Denver or Durango, Colorado?

Neither city is a place for a beach day, and the difference lies in what you do to cool off. Around Denver, people use the sandy reservoir beaches at Cherry Creek and Chatfield or the public pools. In Durango, people float down the Animas through town on inner tubes or take a cold dip at Lake Nighthorse or Vallecito.

Both have strong beer and green chile, but Denver has much more range. Vietnamese and Mexican cooking runs along Federal Boulevard, there are food halls and chef-run kitchens in Highland and LoHi, and bison and lamb appear on many menus.

Durango does small-town Western food well, with steakhouses, hearty breakfasts, local trout and an unusual number of breweries for its size. Cooking from further afield is limited, though, and after a few nights you will have tried most of the town.

Denver is the place for sights. The Capitol, the Denver Art Museum with its Native American collection, the Clyfford Still Museum and the restored Union Station are enough for two or three full days.

Durango's history centres on the railway: the steam depot, the roundhouse museum and a few blocks of Victorian brick and sandstone. Add the Southwestern collection at the college, and you will have seen everything in a couple of hours.

Denver gives you a real choice of evenings: game-night crowds in LoDo, cocktail bars in RiNo, dive bars on East Colfax, and a small club scene for dancing until 2am.

In Durango, an evening means a taproom, a patio on Main Avenue or a saloon with a piano player. There is hardly any dancing, and the streets go quiet well before midnight.

Both are excellent bases for the outdoors, and the difference is how close the wild country is. From Denver you drive to Red Rocks, the Boulder Flatirons and Rocky Mountain National Park, and the city has long bike paths along its rivers.

In Durango, the outdoors starts on the edge of town. Mountain-bike singletrack, the start of the Colorado Trail, rafting on the Animas and the high Weminuche Wilderness are all close by, and the ski resort is half an hour away instead of two hours on a busy I-70.

Durango has the more memorable days out. Mesa Verde's cliff dwellings, the steam train to Silverton, the Aztec ruins and the mountain road to Ouray mix ancient sites with mining history in a way Denver's surroundings cannot.

Denver's excursions are pleasant and easy to reach, though: Boulder, Golden, the Victorian mining towns of Georgetown and Idaho Springs, and Colorado Springs to the south. They are small Western towns rather than major sights.

Denver gives families more to do whatever the weather. City Park has both the zoo and the dinosaur halls of the Museum of Nature & Science, and the children's museum, aquarium and amusement park are close together by the South Platte.

Durango is great fun on a sunny day, with the steam train, tubing on the river, the alpine coaster and the ladders at Mesa Verde. On a rainy day, though, there is nothing to fall back on.

Denver is a little easier without a car. A train runs from the airport to Union Station, light rail serves the suburbs and a free shuttle runs along the 16th Street Mall. You will still want a car for the mountains.

Durango's centre takes a quarter of an hour to walk, and there is a river trail and a trolley along the main corridor. Beyond that, trailheads, the ski area and Mesa Verde all mean driving.

Denver offers a real shopping day. There is the upscale mall and boutique streets of Cherry Creek, vintage and record shops on South Broadway, and large flagship stores for outdoor gear.

Durango offers a stroll down Main Avenue. It is worth it for Navajo and Pueblo silver, turquoise and rugs, which Denver does not focus on, but the choice ends there.

Both cost about the same, with full American prices, tips on restaurant bills and a hire car for most visits. In Denver, hotels get expensive during conventions and ski season, and staying near the light rail helps. In Durango, rooms are scarce in summer and in peak ski weeks, so spring and late autumn are the cheaper times to go.

Denver has a different level of stage life. Red Rocks is one of the most famous concert venues in the country, and the Denver Center hosts the symphony, the opera, the ballet and touring musicals. Five Points adds jazz.

Durango's highlights belong to summer: a chamber and orchestral festival, a melodrama where the audience boos the villain, and cowboy music with a chuckwagon supper. Outside that season there is little on most nights.

Durango is the easier place to unwind, mainly because the hot springs are so close. Mineral pools sit a few minutes up the valley, and Pagosa Springs and Ouray are within reach for a longer soak.

In Denver, relaxing in town means hotel spas, yoga studios and the parks. The nearest natural pools and steam caves are in Idaho Springs, under an hour's drive west.