Catania or Taormina?

The swimming is equally good, but the beaches are very different. Catania has La Playa, a long, broad sweep of sand with beach clubs, along with the black lava platforms of Aci Castello and Aci Trezza, where ladders lead down into clear water beside the sea stacks.

Taormina's own beaches at Mazzarò and Isola Bella are narrow pebble coves, prettier and better for snorkelling but small and crowded in summer. For sand, you take the bus to Giardini Naxos or Letojanni.

Catania eats far better day to day. Its tavola calda counters, crispelle, cipollina and horse-meat grills make it a true street-food city, and the trattorias around the Pescheria cook the morning's catch without fuss.

Taormina does have a refined top tier, often with a sea view. Its main street, though, leans on tourist menus at resort prices, and the choice soon runs out. Granita with brioche and Etna wines are the same in both places.

Catania offers far more to see. The whole centre is a UNESCO-listed baroque townscape in lava stone, from the cathedral and the elephant fountain to Via dei Crociferi and the vast monastery of San Nicolò l'Arena, with a Roman theatre and Castello Ursino beneath it all. It fills two or three days.

Taormina has one world-class sight, the Greek theatre with Etna beyond its stage, plus a short run of medieval palazzi along Corso Umberto. A day of slow walking covers it, and there are no major museums.

Catania is the place to go out. A large student population fills the lanes around Piazza Bellini and the Teatro Massimo with outdoor drinkers until well past midnight, and in summer the beach clubs at La Playa become open-air dance floors.

Taormina's evenings are gentler: aperitivo in Piazza IX Aprile, a passeggiata and a piano bar over the sea, among mostly couples and older visitors. Outside summer it is quiet soon after dinner.

Both have Etna within an hour, so the outdoors is a close match, but the way you reach it differs. From Catania you head up the southern slope to Rifugio Sapienza and the summit cable car, with the Nebrodi forests further off and the lava coast of the Riviera dei Ciclopi for kayaking.

Taormina has more walking straight from the door. Footpaths climb to Castelmola and Monte Tauro, the Alcantara gorges are closer, and the marine reserve around Isola Bella has grottoes for diving and snorkelling.

Catania has the slight edge because it sits in the middle of everything. Siracusa is an hour away rather than two, and Noto, Modica, Ragusa Ibla, the Piazza Armerina mosaics and Caltagirone are all realistic days out.

Taormina is better placed for the north. Savoca, Forza d'Agrò, the wine villages around Linguaglossa and the Strait of Messina are all close, and Catania itself makes an easy outing.

Catania is the easier of the two with children. La Playa's sand shelves gently, and Etnaland's water park fills a hot day. The city itself is tiring, though, with heavy traffic, uneven pavements and little shade.

Taormina's safe pedestrian centre and the cable car down to the sea are a treat, but the steep steps, crowded pebble beaches and couple-oriented hotels make small children hard work. Families often stay in Giardini Naxos instead.

Taormina is simpler to manage. Its centre is largely car-free, a cable car drops to Mazzarò, local buses reach Castelmola, and the coastal railway runs to Catania and Messina, although every outing involves stairs.

Catania's compact core is walkable, but beyond it you face one metro line, slow buses stuck in traffic and drivers who do not always stop for pedestrians. From either town, Etna is easiest by tour or hire car.

Neither is a shopping destination, but they offer different things. Catania has Via Etnea's run of Italian chains and the noisy daily La Fiera market, and it is where Taormina residents go for bigger stores.

Taormina is a single street of jewellers, coral and cameo dealers, linen and ceramics, pleasant to browse but aimed at visitors. Pistachio cream and Etna wine make the best souvenirs in both.

The cost gap is wide. Catania is good value for Western Europe, with street food, market lunches and reasonable old-centre rooms, although July and August prices and Etna summit tours still add up.

Taormina costs far more than anywhere around it. Sea-view grand hotels set the tone, and Corso restaurants charge resort prices. Staying in Giardini Naxos or coming in spring or autumn softens the bill.

Catania has a year-round stage that Taormina lacks. The Teatro Massimo Bellini runs a full opera and symphonic season in the composer's home town, and small companies keep the Sicilian puppet theatre of knights and Saracens alive.

Taormina's moment is summer, when concerts, ballet and opera fill the Greek theatre with Etna behind the stage. The rest of the year offers little beyond chamber recitals and piano bars.

Taormina is clearly the more restful base. Its large hotels have good spas, with terrace pools and treatments using volcanic mud and citrus, and the shaded Villa Comunale suits a slow afternoon, though August crowds break the calm.

Catania is loud and full of traffic, with spas only out on the coast or on Etna's slopes. Rest there comes from the slow rhythm of long lunches and the evening passeggiata rather than from any facilities.