Chamonix or Genoa?

Chamonix has no sea, and swimming is a sideshow. The choices are Lac de Passy down the valley, the outdoor pool in town in summer, or a drive of a little over an hour to Lake Annecy. Genoa can fit a swim into a city afternoon, at the pebble cove of Boccadasse, from the bathing establishments along Corso Italia or off the platforms below Nervi's promenade.

For a fuller beach day, the Riviera train runs to Camogli, the two bays of Sestri Levante and the sandier stretch at Varazze. Expect pebbles, rented loungers and crowded summer weekends rather than wide sand, but for anyone who wants regular swims Genoa is the only real option of the two.

Chamonix feeds you well after a day on the slopes. Fondue, raclette and tartiflette are made with Reblochon and Beaufort from the surrounding pastures, and mountain terraces look out at the glaciers. Beyond that, menus repeat themselves, and many kitchens close between seasons.

Genoa has the more interesting food. It starts with oily focaccia at breakfast, then trofie with pesto, pansoti in walnut sauce, and farinata or fried fish by the slice from the old-town shops. Add the Mercato Orientale and seafood in the coastal hamlets with a glass of Vermentino, and a food lover will be busy for days.

In Chamonix the story is alpinism. The Musée Alpin, the statues of the first Mont Blanc climbers and the climbers' cemetery are worth a morning, but the real sights here are the peaks.

Genoa needs days rather than hours. You can get lost in one of Europe's largest medieval quarters, then walk up to the UNESCO-listed palaces on Via Garibaldi to see Van Dyck, Rubens and Paganini's violin. The striped cathedral, the Palazzo Ducale, the Lanterna and the marble sculpture of Staglieno fill out a stay that surprises most first-time visitors.

Both offer about as much going out, but the mood is very different. Chamonix in winter is loud and young. Après-ski starts at the foot of the slopes, the crowd moves on to a lane of pubs packed with guides and seasonal workers, and a couple of small clubs stay open late. Summer is quieter, and between seasons many places close.

Genoa's evenings are calmer and more Italian. Expect aperitivo in the small bars around Piazza delle Erbe, students spilling into medieval squares at weekends, and waterfront drinks at the Porto Antico or along Corso Italia in summer. Weeknights are quiet in both places.

Chamonix is one of the great mountain bases. The Aiguille du Midi lifts you to 3,842m among hanging glaciers, the rack railway runs up to the Mer de Glace, and the Grand Balcon trails and the Tour du Mont Blanc start from the valley floor. Winter adds steep skiing and the Vallée Blanche.

Genoa's outdoors are smaller in scale and centre on the sea. You can follow the fortress trail above Righi, walk the cliff path down to San Fruttuoso on the Portofino promontory, or take the train to the Cinque Terre terraces. Whale and dolphin trips in the Pelagos Sanctuary and coastal diving have no equivalent in the Alps.

Chamonix has three countries within reach. Courmayeur and the Roman remains of Aosta are through the tunnel, Annecy and Geneva are a little over an hour away, and the Mont Blanc Express runs to Martigny. Beyond those, most destinations are other resorts reached by slow mountain roads.

Genoa has the stronger list and nearly all of it is on one railway line. Camogli, Santa Margherita and Portofino are under an hour east, the Cinque Terre a little further, and Noli and Finale Ligure Borgo lie to the west. Milan and Turin are close enough for a day of museums or the Last Supper.

Families do about equally well in both, in different ways. Chamonix suits children who like being outside: nursery slopes and sledging, the summer luge, the marmots and ibex at the Merlet park, and the little red train to the Mer de Glace. The highest cable cars are unsuitable for small children, though, and a wet day leaves little to do.

Genoa puts most of its family attractions in one place at the Porto Antico. There you will find the large aquarium, the walk-through submarine at the Galata museum and the children's science centre, all of which work in any weather. Away from the harbour, steep stairs and dark lanes make pushchairs hard work.

Neither is difficult without a car. Chamonix's centre is flat and compact, the main lift stations are in town, and the guest card makes the valley buses and train free. The catch is crowded ski buses in winter and thin evening services.

Genoa is more vertical. The old town is a maze best covered on foot, and funiculars, public lifts and a rack railway climb the hillsides. City buses are slow, but the coastal railway is excellent for Nervi and the Riviera towns.

Chamonix is the better place for one thing: technical mountain gear. Its long-established climbing and ski shops have specialist staff, and many climbers wait to buy here. Otherwise it is cheese, génépi, rock crystals and souvenirs.

Genoa offers more ordinary browsing. You can walk the arcades of Via XX Settembre and the Galleria Mazzini for Italian labels, then go into the old town for candied fruit, pesto, silver filigree and coral from small workshops. It is still better for food and crafts than for serious fashion.

Genoa is much the cheaper of the two. In Chamonix the mountain itself is what costs money: each ride up into the high terrain, each paragliding flight and each day roped to a guide is on top of rooms and meals priced for a famous resort. Free valley transport, apartments with kitchens and trails that start straight from the valley floor bring the bill down. So do the quieter weeks between the ski and summer seasons, though fewer lifts run then.

Genoa is a working port city, and a stay there costs what a mid-range Italian city does, not what a big-name resort does. Street food and trattorias keep everyday eating cheap, and central rooms cost less than in Italy's busiest cities. Spending only rises when you head to the smarter Riviera towns in summer or rent a sunbed by the day.

Chamonix has little to offer here apart from a summer jazz festival with sets played high in the mountains, plus the odd church concert or mountain film night. For opera or an orchestra, you have to go to Geneva.

Genoa has a real if modest programme. The Teatro Carlo Felice on Piazza De Ferrari stages opera, ballet and symphony concerts, there are Paganini concerts, and small clubs keep the city's singer-songwriter tradition alive. The Teatro Nazionale is a major drama company, but its plays are in Italian.

Chamonix is the better place to unwind, as long as you have earned it first. Its large Italian-style day spa has hot outdoor pools and saunas facing the glaciers, many chalets have their own saunas, and the warm springs of Saint-Gervais are a short drive away. The town itself is busy in high season, so the quieter hamlets up the valley are more restful.

Genoa has no bathing tradition, and spas are mostly in hotels. Acqui Terme is the nearest thermal town, over an hour away. Its calm comes instead from the villa gardens and seafront at Nervi and from long lunches in the Riviera villages.