Cozumel or Roatán?

Both islands have warm, clear, calm water with reef a few strokes from shore, so the real difference is what you stand on. Cozumel's swimmable west coast is mostly low limestone rock. Its sand is concentrated south of San Miguel in beach clubs with loungers and ladders into the sea, and the beautiful east coast is too rough for most swimming.

Roatán has the classic picture: the long, pale curve of West Bay, the smaller and more sheltered Half Moon Bay in West End, and cays in the east reached by boat. The downsides are sand flies at dawn and dusk and a crowded beach when ships are in.

Neither island is a food destination, and on both the best meals are away from the tourist strip. Cozumel's cooking is Yucatecan: cochinita pibil and panuchos in family places a few streets back in San Miguel, tacos around the main square at night and a cheap breakfast at the market.

Roatán eats Caribbean and Garifuna instead, with dishes built on coconut and fish, tapado on the north coast and baleadas from roadside stalls in the morning. Its restaurants are spread between West End and West Bay rather than gathered in one town.

Culture is thin on both islands, and anyone after great Maya cities or colonial towns has to go to the mainland. Cozumel has a little more to visit: the low, scattered ruins of San Gervasio, once a stop on a pilgrimage to Ixchel, the island museum on the waterfront and the lighthouse at Punta Sur.

On Roatán, the heritage is in the people rather than the buildings. The island has English-speaking Bay Islanders and the Garifuna village of Punta Gorda, and the stilt houses along the waterway at Oak Ridge are its prettiest sight.

Evenings on Cozumel revolve around San Miguel, the island's only real town. A drink on a rooftop terrace or a cover band on the waterfront makes a pleasant start, but the night is short. Its nicest moment may be Sunday, when islanders bring their families to the square. Anyone set on dancing until late has to cross to the mainland.

Roatán has the livelier evenings, and they depend on where you stay. West End feels sociable and barefoot, with drinks on the docks among people who live and work on the island. West Bay is the quiet alternative, with resort bars and a few tables on the sand. Neither island has a proper club, and because the dive boats leave early, most people are in bed well before city hours.

Both are diving islands first, each with a marine park of coral walls, turtles and rays. Roatán has more to offer outdoors overall. It sits on the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef, its dive sites are minutes from West End and it is a classic place to learn. Above water, its green hills and eastern mangroves offer forest walks and paddling.

Cozumel's walls at Palancar, Santa Rosa and Columbia are swept by a steady current, a style of drift diving that suits confident divers. On land the island is flat scrub, and the main outings are the crocodile lagoons at Punta Sur and a ride along the wild east coast.

Cozumel's position gives it a clear advantage. The ferry to Playa del Carmen takes under an hour, and from there the cliff-top ruins of Tulum, the cenote coast and the jungle city of Coba each fit into a long day. Organised tours make the connections easier.

Roatán's outings are mostly by boat. Neighbouring Utila and the protected Cayos Cochinos are both worth the trip, but La Ceiba on the mainland is mostly a place to pass through, and Copán is far beyond a day's reach.

Cozumel is the easier island with children. Chankanaab park combines a reef lagoon, a botanical garden and sea lions, and semi-submarine boats show the reef to non-swimmers. San Miguel is small enough to manage, with playgrounds in the square in the evening. The drawbacks are the sharp ironshore and the crowds on cruise days.

Roatán works as a simple beach stay in West Bay, with shallow water, plus zip-lines and animal parks for a change of scene. Medical care is basic, though, sand flies bother small children and the roads are unlit at night, so it suits older children and strong swimmers better.

On both islands you get around by taxi or a hired car or scooter, but the islands are a different shape. Cozumel has one flat paved road that runs from San Miguel round the southern tip to the empty east coast, an easy day's circuit, and its taxis charge fixed zone fares.

Roatán is a hilly ridge with a winding, sometimes potholed road. Shared minibuses link the main settlements and water taxis run between West End and West Bay, but taxi fares are agreed before you get in.

Neither island is worth a trip for the shopping, but Cozumel has more choice because it is a large cruise port with Mexico behind it. San Miguel's waterfront has jewellers and silver counters, Mexican crafts and tequila, and a few galleries on the side streets sell better-made pieces. Expect a hard sell when ships are in.

Roatán's offer is smaller and plainer. It is mostly souvenir stalls in West End and by the piers, with carved mahogany and a handful of galleries showing local paintings and Garifuna crafts. With almost no fashion or design, it is a place to pick up a keepsake or two rather than spend an afternoon shopping.

Costs are similar, and on both islands the total depends mostly on where you stay. On Cozumel, the cheaper option is San Miguel, with its dive hotels, market and taco stands, while resorts and daily boat dives make the island expensive for Mexico.

Roatán is expensive for Honduras because almost everything is shipped in, and West Bay resorts charge wider Caribbean prices. West End's hostels, food stalls and shared minibuses help on a budget, and the island's dive courses are among the cheapest in the region.

Neither island has a theatre or concert hall, and live music usually means a band in a bar. Each has one tradition worth seeing. Cozumel's carnival before Lent, among the oldest in Mexico, fills San Miguel with parades and comparsa dance troupes. Roatán has Garifuna drumming and the fast punta dance, best seen at village celebrations around Punta Gorda.

Both islands offer rest through their slow pace rather than any bathing tradition, and on both the spas are mostly inside resorts. Roatán adds yoga classes, small retreats and hammocks over the eastern mangroves. Cozumel's own extra is the temazcal, the Maya sweat lodge, and its adults-only resorts and empty east coast suit a quiet stay.