see. Its streets of gingerbread-trimmed Victorian houses make up a National Historic Landmark district, and there is the Physick Estate and a lighthouse to climb. It is charming, and a day or two covers it.

Detroit has collections worth several days. The Detroit Institute of Arts with Rivera's Detroit Industry murals, the Charles H. Wright Museum, the Motown Museum, and the Henry Ford with Greenfield Village sit alongside downtown's Art Deco towers. You do cross some dull stretches of city between them.

Evenings in Cape May mean porches, hotel bars and a cover band near the pedestrian mall, and the town is quiet by midnight. Anyone wanting more drives up to the Wildwoods.

Detroit has a real night scene shaped by its place as the birthplace of techno, with warehouse parties and small serious clubs alongside cocktail bars in Corktown and Midtown. It is spread out, so plan on taxis between neighbourhoods.

Cape May sits at the tip of a peninsula on one of North America's great migration routes. In autumn, hawks and monarch butterflies pour through Higbee Beach and the state park. There are dolphin boats in summer, whale-watching in the cooler months and kayaking in the back-bay marshes.

Detroit's outdoors are about parks and water: Olmsted's Belle Isle, the RiverWalk, sailing on Lake St. Clair and a ring of wooded metroparks. Both are flat, but Cape May's wildlife is the bigger draw.

Neither city is a great base for outings, and their options are quite different. From Cape May the highlight is the ferry across Delaware Bay to colonial Lewes. The Wildwoods' boardwalk and Atlantic City's casinos are up the coast, and Philadelphia is possible as a long day out.

Detroit's trips are to inland towns rather than the seaside: Ann Arbor with its university, Bavarian-styled Frankenmuth, Toledo's art museum, Windsor just across the river in Canada, and Cedar Point's roller coasters at the far edge of a day out. From both, almost everything needs a car.

Cape May makes the easier family vacation. It has lifeguarded beaches, safe and slow streets, surrey rides on the promenade, crabbing, dolphin boats and a free county zoo twenty minutes away, with the Wildwoods' amusement piers nearby for rides. Note that some historic B&Bs do not accept small children.

Detroit has good individual sights: the big zoo in Royal Oak, the Michigan Science Center and the steam trains of Greenfield Village. They are spread across the metro area, though, and each one means a drive.

Cape May is a flat, compact town where the historic district, the promenade and the Washington Street Mall are a short walk or bike ride apart. You need a car mainly for getting there and for outings.

In Detroit, the People Mover and the QLine streetcar cover downtown, Midtown and New Center. Beyond them the distances are long and the buses slow, so most visitors rely on a hire car or ride-hailing for most of their stay.

In Cape May you browse rather than shop. The Washington Street Mall is three pedestrian blocks of independent boutiques, bookshops, kitchen stores, fudge and souvenirs, with antique dealers and galleries scattered through the historic district. It fills a rainy hour or two, but there are no department stores or big labels.

Detroit gives a keen shopper somewhat more to work with. Midtown and Corktown have vintage shops and makers selling Detroit-made watches, leather goods and prints, and Eastern Market and Dearborn add local crafts and specialist food. For big-name brands you drive to a large mall in the northern suburbs, and there is still no single street that fills an afternoon.

Cape May is expensive in summer. Expect Victorian B&Bs with minimum stays, restaurant bills like a big city's, beach tags and paid parking. Visiting in spring or autumn, or staying in the Wildwoods, brings the cost down.

Detroit is the cheaper stay. Hotels cost well below those in most large American cities, and casual food is inexpensive. A hire car, tips and sales tax still add up, and downtown rooms cost more on big game and concert nights.

Cape May offers a pleasant evening out rather than a full programme. There is professional theatre in a converted church, historic American drama, a long-running chamber music festival in late spring and early summer, and summer band concerts in Convention Hall.

Detroit is a serious music city. It has the symphony at Orchestra Hall, opera in a restored downtown house, concerts at the Fox Theatre, touring Broadway shows at the Fisher, jazz clubs and the free Detroit Jazz Festival. Soul, rock and gospel bands play small venues most nights.

Cape May is the more restful choice, especially in spring and autumn. Think rocking chairs on the porch, afternoon tea in guesthouse parlours, sunsets over the bay and a few day spas, though summer weekends are busy. Detroit's pace is set by work, sport and music, and rest there means a hotel spa or a slow afternoon on Belle Isle.