Dallas or Vail?

Neither city is a beach destination, and in both cooling off usually means a hotel pool. Dallas at least has warm water through its long summer, with sandy park beaches on reservoirs such as Lewisville Lake and Grapevine Lake, plus the Arlington water parks. Vail's small mountain lakes are good for paddling and sunbathing, but the water stays cold even in July.

Dallas eats far better. Smoked brisket sold by weight, Tex-Mex with frozen margaritas, a strong steakhouse tradition and taco trucks in Oak Cliff are only the start. The suburbs add Vietnamese and Chinese in Richardson and Garland, a Koreatown in Carrollton and South Asian food in Irving, though nearly all of it needs a car.

Vail's food is polished resort dining: fondue rooms, steak and game, Colorado lamb, elk and trout, and lodge lunches between runs. It has no cheap end and no food culture of its own, and many kitchens close during the spring and autumn lulls.

Dallas has real sights to fill a couple of days. The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza draws visitors from everywhere, the Arts District groups the Dallas Museum of Art, the Nasher and the Crow Museum within a few blocks, and Fair Park has its 1930s Art Deco halls.

Vail is a 1960s ski resort built to look Tyrolean, so its chalets and covered bridges are a backdrop rather than heritage. The Colorado Snowsports Museum and its story of the Tenth Mountain Division make a good hour, and the Betty Ford Alpine Gardens are pleasant in summer, but culture is not a reason to come.

Dallas offers a proper choice of nights out. Deep Ellum has dive bars and late crowds, Uptown and McKinney Avenue have cocktail lounges and patios, and Lower Greenville and Bishop Arts are more local. Last orders at 2am and ride-hails between districts are the main limits.

In Vail, evenings revolve around après-ski: packed slopeside terraces as the lifts close and a few bars running past midnight on winter weekends. In summer it is calmer, and in the off-seasons the town is nearly empty after dinner.

This is Vail's great strength. The ski area runs from groomed front-side slopes to the open Back Bowls and Blue Sky Basin, and in summer the gondolas lift hikers and bikers towards wilderness peaks above 4,000m, with fly fishing, rafting and golden aspens in autumn. At about 2,500m, you will notice the altitude on your first day.

Dallas has gentler, smaller pleasures: the White Rock Lake loop, the Katy Trail, the Great Trinity Forest and the limestone escarpments at Cedar Ridge Preserve. It is flat prairie country, and summer heat confines activity to early mornings.

Dallas has the stronger day out in Fort Worth, a commuter-train ride away. It has the Stockyards and its longhorn drive, plus the Kimbell Art Museum in Louis Kahn's building. Grapevine's wineries, the courthouse squares of McKinney and Denton, and Waco further south round out the list.

From Vail, the options are mostly other mountain towns: Beaver Creek, Breckenridge's Victorian main street and the old silver town of Leadville. Glenwood Springs, down the canyon, is the most rewarding. Both places need a car for nearly every outing.

Dallas has more to keep children busy. There are Six Flags and a water park in Arlington, two large zoos, the Perot Museum, the Dallas World Aquarium and the autumn State Fair at Fair Park. The catch is long car journeys and summer heat.

Vail works well only for families who ski. It has large ski schools, a car-free village and summer ropes courses, tubing and a mountain coaster at the top of the gondola. It has no zoo, aquarium or major museum, and the altitude and winter cold are hard on toddlers.

Vail is far easier once you are there. The village and Lionshead are pedestrian, lifts leave from town, and a free bus runs the length of the valley, so many visitors manage a week without a car. Getting in is harder, with no rail link and a pass that can close in snow.

Dallas is a city built for the car, and its sights lie miles apart along freeways. DART light rail handles the airports, Deep Ellum, Fair Park and downtown, and the free M-Line streetcar links Uptown. Beyond those areas, most visitors drive or use ride-hailing.

Dallas is a serious shopping city, the home of Neiman Marcus. It has NorthPark Center, Highland Park Village's 1930s Spanish-style arcades for the European fashion houses, the Galleria, and Western wear from everyday boot shops to custom makers. Bishop Arts adds independent boutiques.

Vail's lanes sell upmarket ski clothing, jewellery, furs, boots and mountain landscape paintings to a wealthy resort crowd. That is fine for gear or a souvenir, but the range is narrow and there is nothing inexpensive.

Dallas costs far less. Hotels undercut the coastal cities, barbecue and tacos are cheap, and many museums are free, though a hire car, tax and tip add up.

Vail sits at the very top of North American prices. Slopeside lodging, lift tickets, ski school and meals are all well above normal levels. Staying down the valley or visiting outside winter softens this a little, but not much.

Dallas has a year-round season in a cluster of notable buildings. The Dallas Symphony plays in I. M. Pei's Meyerson, the Winspear hosts opera and Broadway tours, and the Wyly hosts the Dallas Theater Center. Deep Ellum adds blues, rock and hip-hop most nights.

Vail's arts life is shorter but impressive. In July and August, Bravo! Vail brings orchestras to the open-air Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater, alongside the Vail Dance Festival and a jazz festival. Through winter there is little beyond après-ski bands.

Vail is the better place to unwind. Hotel spas offer massage after skiing, outdoor hot tubs under the peaks and saunas, and the town is quiet outside peak weekends. The mineral pools and vapour caves of Glenwood Springs are an hour away.

Dallas is brisk and car-bound, with polished hotel spas and day-spa chains. Its standout is a large Korean-style bathhouse in the north of the city, good for an all-day soak and lounge.