Daytona Beach or Miami Beach?

Both cities face the open Atlantic across wide sand, but Miami Beach is the better place to swim. Its water is warmer through the year, usually calm and lifeguarded along the whole shore, and the pale sand runs from the pastel lifeguard huts of South Beach to the quieter parks of North Beach. The cost is company: in the busy stretches you share it with music, vendors and crowds.

Daytona's beach is much longer and firmer, so firm that cars drive on marked stretches, and there is far more room to spread out. The surf is livelier, the water greener and rip currents a real danger. That suits surfers at Ponce Inlet and New Smyrna Beach more than young swimmers. In winter its sea is too cool for most people.

Daytona's best meal is fried shrimp or a grouper sandwich on a deck over the Halifax River or down by Ponce Inlet. Beyond those fish camps and the Southern breakfasts, chain restaurants line the main roads, and you won't find much fine dining.

Miami Beach eats far better, with a strong Latin American influence: croquetas and cafecito from takeaway windows, Florida stone crabs in winter, and arepas and ceviche, as well as hotel and chef-led dining rooms. Skip the tourist menus on Ocean Drive. The side streets, North Beach's Latin cafés and Little Havana across the causeway are much better.

Miami Beach has the stronger sightseeing because of its buildings. The Art Deco Historic District and the Miami Modern hotels further north make an interwar resort townscape you can explore on foot. The Wolfsonian, the Bass and the Holocaust Memorial add to it, and the larger museums are a short trip across the bay.

Daytona's culture is about speed. The Speedway tour and the history of land-speed records on the sand come first. After that there is the Museum of Arts and Sciences with its Cuban art, and the climb up Florida's tallest lighthouse at Ponce Inlet. A day or two covers it all.

Miami Beach is the place for a night out. South Beach clubs with guest DJs fill after midnight and run until dawn, and afternoon pool parties and lobby bars built for being seen fill the hours before. It is glamorous and expensive, with door policies and table service, while Sunset Harbour and Mid-Beach have quieter cocktail and wine bars.

Daytona goes out in boots rather than heels. Biker saloons on Main Street, sports bars and tiki bars at sunset make up most of it. The town only fills up during Bike Week, Biketoberfest and race weeks, and anyone looking for dancing will find little choice.

Both are flat coastal places where nature means water and wildlife, but the experiences differ. Around Daytona the draws are lagoons and refuges: kayaking among dolphins on the Mosquito Lagoon, undeveloped dunes at Canaveral National Seashore, some of Florida's best birding at Merritt Island, and manatees at Blue Spring in winter.

Miami Beach is better for life under the water. You can snorkel and dive on the offshore reefs and wrecks, explore the reefs and keys of Biscayne National Park, or paddle the mangroves at Oleta River. The Everglades, with alligators and sawgrass boardwalks, are an hour's drive away.

Daytona is the better base for excursions. St Augustine, with its Spanish fort and old streets, is an hour north, Kennedy Space Center a little over an hour south, and Orlando's parks and the lakeside streets of Winter Park an hour inland. DeLand and New Smyrna Beach are closer still.

From Miami Beach, most outings go to mainland Miami: Vizcaya, Coral Gables and the Wynwood murals. Fort Lauderdale, Palm Beach and Key Largo are each about an hour and a half away, but there is little older heritage within reach and Key West is too far for a day.

Families do equally well in either, for different reasons. Daytona has more to do on land: arcades and small rides by the boardwalk, a water park, mini-golf and the planetarium, with the Orlando theme parks an hour away. The rough surf means children should stay close to the lifeguards.

Miami Beach has gentler, warmer water and lifeguards along the whole shore, and Mid-Beach and North Beach are calm enough for young children. Little on the island itself is built for them, though, and the zoo and science museum mean a trip to the mainland.

Miami Beach is far easier without a car. South Beach is flat and compact, free trolleys and buses run up Collins Avenue, and bike share and the beachwalk make cycling a pleasure. The difficulty comes when you leave the island, with no rail link and traffic on the causeways.

Daytona has to be driven. Hotels, sights and restaurants are spread along wide roads on both sides of the river, and the buses are too infrequent to rely on. The beach itself is the one good route on foot or by bike, and big events bring the roads to a standstill.

Miami Beach has two real shopping areas. Lincoln Road is a palm-shaded pedestrian mall of international chains, nicer for a stroll than for finds. Bal Harbour, at the island's northern tip, gathers the big European fashion and jewellery houses.

Daytona's shopping is purely practical: an outlet centre, a regional mall and beach shops for towels and swimwear. Its one quirk is the motorcycle gear on Main Street, and Beach Street downtown has a few independent shops and galleries.

Daytona is the cheaper of the two by some distance. Older oceanfront motels and condo rentals are plentiful and casual seafood keeps meals modest, though the hire car adds up. Avoid the Daytona 500 and Bike Week, when room rates jump.

Miami Beach is expensive, especially oceanfront in winter, and resort fees, parking and service charges push bills beyond the headline rates. Staying in North Beach or on side streets, travelling in summer and eating at Cuban windows all help, and the beach itself is free.

Miami Beach has the more serious arts life. The New World Symphony plays in its Frank Gehry hall and sometimes projects concerts onto the outside wall for audiences on the lawn. Miami City Ballet is based on the island, and the Jackie Gleason and Colony theatres host touring and smaller shows from autumn to spring.

Daytona has a modest calendar. A winter series brings visiting orchestras, the Peabody Auditorium stages touring Broadway shows and comedy, and the oceanfront bandshell holds free summer concerts. For anything bigger, people drive to Orlando.

Miami Beach does pampering better. Its large resort spas have hydrotherapy circuits with saunas, steam rooms and plunge pools, and sunrise yoga on the sand is part of the morning. Stay in Mid-Beach or towards Surfside rather than South Beach for a restful week.

Daytona has only a handful of resort and day spas, so rest there means the slow pace of a beach town: early walks on the hard sand, long afternoons by a condo pool, and sunset over the river. Check the event calendar first, because race weeks and Bike Week end that calm.