Costa Blanca or Mallorca?

Both are among the best beach choices in the Mediterranean, and the difference lies in the shape of the sand. The Costa Blanca's strength is its long, open beaches: Benidorm's Levante and Poniente, San Juan near Alicante and the dunes of Guardamar. It has coves only in the north, around Jávea.

Mallorca's signature is the cala, a narrow inlet of white sand and turquoise water in the southeast, such as Caló des Moro. The long, shallow bays of Alcúdia and Pollença and the undeveloped dunes of Es Trenc add to these. The coves are prettier, but they fill early and you need a car to reach them.

The two are close in quality but cook with different things. The Costa Blanca is rice country, with arroz a banda, black rice and Elche's egg-crusted arroz con costra, plus red prawns at Dénia and turrón from Xixona.

Mallorca cooks from the pig and the garden, with sobrassada, tumbet and ensaïmadas for breakfast. Its best meals are in Palma's Santa Catalina or the vaulted cellers of Inca and Sineu. On both coasts the resort strips serve tourist menus, so where you eat matters more than which destination you pick.

Mallorca has more to see, and most of it is in Palma. La Seu stands above the sea wall next to the Almudaina palace, with Arab baths and courtyard mansions behind them, the round Bellver Castle above the bay and two good art museums. Beyond Palma there are Chopin's charterhouse at Valldemossa and the Bronze Age villages near Artà.

The Costa Blanca's heritage is spread more thinly. Alicante's Santa Barbara castle and the MARQ archaeological museum, Elche's UNESCO-listed palm grove and the hilltop villages of Altea and Guadalest make a few good days. Its liveliest show of tradition is the summer Moors and Christians parades.

Each has a giant party resort and a more Spanish city scene, so the choice comes down to the crowd. Benidorm's Rincón de Loix runs on cabaret, karaoke and late clubs and never fully closes in winter, while Alicante's El Barrio fills with small bars beneath the castle.

On Mallorca, Magaluf and Playa de Palma are rowdier and more seasonal, and they mostly close outside summer. Palma itself is more polished, with cocktail bars in Santa Catalina and clubs on the Paseo Marítimo that run until dawn.

Both have limestone mountains falling into the sea, but Mallorca's Tramuntana offers more to do outdoors. The GR221 crosses it from village to village, the Torrent de Pareis gorge and the Formentor cliffs make classic day walks, and its passes draw road cyclists every spring and autumn.

The Costa Blanca answers with the Peñón de Ifach, Montgó and the Aitana range for hikers. The crags around Sella are its real speciality and are known to climbers across Europe. For birdwatchers, the flamingos on its salt lakes are a fair match for Mallorca's S'Albufera wetlands.

Days out are evenly matched but lead in opposite directions. From the Costa Blanca they head to mainland cities and towns: Valencia for its cathedral and the City of Arts and Sciences, Murcia, Roman Cartagena, Xàtiva and the gorge town of Alcoy.

Mallorca keeps you on the island, touring stone villages such as Deià and Fornalutx, the walled town of Alcúdia and the weekly market at Santanyí. The wooden train to Sóller and the boats to Cabrera or Menorca add variety.

Both are easy family choices, with gently shelving sand, pool hotels and water parks. The Costa Blanca gathers its attractions around Benidorm, with a theme park, a marine park and the waterfalls of the Fonts de l'Algar for cooling off. Mallorca's family bases are the northern bays and Cala Millor, with kids' clubs on the doorstep, and its standout outing is the underground boat ride in the Caves of Drach.

Neither is easy without a car once you leave the main towns. The Costa Blanca has a coastal TRAM line from Alicante through Benidorm and Altea towards Dénia, but this is a long, thin coast and the distances add up.

Mallorca is compact enough to cross in about an hour and a half, with buses and a few rail lines running out of Palma. Its coves and Tramuntana villages, though, mean narrow mountain roads and car parks that fill early in summer.

Mallorca is the better place to shop. Palma's Passeig des Born and Avinguda Jaume III have the fashion, the old town has espadrille makers and delicatessens, and island crafts range from Inca leather and Manacor pearls to the striped cloth called roba de llengües.

On the Costa Blanca, shopping is more practical: Alicante's high streets, Elche's shoe outlets and turrón to take home. Both share the habit of weekly markets, though Mallorca's at Sineu and Pollença are more of an occasion.

The Costa Blanca is the cheaper of the two. Benidorm and the Torrevieja resorts are among the more affordable beach bases in Western Europe, and Alicante is moderately priced. Only Jávea, Moraira and Altea climb noticeably higher.

In summer Mallorca costs more than mainland Spain, as Palma's boutique hotels, the Tramuntana estates, car hire and sunbeds all add up. Its package resorts in the northern bays and village cellers inland bring the cost down, as does a visit in May, June or late September.

Neither is a destination for performance, and the gap is small. Mallorca has a little more: a short opera season at Palma's Teatre Principal, the Balearic Symphony Orchestra in winter and summer classical festivals in Valldemossa and Pollença. The Costa Blanca's highlight is unique: the Misteri d'Elx, a sung medieval play performed in Elche's basilica each August. Beyond that it has Alicante's ADDA concerts and Benidorm's cabaret.

Neither has a real bathing culture, so rest comes from the setting. The Costa Blanca offers Arab-style baths in Alicante, health retreats in the hills above Altea and a mild winter that draws long-stay visitors to its quiet northern coast. Mallorca has the small thermal spring of Font Santa near Campos, used since Roman times. More useful are its old country estates among almond and olive groves, with yoga retreats in spring and autumn.