Crete or Sardinia?

Both islands are top beach destinations, so the choice comes down to the kind of coast you want. Crete's best beaches are in the far west, with the pink sand and lagoons of Elafonissi and the bay at Balos. On the Libyan Sea side the south coast turns to quiet pebble coves reached by boat or path, like Preveli.

Sardinia has granite coves and pale sand around La Maddalena, white pebble bays below cliffs on the Gulf of Orosei, and wading-depth water at La Pelosa. Its main advantage is that when the mistral blows, a sheltered coast is usually a short drive away.

You eat about equally well on both, but the flavours come from different places. Crete's cooking is built on olive oil, wild greens, graviera cheese and dakos. The best meals are in village tavernas and the backstreets of Chania and Rethymno, usually followed by a free glass of raki.

Sardinia cooks like a shepherd. Expect suckling pig roasted over myrtle, pane carasau, culurgiones and seadas, with Cannonau red and Vermentino white wine. The best meals are long farm menus at hill agriturismi. On both islands, the food along the resort strips is generic.

Crete has the stronger and more concentrated heritage. Knossos and the Heraklion Archaeological Museum, with the frescoes and the Phaistos Disc, are world-class. Chania's Venetian harbour, Rethymno's fortress and mosques, Spinalonga and Arkadi add centuries of later history.

Sardinia's past is just as unusual but more scattered and less famous. Its Bronze Age nuraghi peak at Su Nuraxi, and Cagliari's museum holds the Mont'e Prama giants. Nora, Tharros and Alghero's Catalan streets round things out. You need a car to see the main sights on either island.

The two are close for going out, but the late-night scenes attract very different crowds. Crete's party strips at Malia and Hersonissos are loud, cheap-feeling package resorts for young groups. The evening bars in Chania, Rethymno and Heraklion are full of Greek students, so there is life outside high summer.

Sardinia's clubbing is the dressy, expensive beach-club scene around Porto Cervo, and it fades after August. Otherwise there are Cagliari's wine bars and Alghero's aperitivo crowd on the ramparts.

Crete's walking is the more varied and the easier to dip into. Samaria and shorter, quieter gorges such as Imbros and Aradena cut down from the White Mountains, which hold snow into spring. The coast path from Loutro to Agia Roumeli links villages along the Libyan Sea, the E4 crosses the whole island, and kri-kri goats survive in the western peaks.

Sardinia is at least as serious at the top end. The Gorropu gorge in the Supramonte is one of Europe's deepest canyons, the Selvaggio Blu is a demanding multi-day cliff trek, and the Gennargentu has cork and holm oak forests with mouflon. It also has more to do on the water, with sea-cliff climbing and kayaking at Cala Gonone, sailing and diving around La Maddalena, and kitesurfing at Porto Pollo.

The sea crossings show the difference best. From Heraklion the fast ferry reaches Santorini in about two hours, which makes a long day in the Cyclades. From Santa Teresa Gallura, the cliff town of Bonifacio in Corsica is only an hour away. On land, Crete's best days out are its other towns, the wine villages of Peza and Archanes, the potters of Margarites and the mountain villages of Anogia and the Amari valley.

In Sardinia, what you can reach depends more on your base. The north has the Alghero, Bosa and Capo Caccia circuit. Cagliari has Carloforte and the old Sulcis mines. The east coast leads inland to the Mamoiada mask makers and the Cannonau wineries around Jerzu.

Families do equally well on either island, as long as the trip is built around the beach. Crete has a bit more to fill a day away from the sand, with waterparks along the north coast and the large aquarium at Gournes. Elafonissi's warm lagoon is ideal for toddlers.

In Sardinia the days revolve almost entirely around the sea. Chia, the Costa Rei and La Pelosa have safe shallow water, but there are few attractions made for children. On both islands, plan around the midday summer heat and long drives on winding roads.

Both are large, mountainous islands where hiring a car is effectively required and every journey takes longer than it looks. Crete's one real help is its reliable bus line along the north coast, linking Chania, Rethymno, Heraklion and Agios Nikolaos. That makes a town-based stay possible without a car.

In Sardinia, the trains are slow and the buses rarely reach the beaches. Its advantage is three airports, so flying into Cagliari, Olbia or Alghero, whichever is nearest your base, saves hours of driving.

Neither island is a shopping destination, but Sardinia has more worth buying. Alghero's coral, filigree gold, cork goods and Pattada knives are distinctive, and Porto Cervo adds luxury boutiques in summer.

Crete's offer is narrower. It centres on Chania's leather lane and covered market, plus thyme honey, olive oil and pottery from Margarites. Beyond those, it is mostly identical souvenir shops.

Crete is the easier island on the budget. Village tavernas and family-run apartments are good value, and its prices stay well below the famous Cycladic islands. Costs only climb noticeably around Elounda and Chania's old town in summer.

Sardinia varies far more. The Costa Smeralda in July and August is among the costliest coasts in the Mediterranean. Cagliari, Alghero and Ogliastra are moderate, and agriturismo menus are generous. On both islands, June and September are the best balance of warm sea and lower prices.

Crete's music is a living tradition rather than a programme. You hear the lyra and lute, improvised mantinades verses and fast circle dances in the music tavernas of Rethymno and Chania, at village saints'-day festivals and above all in Anogia. Heraklion and Chania add summer festivals in fortresses and open-air theatres, but the hotel Greek nights are staged for visitors.

Sardinia has the opera house. Cagliari's Teatro Lirico runs an opera and concert season, though little happens outside the capital for most of the year. Its traditional sound is quite different: the deep four-voice canto a tenore of Barbagia and the launeddas reed pipes. Summer adds Time in Jazz in Berchidda and the costumed Sant'Efisio procession.

On both islands, unwinding comes from the slow pace rather than from spas. Crete has no working bathing tradition, and its serious spas cluster around Elounda and the Gulf of Mirabello. Its quietest corners are car-free Loutro and the hill villages.

Sardinia has slightly more to offer. Warm water still flows beside the Roman baths at Fordongianus, and Sardara has thermal hotels. Ogliastra and the inland agriturismi suit a very unhurried stay.