Dahab or Jerusalem?

Dahab has the better water, and it is right in town. You step off a jetty or rocks onto coral in clear, warm sea, and the Lagoon has sand and calm, shallow water. Wide sandy beaches are rare, though, so think snorkelling and lazing in a café with cushions rather than lying on a sunbed.

Jerusalem has no swimming at all. Tel Aviv's long sandy Mediterranean beaches are about an hour away, and the Dead Sea gives you an odd, rocky float. Both make a good day out, but neither is a reason to choose the city.

Jerusalem is much the better place to eat. Mahane Yehuda market, the hummus counters and ka'ak carts of the Old City, and Kurdish, Iraqi and Yemenite Jewish cooking give it real depth. You do need to plan around kosher rules and the Shabbat closures in the west of the city.

In Dahab, the waterfront mostly serves simple grilled fish, eaten on cushions by the sea. The cheap Egyptian places in Assala, with their foul, falafel and koshary, are the best meals in town, and beyond them the menus lean towards backpacker favourites.

This is the widest gap of all. Jerusalem's walled Old City holds the Western Wall, the Holy Sepulchre and the Dome of the Rock, with Bronze Age layers underneath, and the city's museums would justify a trip on their own.

Dahab has no museums or monuments. Its Bedouin roots show in Assala and in the tea stops around town, and the real heritage of the region is St Catherine's Monastery, two hours inland.

Neither is a party town, but Jerusalem has more going on. Mahane Yehuda turns into small bars and grills after dark, and there are pubs around Nahalat Shiva and the German Colony, though Friday night is quiet and clubbers take the train to Tel Aviv. A night in Dahab means a beer or a shisha by the water, and most of the town is asleep before midnight because it is diving early.

Dahab has the more dramatic outdoors. There is world-class reef diving and freediving just offshore, steady wind for kitesurfing on the Lagoon, and the granite mountains of South Sinai right behind the town, with the Coloured Canyon, Ras Abu Galum and the night climb up Mount Sinai.

Jerusalem's landscapes are gentler and take more travel to reach. You can walk the forest trails around Sataf and Ein Karem, hike Wadi Qelt in the desert, see the oasis at Ein Gedi or climb the Snake Path to Masada at dawn. There is no water sport to speak of.

Jerusalem is a superb base for day trips. Bethlehem is next door, and Masada, Qumran and the Dead Sea, Tel Aviv and Jaffa, Caesarea and even Acre and Haifa can all be done in a day.

Dahab has one outstanding outing, St Catherine's Monastery with Mount Sinai. Beyond that there is only the resort sprawl of Sharm el-Sheikh and quiet Nuweiba, so most excursions head into the desert or out to sea rather than to other towns.

Jerusalem has more that is made for children: the Biblical Zoo, the aquarium beside it, the Bloomfield Science Museum, and Hezekiah's Tunnel to wade through. The stepped lanes of the Old City are no place for a stroller, though, and the holy sites have a serious mood.

Dahab works best for children who are confident swimmers. The Lagoon is shallow and sheltered, and camel rides go down well. But the coral calls for reef shoes, the summer heat is hard on small children, and serious medical care is in Sharm el-Sheikh.

Jerusalem is easier to get around. The centre is walkable, if hilly, the light rail and buses cover the rest, and a fast train runs to Tel Aviv and the airport. Everything stops for Shabbat, though.

In Dahab you can walk the 2km promenade from the Lighthouse to Mashraba, but there is no public transport at all. The Lagoon, the Blue Hole and the mountains all mean a taxi or an organised trip, and getting there means an hour's drive from Sharm el-Sheikh.

Jerusalem has far more worth bringing home. Choose from olive-wood carvings and spices in the Old City souq, hand-painted Armenian ceramics, Judaica in silver and glass, and the international brands of Mamilla. Dahab has a row of promenade stalls selling scarves, Bedouin embroidery and souvenirs. Its one real buy is diving or freediving gear.

Dahab is far cheaper. Simple guesthouses, local meals and taxis cost very little, and dive courses are cheap by international standards, so long stays are common. Alcohol and the few upmarket hotels are the exceptions.

Jerusalem is expensive, especially for hotels during festivals and the pilgrimage seasons, and for sit-down meals. Free holy sites, reasonable public transport and hummus or falafel lunches help, but a comfortable stay still adds up quickly.

Jerusalem has a modest but real calendar. There is the Jerusalem Symphony Orchestra, the Jerusalem Theatre, the Israel Festival and summer concerts in the Sultan's Pool, though most plays are in Hebrew. Dahab has none of this. The most you will find is a band or DJ in a promenade bar, or Bedouin music around a campfire in the desert.

Dahab is the more restful of the two. You do not get spas, but you get a slow seafront pace, sunsets over the Sinai, and cheap yoga, massage and breathwork among a community of long-stay travellers.

Jerusalem is crowded and intense. For real pampering you head an hour down to the Dead Sea resorts for mud and mineral pools, and the city's own calm comes from quiet gardens and the hush of Shabbat.