Clearwater or Gulf Shores?

Both have fine white Gulf sand, but Clearwater's is the gentler place to swim. The water is calm and shallow enough to wade a long way out, and when Pier 60 is crowded the wild shores of Caladesi and Honeymoon islands are close by.

Gulf Shores has the longer unbroken strand, quartz sand that squeaks underfoot, running from Fort Morgan to the Florida line with dunes in Gulf State Park. The surf is less forgiving, though, with rip currents to watch for, and its winter sea is a touch colder.

The two eat at much the same level, casual seafood with water views, but the flavours differ. Clearwater's signature is the grouper sandwich, with stone crab in season and a Greek meal in Tarpon Springs as the best outing.

Gulf Shores leans towards Louisiana, with gumbo, chargrilled oysters and deep-water Royal Red shrimp. Its seafood markets make cooking in the condo a real option.

Neither is a place for sightseeing, but Clearwater has a little more to offer. It has an old downtown on the bluff with a restored 1920s theatre, and the museums of St Petersburg and Tampa are within an hour.

Gulf Shores has one real sight, the brick star fort at Fort Morgan, a relic of the 1864 Battle of Mobile Bay that is worth a morning, and not much else nearby.

Evenings are low-key in both, and they differ mainly in shape. In Clearwater the night begins with the sunset crowd at Pier 60 and drifts to tiki decks with cover bands, and Ybor City across the bay is there for anything bigger. In Gulf Shores most of the town is asleep early, apart from the famous state-line roadhouse at Perdido Key, which stays loud late.

Both are flat, watery coasts with similar outdoor appeal, but the wildlife differs. Clearwater is about mangrove channels, dolphins in the harbour and manatees in winter, with the long Pinellas Trail for easy cycling.

Gulf Shores is better for birdwatchers, as the Fort Morgan peninsula is a major migration stopover. It also has the Bon Secour refuge and the vast Mobile-Tensaw Delta swamp to explore by kayak.

Clearwater has the stronger set of outings, with names people travel for: the Dalí Museum in St Petersburg, Ybor City's cigar factories, the Ringling Museum in Sarasota and, at a stretch, Orlando's theme parks.

From Gulf Shores the outings are gentler. There are the ironwork balconies and battleship of Mobile, the bayside gardens of Fairhope, Pensacola's naval aviation museum and the car ferry to Dauphin Island. They make pleasant days, but they are smaller draws.

Both work well with children, in different ways. Clearwater has calmer water for toddlers, lifeguards at Pier 60, a marine rescue aquarium and Busch Gardens within easy reach.

Gulf Shores is built entirely around the condo family week, with a water park, a hands-on zoo and a Ferris wheel in Orange Beach. Parents have to watch the surf, though, and there is no major aquarium.

Neither is easy without a car, but Clearwater Beach can at least be managed on foot. A trolley runs down the island to Sand Key and a ferry crosses to downtown.

Gulf Shores is strung out for miles along one beach road, with almost no public transport, so even dinner usually means driving.

Shopping is thin and beachy in both, so the difference is in what each does best. Clearwater's most local souvenir is a natural sponge from Tarpon Springs, and Tampa is close for bigger stores. Gulf Shores sends its visitors to the large outlet mall in Foley, a standard plan for a rainy afternoon.

Gulf Shores is the cheaper of the two, and its prices peak at a different time. Its rates spike in June and July, then fall sharply in winter, when long stays are common.

Clearwater is dearest in late winter and spring, when northern visitors and spring breakers fill the beach hotels. Staying on the mainland there or coming in summer brings the cost down.

Clearwater has more on stage. Ruth Eckerd Hall brings Broadway tours, comedy and orchestral concerts, and the Capitol Theatre hosts smaller shows in its 1920s hall.

Gulf Shores has no indoor stage of that kind. Its live music is beach-bar bands, touring country and rock at the Orange Beach amphitheatre, and a long-running songwriters' festival each November.

Clearwater is a little better for a restful stay. Its spas are nothing to travel for, but its larger resort hotels offer more choice than the handful of day spas in Gulf Shores. The calm is broken mainly by spring break weekends and the heaviest summer heat.

In Gulf Shores, a quiet stay depends more on when you go. Spring break brings a younger crowd, and on summer weekends the beach road and the main public beach fill up. A slow week of balcony sunsets works best in the quieter months, when the town goes to bed early.