Cesky Krumlov or Frankfurt?

Neither is a beach destination, but Cesky Krumlov at least has Lipno, a large reservoir half an hour south with grassy and sandy shores and summer water of around 20°C. Frankfurt's swimming means outdoor pools and gravel-pit lakes such as the Langener Waldsee: pleasant on a hot day, but no reason to choose the city.

Frankfurt gives you more to eat. Its apple-wine taverns serve Grüne Soße and Handkäs at shared tables, the Kleinmarkthalle is a proper food market, and Turkish, Italian and Asian kitchens widen the choice.

Cesky Krumlov sticks to roast pork, duck, dumplings and river trout in vaulted cellars, and its own beer is the highlight. That is satisfying for a couple of days, but the range is narrow and many menus are aimed at day visitors.

Both are worth two days of sightseeing, but in opposite ways. In Cesky Krumlov the town itself is the sight: an intact Renaissance and Baroque townscape below one of the country's largest castles, with the Cloak Bridge and a Baroque theatre that still has its original stage machinery.

Frankfurt's old centre was largely rebuilt after 1944, so its strength lies indoors along the Museumsufer, where the Städel holds old masters and the Senckenberg is among Germany's largest natural history museums. Choose the castle town for atmosphere and the city for collections.

Frankfurt is the only real choice for a night out. At weekends there is a small but serious techno and house scene, the Bahnhofsviertel has cocktail bars and late kiosks, and Berger Straße and the Main banks suit a slower evening.

In Cesky Krumlov a night out means a pub, a cellar bar or, in summer, a riverside terrace. There are no clubs, and outside the peak months the lanes empty early.

Cesky Krumlov has better outdoors close at hand. A day floating down the Vltava by canoe or raft is the classic outing, and the forested hill of Klet rises just outside town. The spruce woods and peat bogs of the Bohemian Forest, and the sailing and cycle path at Lipno, are both about half an hour's drive away.

Frankfurt's green country takes more effort. The Taunus beech forest and the Großer Feldberg are under an hour away by public transport, and the Rheingau vineyard paths are lovely, but these are outings from a city rather than the setting of your stay.

Frankfurt is far stronger here because it sits on Germany's fastest rail network. Heidelberg, the Rhine Gorge and Cologne are each about an hour away, Mainz, Wiesbaden and Würzburg are also easy, and none of them needs a car.

Cesky Krumlov has a good handful of nearby trips, including the arcaded square of České Budějovice, Hluboká castle and the Baroque farmhouses of Holašovice. Public transport is thin, though, so most of them need a car or a tour.

Frankfurt keeps children busy for longer, with the dinosaur skeletons at the Senckenberg, a central zoo, the Palmengarten and boat trips past the skyline. Trams take pushchairs without trouble.

Cesky Krumlov has a storybook castle with bears in the moat, a gentle family raft trip and Lipno's treetop walk nearby. Its steep cobbled lanes are hard going with a pushchair, though, and it fills fewer days.

Cesky Krumlov's old town is so small that you can walk all of it in a quarter of an hour, cobbles and the castle climb aside. Getting out into the region without a car is awkward, though.

Frankfurt's centre is just as walkable, and an integrated network of U-Bahn, S-Bahn and trams carries you on to the Taunus, Wiesbaden and Mainz within one ticket system. The airport is about a quarter of an hour from the centre by train, so arriving and exploring are both easier.

Frankfurt is the place to shop. The Zeil has department stores and malls, Goethestraße has the luxury houses, and Berger Straße and Schweizer Straße have independent boutiques and delis. Cesky Krumlov's lanes sell Bohemian glass, garnets, marionettes and moldavite, which are fine for gifts, but there is no fashion to speak of.

Cesky Krumlov is the cheaper stay. Guesthouses fill its old houses, Czech meals and beer are moderately priced, and only rooms with views and restaurants on the main lanes charge extra.

Frankfurt's hotels are aimed at business travellers and climb steeply during trade fairs, though weekends and summer are often cheaper. Cider taverns and Turkish grills keep meals reasonable, so the room is where most of the money goes.

Frankfurt has a full season from autumn to early summer: a highly regarded opera company, concerts at the Alte Oper, German-language drama at the Schauspiel and jazz in cellar clubs.

In Cesky Krumlov the stage is mostly a summer affair, with the revolving open-air theatre in the castle garden and a classical music festival in the castle and churches. For the rest of the year there is very little to attend.

Neither has a bathing tradition of its own, but Frankfurt has more within reach: the thermal baths at Bad Homburg and the Art Nouveau Kaiser-Friedrich-Therme in Wiesbaden are both easy trips. Cesky Krumlov has beer baths, a few hotel wellness rooms and, above all, quiet evenings once the day visitors leave, and Třeboň's peat baths are within reach for a day out.