Cardiff or St Andrews?

Neither is a place to swim, but they let you down in different ways. Cardiff has no beach of its own. For sand you take the train to Barry Island, a traditional bay with a funfair feel, or go to Penarth for pebbles and a pier. The Gower and Porthcawl's surf beaches are an hour's drive or more.

St Andrews has the opposite problem. West Sands, East Sands and Castle Sands are all a short walk from the centre and lovely for walking, but the North Sea stays several degrees colder than the water off Wales.

Cardiff has more to explore. The Victorian market sells Welsh cakes, cawl and laverbread, the western districts of Pontcanna and Canton have neighbourhood bistros, and City Road has a long run of Middle Eastern and South Asian cooking.

St Andrews has a narrower range: cafés, bakeries, a few serious restaurants serving East Neuk crab and Fife lamb, and the town's well-loved ice cream. Its best simple pleasure is fish and chips eaten by the harbour in a nearby fishing village.

The difference is age against breadth, and breadth gives Cardiff the longer list of things to see. The castle has lavish Victorian Gothic rooms inside Roman and Norman walls, the National Museum in the white stone civic centre has a strong collection of French Impressionists, and St Fagans, the open-air museum of buildings rebuilt from all over Wales, can easily fill half a day. Most of the city dates from the Victorian coal boom.

St Andrews is smaller but much older. There is the ruined cathedral with St Rule's Tower to climb, the clifftop castle with its siege tunnels, and the quadrangles and chapel of a university founded in 1413. You will see it in a day or two, against two or three days for Cardiff.

These two are far apart after dark. Cardiff fills up on Saturday nights around St Mary Street, and on rugby international days the whole centre turns red. Womanby Street has small alternative bars and late venues, and Pontcanna's wine bars are there for a gentler night.

St Andrews is a pub town, kept lively only by students during term. In summer, when most visitors come, it is very quiet, and a real night out means going to Dundee or Edinburgh.

Cardiff has the bigger outdoors. Bute Park and the Taff Trail start right by the castle, and the Brecon Beacons are about an hour's drive away, with the classic hike up Pen y Fan across open moorland.

St Andrews' landscape is gentler and coastal. The Fife Coastal Path passes sea stacks and caves, wading birds gather on the Eden estuary, and seals haul out at Tentsmuir. For real hill walking you need to drive inland.

Both make excellent bases, with different themes. From Cardiff, castles are the draw: Caerphilly, Castell Coch, Chepstow with Tintern Abbey. Bath, Bristol and the mining heritage at Blaenavon add variety, and many of these trips are short and work by train.

From St Andrews, the outings are the East Neuk fishing villages, Falkland Palace, Dundee's V&A and the ship Discovery, with Edinburgh as a full day. Beyond the coast and Dundee, you will need a car or careful bus planning.

Cardiff has more to keep children busy. Techniquest at Cardiff Bay is a hands-on science centre made for them, St Fagans has farm animals, old shops and craft demonstrations spread across its parkland, and Roath Park has a lake with rowing boats. On a fine summer day, Barry Island's sands and funfair are a short train ride away.

St Andrews is calmer and small enough for older children to roam a little on their own. Rock pools on East Sands, the small aquarium on the Scores, Craigtoun Park's miniature railway and the putting green beside the Old Course are each good for a morning. After those there is little else made for families, and a cold, windy day leaves you with few indoor fallbacks.

Both are easy on foot, and neither has a metro. St Andrews is the smaller of the two, with beaches, castle, university and golf links all a short walk apart. Its catch is the lack of a station: trains go from Leuchars, a bus or taxi ride away.

Cardiff's centre is flat and pedestrianised around Cardiff Central, and local trains go straight from there to Penarth, Barry Island and Caerphilly. The Bay is the one longer walk, with a shuttle train, buses or a water taxi as alternatives.

Queen Street's chains and department store cover the basics in Cardiff, but its glass-roofed Victorian and Edwardian arcades are the real reason to go shopping there. They are full of independent record, book and vintage shops, and Welsh crafts such as lovespoons, woollen blankets and slate make good things to take home. The Victorian market adds local produce.

St Andrews is a pleasant browse along three streets for golf gear, cashmere, tartan and bookshops. That is about all there is, and serious shoppers go to Edinburgh.

Cardiff is the cheaper stay. Hotels are moderate on ordinary weekdays, the national museums including St Fagans are free, and train trips to castles and the coast cost little. Prices jump on rugby and stadium concert dates.

St Andrews has few rooms, priced for golfers and university families, and rates climb around tournaments and graduation. A round on the famous courses costs a lot. Staying in the East Neuk villages helps.

On the stage, Cardiff is in a different league. The Wales Millennium Centre is home to Welsh National Opera and hosts touring musicals, the BBC National Orchestra of Wales is based in the city, and small venues around Womanby Street book bands most nights.

St Andrews has the Byre Theatre, choral evenings in the university chapel and folk sessions in some pubs. Most of it pauses in the summer break, and for opera or orchestras you go to Edinburgh or Dundee.

St Andrews is the better place to unwind. The town is unhurried and the golf resorts on its edge have full spas that non-residents can use. Long walks on West Sands or a cold dip off East Sands with the locals do the rest.

Cardiff offers hotel spas, a few day spas and leisure pools at the Bay, with slow mornings in Pontcanna or a stroll through Bute Park. It is an easy-going city, but not one people choose for rest.