Christchurch or Dunedin?

Neither city is a beach destination, but Christchurch is the better of the two for a swim. Sumner's sheltered bay below the Port Hills suits a family dip, New Brighton has a pier and patrolled sand, and the water warms a couple of degrees more than further south.

Dunedin's St Clair and St Kilda make an impressive surf beach, but the Southern Ocean swell, the rips and the colder water mean most visitors walk the esplanade. If they swim at all, it is usually in the heated saltwater pool at its end.

The two eat at about the same level and in a similar way: good coffee, honest local produce and few ambitious kitchens. Christchurch leans on the Canterbury farmland and the nearby wine country, with lamb, Akaroa salmon and Waipara pinot noir, a covered market by the Avon and a wider choice of Asian food.

Dunedin's best is more homely. The Saturday market by the railway station is the high point, with blue cod, Bluff oysters in season and the southern cheese roll to try, and the city has a long brewing tradition. Cheap student cafés make casual eating easy.

Here Dunedin is clearly ahead. Gold-rush money and Scottish settlers left a Victorian city that still stands, with the Flemish-style railway station, First Church, the bluestone university and the Octagon. Olveston and Larnach Castle show how the wealthy lived, and Otago Museum and Toitū are better than a city this size usually manages.

Christchurch lost much of its Gothic Revival centre in the earthquakes, so its sights now centre on that story: the cardboard cathedral, the memorial wall and the quake museum. The Arts Centre quadrangles and the art gallery are the rest, and two days is plenty.

Going out is low-key in both, and in both it is about a drink rather than dancing. Christchurch's bars along Oxford Terrace and Victoria Street draw a mix of locals and students, so weekends are fairly steady through the year.

Dunedin depends more on its university. In term the Octagon and George Street fill from Thursday, and a few places run late with DJs. Out of term the city is noticeably emptier.

Both are excellent for the outdoors, but in different ways. Christchurch is the base for mountains: crater-rim tracks on the Port Hills, kayaking with Hector's dolphins around Banks Peninsula, and the Southern Alps within two hours for Arthur's Pass tramping, the TranzAlpine and winter skiing at Mt Hutt.

Dunedin's strength is wildlife right on its edge. The royal albatross colony at Taiaroa Head, yellow-eyed penguins at dusk and sea lions on Sandfly Bay are hard to see this easily anywhere else, and Tunnel Beach and Orokonui add coastal walks and forest birds.

The outings are about equal in number, and each city has one standout town. From Christchurch it is Akaroa, the French-founded harbour village on Banks Peninsula, with Lyttelton, the Waipara vineyards and Hanmer Springs as shorter options.

Dunedin's equivalent is Oamaru, with its white limestone Victorian quarter and blue penguins, reached past Moeraki. Inland, the gold-rush hamlets of Central Otago suit anyone who likes history more than wine.

Christchurch is the easier city for families. It is flat and uncrowded, the central playground is one of the biggest in the country, and the Antarctic Centre's penguins and snowstorm room, Orana's open-range animals, Willowbank's kiwi and the gondola give plenty of choice.

Dunedin's albatross, sea lion and penguin outings can be the highlight of a trip for older children, and the museum's butterfly house helps on wet days. But the steep streets, the chilly summers and the lack of a big attraction make it harder going with little ones.

Christchurch is a little easier to get around. Its centre is entirely flat, and separated cycleways and e-scooters let you go further without a car, though the wildlife parks and Banks Peninsula still call for one.

Dunedin's core between the Octagon, the station and the university is easy on foot, but the hills begin quickly, and some streets are brutally steep. The peninsula wildlife sites lie along narrow, winding roads, so you need a car or a tour with transport.

Neither is a shopping destination. Christchurch offers a compact chain-store precinct, the old Ballantynes department store and good souvenirs in merino, possum-wool knitwear and pounamu carvings. Dunedin has more character in its independents, with dark-toned local designers, second-hand bookshops and vintage stores along George Street.

The two cost much the same, with fairly cheap rooms by New Zealand standards and high prices for meals, drinks and car hire. In Christchurch the free gardens, gallery and beaches help, but the wildlife parks and Antarctic Centre charge full price.

Dunedin's student cafés keep lunches cheaper and most of its museums are free. The guided albatross and penguin tours that bring most visitors, however, quickly add to the bill.

Christchurch has the fuller programme. The symphony orchestra plays in a Town Hall known for its acoustics, the Court Theatre is one of the country's leading companies, and the Isaac Theatre Royal takes touring ballet and musicals.

Dunedin's real claim is the Dunedin Sound, and its heirs still play pubs and small rooms to student crowds. Beyond that there are touring shows at the Regent and orchestral concerts, with much less on outside term.

Christchurch is clearly better for relaxing in the water. The hot saltwater pools on the New Brighton beachfront are right in town, and Hanmer Springs' forest mineral pools make a restorative day out, with punting on the Avon to slow things further.

Dunedin has the heated pool at St Clair and a few day spas. Its gift is calm rather than treatments: light traffic, quiet mornings in the Botanic Garden and long café lunches.