Deer Valley or South Lake Tahoe?

South Lake Tahoe has real lake beaches right at the edge of town: Pope, Baldwin and Kiva on the south shore, Nevada Beach and Zephyr Cove over the state line, and the boulder coves of Sand Harbor further round. The water is beautifully clear but cold, so swimming is mostly a July and August thing.

At Deer Valley, the nearest swimming is the sandy shore at Jordanelle Reservoir or Deer Creek further down the valley. Both are boating lakes first, and most summer visitors end up in the hotel pool.

Deer Valley eats better, thanks to Park City's Main Street. For a town this size it has a lot of steakhouses, sushi bars and modern American bistros, and the turkey chili at the base area is a skiers' ritual of its own.

South Lake Tahoe eats like a resort: casino steakhouses and buffets, plus taquerias, pizza and brewpubs along Highway 50. Quality is uneven and weekends mean long waits. The local craft beer is the highlight, and many visitors end up cooking in the cabin.

Neither town is a cultural trip, and each has about an afternoon of sights. Deer Valley's history is next door in Park City: a restored silver-mining Main Street with old mine headframes on the slopes, the town museum in the old city hall, and the ski-jump towers left from the 2002 Winter Games. South Lake Tahoe's history is the lakeside summer life of wealthy San Franciscans, told by the estates at the Tallac Historic Site and Vikingsholm at the head of Emerald Bay.

Both are small-town scenes. Deer Valley gives you a street to wander: Park City's Main Street, with saloons and cocktail bars that fill after skiing. It closes early, and Utah's liquor laws always apply.

South Lake Tahoe has no bar district at all, but a short walk into Nevada the casino bars and lounges stay open all night. You can stay out later there, but there is little choice of where to go.

Both are first-rate mountain bases, but they are good at different things. Deer Valley's strength is skiing: its own groomed slopes, the huge Park City Mountain next door, and the deep powder of Alta, Snowbird, Brighton and Solitude about an hour over the ridge. In summer the ski runs become linked trails for biking and hiking.

South Lake Tahoe is built around the lake itself. Emerald Bay, the granite basins of the Desolation Wilderness and the Tahoe Rim Trail make it the stronger choice in summer and autumn, and Heavenly's gondola rises straight from town in winter.

South Lake Tahoe has the better day trips, most of them about the Gold Rush and the silver boom. Over the mountains are Virginia City's boardwalks and saloons, Genoa and Carson City, and down Highway 50 are Coloma, Placerville and the Amador wine country. Reno and a drive round the lake add variety.

From Deer Valley, Salt Lake City is the one big outing, with Temple Square and its museums. Beyond that there are smaller stops: Swiss-styled Midway, the steam railway in the Heber Valley and the arts village at Sundance.

Deer Valley is the easier winter trip with children. It has well-run ski schools, wide beginner runs with no snowboarders and lodging where you can often ski to the door, and the Olympic Park adds tubing, an alpine coaster and ziplines. On a bad-weather day, the zoo and children's museums in Salt Lake City are within reach, but lessons and lift access add up quickly for a family.

South Lake Tahoe comes into its own in summer, when shallow sandy beaches, paddleboards, bike paths through the pines and the short Taylor Creek trails keep children busy. There is nothing built for them indoors, so a stormy day is harder to fill, and the casino corner at Stateline is not somewhere to linger with children.

You can leave the car parked far more easily at Deer Valley. Much of the lodging is ski-in, ski-out, free buses link the base areas with Main Street and Park City Mountain, and the airport is about forty minutes away.

In South Lake Tahoe only the small core around Stateline and the gondola is walkable. Beaches, trailheads and the other ski areas are spread out, Highway 50 crawls on summer weekends, and winter storms can bring chain controls on the passes from Sacramento and Reno.

Deer Valley has more to browse because Park City's Main Street is close by. Its old façades hold art galleries, western boots and hats and upmarket boutiques, and there is an outlet centre at Kimball Junction. South Lake Tahoe's shops are practical: gear and rental shops, the supermarket run for the cabin and souvenirs around the gondola base.

The gap between the two is widest on a winter ski week. Deer Valley has no cheaper tier to step down to on the mountain, because the whole resort is built for the top end. The only real saving is to sleep further down the valley and drive in, and that gives up the ski-to-the-door ease that is much of the reason to choose it. Summer softens the bill somewhat, but it stays a high-end place to stay.

South Lake Tahoe is no bargain on a peak ski weekend either, and its big-resort lift tickets are steep too. The difference is the range of places to sleep in town, from casino towers to motels and cabins, so you can cut the cost a long way by travelling midweek or out of season without staying further out. In summer Tahoe pulls further ahead, because its main draw, the lake shore and the high country around it, costs almost nothing once you are there.

Neither is worth planning a trip around for shows, and both are at their best on summer evenings outdoors. The programmes differ in kind. Deer Valley leans classical, with the Utah Symphony's festival at the Snow Park amphitheatre and plays and concerts at Park City's restored 1920s Egyptian Theatre. South Lake Tahoe relies on the casino showrooms for touring rock, country and comedy, with Shakespeare on the beach at Sand Harbor in summer.

Deer Valley is the more restful stay because the resort itself is built for comfort. Quiet slopeside lodges, fireplaces, hot tubs on snowy terraces and some of the most polished hotel spas in the mountain West make rest part of the routine. Homestead Crater's warm spring pool in Midway adds an unusual soak.

South Lake Tahoe's spas mostly sit inside casino hotels and ski lodges. It makes up for this with natural springs, though: Grover Hot Springs in its alpine meadow and the Carson Valley pools are both within an easy drive.