Culebra or St Thomas?

These are two of the best beach islands in the region, and their bays look much alike. Flamenco and Magens Bay are both long, sheltered horseshoes of white sand. The difference is how they feel. Culebra's beaches are quieter and less developed. Flamenco has its painted tanks in the shallows, Tamarindo and Melones have reefs a few strokes from shore, and on Culebrita you can find turtles at Tortuga Beach. Shade and facilities are scarce, though.

St Thomas has more services and more choice of base. You can stay within walking distance of the sand at Sapphire or Secret Harbour, and St John's north shore is about twenty minutes away by ferry. The cost is crowds at Magens Bay and Coki Point when cruise ships are in.

St Thomas is clearly the better island for eating. There is real West Indian cooking to look for, such as johnnycakes, saltfish pates, kallaloo and goat stew from roadside stands and lunch counters, and Frenchtown and Red Hook have sit-down restaurants with water views and fresh fish.

On Culebra, eating mostly means grilled fish and burgers in Dewey, food trucks selling mofongo and empanadillas, and a cooler filled at the grocery store. Menus get shorter when the ferry has been light, and a good fish dinner in town counts as the night out.

St Thomas has the history. Charlotte Amalie keeps a Danish colonial core of warehouses, alleys and step streets such as the 99 Steps, as well as Fort Christian and the sand-floored synagogue, which is one of the oldest in the Americas. Together they make a satisfying day.

Culebra has very little of this. You can see Dewey's canal and drawbridge, visit a small museum in the old navy powder magazine about the decades of bombing practice, and take a boat to the ruined lighthouse on Culebrita. Even its best-known landmark, the tanks, sits on the beach.

Neither island has clubs, but St Thomas at least has a night out. Red Hook's open-air bars by the ferry dock fill with boat crews and residents until late on weekends, and Frenchtown adds a few bars by the water. On Culebra, evenings are a sunset drink in Dewey, now and then a weekend band, and the island is asleep soon after.

The two islands are about level on nature, but the outdoors works differently on each. Culebra's best nature is underwater and right on the doorstep. There is the wildlife refuge, the Luis Pena reserve off the west coast, green turtles off Tamarindo, and seabird and turtle nesting on the remote cays. On land it is low and dry.

St Thomas is steeper and greener, but its own trails are few. Its strength is in the water around it: forest trails and a snorkel trail in St John's national park, and some of the best sailing waters in the Caribbean, with charters, kayaks and dive boats leaving from Red Hook.

Both islands send you out by boat, but Culebra's boats go to empty places and St Thomas's go to other towns. From Culebra the usual outing is a water taxi or kayak to Culebrita and the uninhabited cays, which is really more beach time than a change of scene. Vieques, with its bioluminescent bay, and Fajardo on the main island are hard to fit into a day, so most visitors stay put.

St Thomas offers far more choice. Cruz Bay on St John is a short ride from Red Hook, and Water Island is a quiet hop from the harbour. With a passport you can reach Tortola's Road Town, the beach bars of Jost Van Dyke or the boulders of Virgin Gorda in the British Virgin Islands, and the Danish colonial towns of St Croix fill a longer day.

St Thomas is easier with children. It has calm, shallow beaches, plus Coral World's undersea observatory and touch pools next to Coki Point, the Skyride above the harbour and resorts set up for families. Expect tiring outings on its winding roads, though.

Culebra suits families who are happy with sea and sand alone. Flamenco is shallow, and at Tamarindo older children can see turtles from waist-deep water. But nothing on the island is built for children, medical care is limited, and the ferry or small plane makes it harder with toddlers.

Both islands take effort to get around, but the effort comes at different points. On Culebra the hard part is getting there: a ferry from Ceiba that fills up and runs late, or a small plane. Once you arrive, distances are short, with shared vans to Flamenco and a golf cart for the rest.

St Thomas is simple to reach, with direct flights from the US mainland. The work starts on the island itself, with left-side driving on steep roads, safari taxis on fixed routes and heavy traffic around the capital on cruise days. The ferries to St John are frequent and easy, though.

St Thomas is one of the Caribbean's best-known places to shop duty-free. Main Street and its stone warehouses, and Havensight by the cruise dock, sell jewellery, watches, perfume and rum, and there are hot sauces and local art on the side. Culebra has a few beachwear and souvenir shops and some local painters and jewellers, so buy anything you need before the crossing.

Neither is a bargain, but Culebra is the cheaper of the two. Prices are at US levels and much of the food arrives by boat. Still, a rental with a kitchen, beaches that cost nothing and a cheap ferry keep a week within reason, and a golf cart is the main extra.

St Thomas charges near the top of the Caribbean range for winter rooms, and per-person taxi fares quickly add up for families. Local lunch counters and duty-free rum are the only real ways to save.

St Thomas has more to offer, mostly through living tradition. Steel pan, calypso, quelbe and stilt-walking mocko jumbies all come out at Carnival in spring, and the Reichhold Center's open-air amphitheatre stages occasional concerts and dance. On Culebra, live performance means a weekend band in a Dewey bar and the yearly patron saint festival.

On Culebra, rest means quiet rather than treatments. There are no big resorts, little traffic, early nights and long empty afternoons, but beyond a few independent massage therapists and some yoga at guesthouses there is nothing to book.

St Thomas does better if you want to be looked after as well. The larger beach resorts have spas with massage and sea views, and the east end and north shore are calm places to slow down. For a restful stay, base yourself well away from the cruise harbour.