Cinque Terre or Provence?

Provence is the better choice for a beach trip. Its coast covers the long sand of Pampelonne, the pale shallows of Porquerolles and the deep turquoise inlets of the calanques near Cassis. The catch is that inland bases in the Luberon or Alpilles are a long drive from any of them.

Cinque Terre is mostly cliff. Monterosso's Fegina is its one proper sandy beach. Elsewhere you swim from rock shelves and slipways at Vernazza or Manarola, which is lovely for a dip between walks but not for a lazy day on the sand.

Eating is one of the main reasons to choose Provence. Weekly markets in Aix, Apt and Saint-Rémy, bouillabaisse in Marseille, truffles around Carpentras and the wines of Châteauneuf-du-Pape and Bandol make every meal part of the trip.

Cinque Terre cooks a small repertoire very well: trofie with pesto, focaccia, Monterosso anchovies and sweet Sciacchetrà. Beyond that the choice runs thin, and menus in the busiest villages are written for day-trippers.

The two are far apart here. Provence has several historic towns, each worth a day: the Palais des Papes in Avignon, the Roman arena and theatre in Arles and Orange, the mansions of Aix, the MuCEM in Marseille and the Cistercian abbeys in the hills.

In Cinque Terre the landscape itself is the monument. Colour-washed villages sit on dry-stone terraces, with a few striped Gothic churches and a watchtower above Vernazza. There are no museums of any size, so it is a place to wander rather than to visit sights.

Provence has real nights out if you base yourself in the right place, which means Marseille's bars and clubs around La Plaine or the summer beach clubs of Saint-Tropez. Cinque Terre offers a sunset drink on a harbour wall and a handful of late wine bars in Monterosso and Riomaggiore. For anything more, people take the train to La Spezia.

Both are fine outdoor destinations, and Provence has the wider range. It has the Verdon canyon for kayaking and climbing, Mont Ventoux for cyclists, the flamingos of the Camargue and the trails of the Calanques. These lie far apart, though, and in high summer fire risk can close the massifs.

Cinque Terre packs its outdoors into one strip of coast. The Sentiero Azzurro and the higher ridge path run through vineyards above a marine reserve, and you can walk from village to village and ride the train back.

Provence has more outings close at hand: Gordes and Roussillon, L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, the Pont du Gard, Cassis and Porquerolles all lie within an hour or so of a sensible base. Nearly all of them need a car.

From Cinque Terre the choice is smaller but easy to reach by rail. Portovenere is a boat ride away, Pisa and Lucca are on the coastal line, and Genoa and Portofino are to the north, so you can manage without driving.

Provence works far better with children, especially younger ones. The usual pattern is a rented house or a campsite with sandy, shallow beaches nearby, and horse riding in the Camargue or canoeing on the Sorgue for older children.

Cinque Terre is built of steps, Corniglia sits high above its station, and summer trains are crammed. Families with older children who like walking manage well, and those with toddlers are best off in flat Monterosso.

This is where Cinque Terre comes out ahead. One local train links all five villages through the tunnels with only minutes between stops, ferries join the harbours in season, and the car-free centres mean you leave the driving behind. The effort lies in the climbs and the summer crowds on the platforms.

Provence is easy between Marseille, Aix, Avignon and Arles by train, but the villages, abbeys and gorges mostly need a car. That brings narrow hill lanes, hunting for parking and summer jams on the road into Saint-Tropez.

Cinque Terre's shopping goes little beyond pesto, jarred anchovies, lemon liqueur and a bottle of Sciacchetrà. Provence gives you much more to browse. It has Provençal fabrics and olive wood at the markets, antiques dealers at L'Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, Moustiers faience and Marseille soap, fashion in Aix and luxury boutiques in Saint-Tropez.

Neither is cheap in season, and Provence leaves a little more room to save. It has reasonably priced bases in Marseille, Avignon and Arles, as well as set lunch menus. The Luberon villas and the Saint-Tropez coast are the costly exceptions.

In Cinque Terre the problem is the few small village rooms, which are expensive in high season, and walking the paths in the park costs extra. Food and the train stay affordable, which is why budget travellers sleep in La Spezia or Levanto.

Provence is a major summer destination for performance. The Avignon festival fills the papal palace courtyard and every hall in town in July, Aix stages opera of international rank, and Orange puts opera in its Roman theatre. Out of season, Marseille and Aix keep up a regular programme.

Cinque Terre has little beyond a church concert and the bands at saints' day processions. For anything more you need La Spezia or Genoa.

Provence makes the easier restful vacation. It has country hotels with lavender and olive-oil treatments, the thermal spa on the Roman site in Aix, the old spa towns of Gréoux and Digne, and slow days of markets and poolside afternoons.

In Cinque Terre any calm comes from the setting: a terrace above the sea and no cars. That holds early in the morning or in the shoulder months, but not on a crowded summer afternoon.