Deer Valley or San Diego?

There is no real contest here. Deer Valley is a mountain resort, and swimming there means the sandy shore of Jordanelle Reservoir on a hot summer afternoon or, more often, a hotel pool.

San Diego has some 110km of Pacific coast. There is the wide sand at Coronado, the boardwalk of Mission and Pacific Beach, gentle surf at La Jolla Shores and the cliff-backed beaches of North County. The water is cool for much of the year, so plan swimming for late summer.

San Diego's food has more character. There are Baja-style fish tacos, taco shops open late, the California burrito, a craft beer scene built on West Coast IPAs and the long run of Asian kitchens on Convoy Street. It is casual food, and that is its strength.

Deer Valley's dining sits at the top end, with resort lodges on the mountain and a cluster of steakhouses, sushi and bistros along Park City's Main Street. It works well for a comfortable dinner after skiing, but there is no local cuisine, no street food and little at the cheaper end.

Neither is a great museum city, but San Diego gives you a real day or two of sightseeing. There are the exposition buildings and museums of Balboa Park, the USS Midway on the waterfront, the adobes of Old Town and the first of California's missions.

Deer Valley has an afternoon's worth at most. Park City's restored silver-mining Main Street, its museum in the old city hall and the ski jumps at the 2002 Olympic park are the whole list.

San Diego has more choice at night. The Gaslamp Quarter has clubs and rooftop bars, Pacific Beach has a rowdy beach-town strip, and North Park and Hillcrest have cocktail bars and taprooms, with Hillcrest at the centre of the city's gay nightlife. Even so, most of the city is quiet well before last call.

In Deer Valley, a night out means an après-ski drink on Park City's Main Street, which gets busy on ski-season weekends, followed by an early night before first chair. Clubs barely figure, and the lodges offer fireside lounges rather than a scene.

Deer Valley is the stronger base for the outdoors, above all for snow. It has its own groomed runs, Park City Mountain next door, and the deep powder of Alta, Snowbird, Brighton and Solitude about an hour away. In summer the ski runs turn into linked biking and hiking trails, with fly-fishing on the Provo River and the Uinta lakes beyond. At around 2,000m, the altitude takes a day to get used to.

San Diego's outdoors is gentler and faces the sea. You get the bluffs of Torrey Pines, seals at La Jolla Cove, tide pools, surf breaks and whales passing in winter, with mountains and the Anza-Borrego desert inland. It works all year, but has no slopes to match.

San Diego's outings are more varied, mostly because of the border. Tijuana is a trolley ride away, and the Valle de Guadalupe vineyards are about two hours south. On the US side there are Temecula's wineries, the apple-pie town of Julian and beach towns up the coast by train, though most trips need a car.

From Deer Valley, Salt Lake City and Temple Square are about forty minutes away. The Heber Valley adds Swiss-styled Midway, a steam railway and the arts village at Sundance. These are pleasant but modest places, and the grander sights nearby are mountains rather than towns.

San Diego is one of the easiest family destinations anywhere. The zoo and its Safari Park, SeaWorld, Legoland, the Birch Aquarium and calm water at Mission Bay all sit in a climate that rarely spoils a plan. The main effort is the driving between them.

Deer Valley works well for families who ski, with good children's ski schools, beginner runs free of snowboarders and lodging you can ski back to. The Olympic park adds tubing and an alpine coaster. Off the slopes there is little for children, and lessons and lift access make it a costly family trip.

Deer Valley is easier to manage without a car, as long as you stay local. Free buses link the base areas with Main Street and Park City Mountain, and slopeside lodging lets the car stay parked. Trips to Salt Lake City or the Cottonwood Canyons still mean driving on winter roads.

San Diego's downtown, Little Italy and waterfront are walkable and linked by trolley. But La Jolla, the beaches and the big family parks are far apart and the buses are slow, so most visitors hire a car or use ride-hailing.

Park City's Main Street sells the mountain: ski and outdoor gear, western boots and hats, art galleries and upmarket boutiques in the old mining-town storefronts. There is also an outlet centre at Kimball Junction for bargains. For anything broader, you have to go to Salt Lake City.

San Diego covers far more ground. There are luxury brands and department stores at Fashion Valley, vintage and independent shops in Little Italy and North Park, Mexican crafts and pottery in Old Town and an outlet centre by the border. Even so, no single street is worth the trip on its own.

Both are costly, but Deer Valley is in another league. Slopeside lodging is mostly luxury, lift access is priced at the very top of the North American market, and meals on the mountain cost to match. Summer is easier on the budget, and staying in the Heber Valley or Salt Lake City cuts the bill.

San Diego is expensive too, especially in summer and at the big attractions. Still, taco shops, taprooms, free beaches and the gardens of Balboa Park let you keep some days cheap, which Deer Valley rarely allows.

San Diego has the more serious stage. The Old Globe in Balboa Park and the La Jolla Playhouse are producing companies that have sent shows to Broadway. The city also has a summer symphony season on the bay and a short opera season.

Deer Valley's highlight also comes in summer: the Utah Symphony's outdoor festival at Snow Park, with picnics on the lawn. The rest of the year, the 1920s Egyptian Theatre on Main Street puts on plays, comedy and small concerts, and winter evenings mostly go to dinner.

Deer Valley is slightly better for a restful stay, because the whole resort is built for comfort. It has quiet slopeside lodges, hot tubs on snowy terraces and polished hotel spas, and the warm spring inside the Homestead Crater at Midway is about half an hour away.

San Diego offers a different kind of rest: mild weather, sunset walks and the long-standing yoga and meditation culture of Encinitas, with resort spas in La Jolla, Coronado and Carlsbad. Downtown and Pacific Beach are not quiet, so choose where you stay with care.