Destin or Gatlinburg?

There is no contest here. Destin's coast is fine white quartz sand and clear green Gulf water, running from Okaloosa Island and Henderson Beach State Park east towards the dune lakes of 30A, and the shallow Crab Island sandbar on the bay side is good for wading off a boat. Watch the flags, because rip currents are a real risk on rough days.

Gatlinburg has no beach at all. Cooling off means tubing on the cold Little River near Townsend or swimming at Douglas Lake, about forty minutes away, and most visitors make do with a hotel pool or the cabin hot tub.

Destin eats better, mainly because of its fish. Charter boats land red snapper, grouper and royal red shrimp at the harbour, and some kitchens will cook your own catch. The more ambitious restaurants are along 30A, though the coast highway itself is mostly chains.

Gatlinburg's Parkway runs on pancake houses, barbecue and fudge shops, and moonshine tastings stand in for a local drinks culture. Good Appalachian cooking such as trout, country ham and stack cake does exist, but only in scattered places, and keen eaters drive to Knoxville or Asheville.

Neither town is a sightseeing destination, and both have very little history in town. Destin offers a small museum on its fishing past, while next door in Fort Walton Beach there is a prehistoric temple mound and an outdoor collection of military aircraft.

Gatlinburg's heritage is different in kind. It is living craft rather than monuments: weavers, potters and woodcarvers work in their own studios along the Arts and Crafts Community loop, and the cabins, mills and churches of the old mountain families stand out in the park at Cades Cove and along the Roaring Fork.

Destin has more going on after dark, though only in season. Bars with docks and decks along the harbour boardwalk and on Okaloosa Island fill up on summer nights, boats rafted together at Crab Island make for afternoon drinking, and a few dance floors stay open late in peak season.

Gatlinburg has hardly any nightlife. An evening there means a walk along the lit Parkway, a moonshine tasting and perhaps a brewery terrace. The strip is empty by late night, and many visitors are back in the cabin hot tub long before then.

Gatlinburg is far stronger here. The Great Smoky Mountains begin at the end of the Parkway, with forest trails to Laurel Falls and Grotto Falls, the climb to Mount LeConte, the road to Clingmans Dome at close to 2,025m, and black bears, deer and elk to look out for. Whitewater rafting and the spring wildflowers add to it.

Destin's outdoors is on the water. Deep-sea fishing grounds are a short run offshore, dolphins swim in the pass, and Choctawhatchee Bay is calm enough for paddling. On land there are white dunes and rare dune lakes, which are pleasant by bike but no match for the mountains.

Gatlinburg has the better range of outings. Asheville and the Biltmore Estate are about an hour and a half away, the Newfound Gap road crosses to Cherokee and the museum of the Eastern Band, and Knoxville's market square is about an hour off.

From Destin, the best trip is to the planned towns of 30A, such as Seaside and Rosemary Beach, about forty minutes east. Pensacola's colonial district and naval aviation museum are an hour west. After that, the choice is mostly more of the same coast.

Both towns are built for family vacations, and Gatlinburg has the edge. Its Parkway is lined with an aquarium, mirror mazes, alpine coasters and treetop bridges reached by gondola, Dollywood is a short drive away, and the park adds easy waterfall walks and junior ranger badges.

Destin's appeal is simpler: calm, clear water and soft sand for small children, plus a marine park with dolphin shows, a water park and pirate-ship cruises. Parents have to keep an eye on rip currents on rough days and on the summer heat.

Neither works well without a car, but Gatlinburg is easier on foot. Its downtown strip is compact, a trolley loops out to Pigeon Forge, and from a downtown hotel you can leave the car parked for a day or two. The park and the hillside cabins still need a car.

Destin is strung out along one congested coastal highway with few safe crossings. Apart from the harbour boardwalk and the 30A bike trail, nearly everything means a drive or a ride-hail.

Destin has slightly more choice, with a large outlet centre near Miramar Beach, an open-air mall of chain stores, and the boutiques and galleries of the 30A towns. Gatlinburg's Parkway is mostly fudge, T-shirts and novelty knives, but its Arts and Crafts Community, where makers sell quilts, pottery and brooms from their own studios, offers something Destin does not.

Gatlinburg costs less overall. Older motels and big cabins split between families can be good value, especially midweek and in winter, and the national park costs little to enjoy. The Parkway attractions and Dollywood tickets add up, though, and rates climb in October.

Destin is expensive in its beach season, with resort-coast condo rates, waterfront meals, car hire and charters. It becomes far cheaper from late autumn to early spring, which is exactly when the sea is too cold for swimming.

Gatlinburg has more live entertainment, and most of it is country and family shows. Bluegrass and country musicians play in the moonshine tasting rooms. The theatres of nearby Pigeon Forge stage dinner shows, gospel revues and magic most nights, and mountain music runs through Dollywood's programme.

In Destin, live performance mostly means cover bands on bar decks, small theatre companies in Miramar Beach and Seaside, and summer lawn concerts in the 30A towns. For the regional symphony you have to cross the bay to Niceville.

Neither has a spa tradition, and both offer resort and day spas rather than anything more. The difference is in the kind of rest. In Destin it means early walks on empty sand and a balcony over the Gulf, best in spring and autumn, while in Gatlinburg it means a secluded hillside cabin with a hot tub and mist on the ridges, as long as you stay above the noisy Parkway rather than on it.