Como or Siena?

Neither city is a beach destination, but Como at least has water at its door. In summer people swim at lidos with lawns and pontoons, the one by Villa Olmo being closest to town, and from the small pebble jetties at Cernobbio, Moltrasio and the Tremezzina, often reached by ferry.

Siena has nothing like that. A swim means a hotel or agriturismo pool, or a full day out to the Maremma sand around Castiglione della Pescaia, well over an hour's drive away. The Tuscan coast does give you real sandy beaches and warmer water, while Como gives you a quick cool dip between other plans.

Siena eats and drinks better. Its cooking has more depth: hand-rolled pici, ribollita, cinta senese pork, and a baking tradition of panforte and ricciarelli. In town you can drink Chianti Classico, Brunello and Vino Nobile by the glass. It is at its best in the family osterie on the side streets of the contrade.

Como cooks Lombard lake-and-mountain food, such as perch risotto, missoltini and polenta, and its aperitivo on the squares by the cathedral is a pleasant ritual. The choice is narrower, though, and lakefront terraces trade on the view, so the best meals often mean heading up the lake or into the hills. Neither city offers much beyond its own regional food.

Siena is by far the richer place for sightseeing. Its whole medieval centre is UNESCO-listed. The Campo, the Palazzo Pubblico with Lorenzetti's Good and Bad Government frescoes, the Duomo with its inlaid floor and Piccolomini Library, Duccio's Maestà and Santa Maria della Scala fill two or three days.

Como has fewer sights, but they are of real quality: the marble cathedral, the Romanesque San Fedele and Sant'Abbondio, the Volta museum, the silk museum and Terragni's Casa del Fascio, which matters most to anyone interested in modern architecture. A day covers them, which leaves the rest of the stay for the lake.

Both are early-to-bed towns, so the difference is in character. In Como the evening means aperitivo, dinner and a few wine and cocktail bars around Piazza Duomo, with a stroll on the lakefront in summer. For anything bigger, Milan is a train ride away.

Siena has university students and a few pubs to go with its wine on the Campo. In the days around the Palio, the contrade dinners keep the streets full until late, and Como has nothing like that.

Como has the more dramatic outdoors. Steep wooded mountains rise straight from the lake, and the funicular takes you to the ridge trails above Brunate in minutes. The Via dei Monti Lariani, Monte Bisbino and the Greenway del Lago give walks with Alpine views, and the water adds kayaking, sailing and paddling.

Siena's landscape is gentler and more open: the clay hills of the Crete Senesi and the Val d'Orcia, best seen by bike on the strade bianche that start at the edge of town. Cyclists do well in both, with the Ghisallo climb above Como, but walkers who want height and water will prefer the lake.

Both are outstanding bases, and Siena has the slightly deeper list. San Gimignano, Monteriggioni, the Chianti villages, Volterra, Pienza, Montalcino, Montepulciano and abbeys such as Sant'Antimo and San Galgano are all close, and Florence is about an hour and a quarter away by bus. Most of the hill towns, though, are far easier with a car.

Como's outings are easier without one. Ferries go to Bellagio, Varenna and the villas at Tremezzo, and trains reach Milan in about forty minutes and Lugano in half an hour, with Bergamo and Lake Maggiore further out.

Como is the easier choice with children. Boat rides, the funicular, paddling at a summer lido and the flat promenade by Villa Olmo make simple outings, and a pushchair copes well.

Siena is safe and largely free of cars, and older children enjoy climbing the Torre del Mangia and watching the contrada drummers. The steep lanes are hard going with little ones, though, and families often stay at a farmhouse with a pool instead. Neither city has zoos or attractions built for children.

Both centres are easy to walk, but Como's is flat. Siena sits on three ridges, with steep climbs, stepped lanes and a chain of escalators up from the station. Como also has the better rail links, with two stations serving Milan and the Swiss line north to Lugano, while Siena relies on buses to reach Florence.

Beyond the centre, each has its frustration. In Como it is the slow boats and the shore roads that clog in summer. In Siena it is the hill towns and wineries, which really need a hire car.

Como has one thing worth shopping for in its own right: silk. You can buy scarves, ties and fabric from old-town specialists and from mill outlets on the edge of the city. There is also a short run of boutiques on Via Vittorio Emanuele II, and Milan is close by for serious fashion.

Siena's shopping is more about what you take home to eat or display: panforte, pecorino, wine, hand-painted majolica and contrada scarves. Clothing and leather shops line Banchi di Sopra, and a large weekly market fills the area by the Fortezza Medicea.

Siena is the cheaper stay, though neither is a bargain. Osteria lunches give good value, and an agriturismo outside the walls cuts costs, although rooms climb around the Palio and museum tickets add up.

Como's lake draws a luxury crowd, so lakeside hotels and villas cost a good deal more in summer. Sleeping back from the water, eating in old-town trattorias and travelling in spring or autumn narrows the gap, and trains and ferries are cheap.

Neither city has a big programme, but their strengths differ. Como's is opera and theatre at the Teatro Sociale, which moves to the open-air Arena in summer, along with chamber concerts in lakeside villas, and La Scala is a short train ride away.

Siena relies on its music schools, with the Accademia Chigiana's summer concerts and masterclasses and the Siena Jazz school. In winter the Rinnovati and Rozzi theatres stage drama, and for opera you go to Florence.

Siena is the better choice for anyone who wants to soak in hot water. Rapolano Terme is about half an hour away, and the hot pools of Bagno Vignoni, Bagni San Filippo and Petriolo lie further south, so they combine well with a rural spa or farmhouse stay.

Como has no thermal water. Wellness there means the spas of the grand villa hotels and the calm of the lake itself, with slow ferries, gardens and quiet villages. It soothes rather than treats, and the lakefront is busy in midsummer.