Cortina d'Ampezzo or Milan?

Neither city is a beach destination, but Milan comes closer. Cortina's lakes, Ghedina and Pianozes, are for walking round, because snowmelt keeps them cold. Swimming there mostly means a hotel pool, and the Adriatic is more than two hours away.

From Milan, Lake Como and Lake Maggiore are about an hour by train, with pebbly lidos and water around 23°C in August. On hot days in town, the Idroscalo and the open-air pools serve as well.

Milan is much the stronger place to eat. As well as saffron risotto and ossobuco, it brings together cooking from all over Italy and adds a serious tier of fine dining. Its aperitivo ritual in Brera, Isola and along the Navigli is a meal in itself.

Cortina's cooking has a narrower range but its own character: casunziei with poppy seeds, polenta with game, and often the best meal of the day on a rifugio terrace among the peaks. Expect little variety, almost nothing international and few cheap options.

Milan's sights are of real rank: the Duomo with its rooftop among the spires, Leonardo's Last Supper, the Brera gallery and Michelangelo's Rondanini Pietà in the Castello Sforzesco. You could build a culture trip around them alone.

Cortina has a pretty centre with its tall bell tower and the 1956 Olympic ice stadium. The Rimoldi art collection is the best of its small museums, which are enough for a wet afternoon. Its most moving history lies outdoors, in the First World War tunnels on Lagazuoi and the Cinque Torri.

In Cortina the evening means après-ski, a walk along the Corso Italia and a long dinner, and only in the peak winter weeks do a few bars and a club stay open late. Milan offers real nights out: canal-side bars on the Navigli, the gay scene around Porta Venezia, dressy clubs near Corso Como and warehouse nights further out, all stylish rather than wild.

Nature is where Cortina leaves Milan far behind. Pale Dolomite walls ring the Ampezzo valley: the Tofane, Cristallo and the Cinque Torri towers. The Fanes-Sennes-Braies nature park begins at the edge of town, and the Tre Cime and Lago di Misurina are under an hour away. Winter opens up the whole Dolomiti Superski area and the Sella Ronda, while summer brings the Alta Via 1, paragliding and mountain biking.

Milan itself sits on the flat, hazy Po plain, with Parco Sempione, the Giardini Pubblici and towpaths that lead cyclists out into the rice fields. The lakes and the Grigne ridges above Lecco are about an hour north and suit sailors and walkers, but proper skiing in the Valtellina or the Aosta valley is a full day out. A snow trip from Milan takes real effort, whereas Cortina sits inside its ski area.

Cortina's outings mostly head into the mountains, because few towns lie close. The best of them are in South Tyrol to the north. San Candido and Dobbiaco are under an hour away, Brunico has its castle and the Messner Mountain Museum, and Bolzano, with the Iceman and its arcaded streets, is about two hours by road. Venice is possible, but at around two and a half hours by coach each way it makes a long day.

Milan is the far stronger base. Turin's Egyptian Museum and Verona's Roman arena are around an hour away by high-speed train, and Bergamo's walled upper town is about as close. Closer still are the Certosa di Pavia and Vigevano's Renaissance square, while Mantua, Cremona's violin workshops, the Borromean Islands and Lugano across the Swiss border give you enough for a week of different days.

Both work for families, but in different ways. Cortina is about the outdoors: ski schools and beginner slopes at Socrepes, skating at the Olympic stadium, easy lake walks and a forest rope park, all around a small, calm centre. Rainy days, though, can drag.

Milan has more under a roof. The science and technology museum with its submarine and the aquarium by Parco Sempione are there for wet days, and Leolandia and Gardaland suit older children. Summer heat is hard on little ones, and the main sights appeal mostly to adults.

Milan needs no car. Five metro lines and trams cover the city, and direct trains from Centrale, Garibaldi and Cadorna run to the lakes and nearby towns. The only real nuisances are hot platforms in summer and the long ride in from Malpensa.

Cortina's centre takes minutes to cross on foot, and ski buses work well in winter, but the town has had no railway since 1964. You arrive by coach from Venice or by car, buses to the passes are sparse, and most visitors exploring the Dolomites hire a car.

In Milan, shopping is a reason to go. It has the flagships of the Quadrilatero della Moda, the old shops of the Galleria and La Rinascente beside the Duomo, plus design showrooms, boutiques in Brera and antique markets on the Navigli.

Cortina has one polished street, the Corso Italia, lined with luxury fashion, furriers and mountain wear. Its anchor is the Cooperativa di Cortina, founded in 1893. Local wood carving and filigree make good browsing, but the choice does not stretch beyond an afternoon.

Neither is a budget destination, but Cortina is harder on the wallet. In the winter peak and in August, rates reach luxury-resort levels, and lift passes and equipment hire add more. Lunches at the rifugi and the quieter weeks of June and late September help, but many budget travellers sleep in cheaper valleys nearby.

Milan is expensive by Italian standards, yet there are more ways to save. Public transport is fairly priced, aperitivo snacks can stand in for a light supper, and office-worker lunch menus are good value. Staying near a metro stop outside the centre also helps, as does avoiding the trade-fair weeks.

Milan has La Scala, whose season of opera, ballet and concerts opens each December on the feast of Sant'Ambrogio. Around it are the Piccolo Teatro, a symphony orchestra at the Auditorium, jazz rooms and big summer concerts at San Siro.

Cortina has no theatre season and no regular venue. Its live music comes from summer chamber festivals in churches, and sometimes out in the mountains, plus the odd concert around Christmas and New Year.

The two are close here, but you find calm in different places. In Cortina it comes from Alpine hotel spas with saunas and hay baths, clear air and a quiet hut terrace in June or September, though the peak weeks bring traffic and crowds.

Milan has a thermal spa complex with outdoor pools, and in summer the 1930s Bagni Misteriosi. Still, the city is busy and work-focused, and most visitors looking for real rest take the train to the lakes.