Destin or Miami Beach?

Both have superb sand, but the beaches are different. Destin has fine white quartz sand and clear green Gulf water, from Okaloosa Island and Henderson Beach State Park east to the dune lakes of 30A. On the bay side, the Crab Island sandbar is good for wading. It is a seasonal beach, though. The water is too cold for most swimmers in winter, and rip currents on rough days mean you need to watch the flags.

Miami Beach comes out slightly ahead because you can swim along its 11km of Atlantic sand all year. Lifeguards cover the whole shore and a beachwalk runs behind the dunes. Its green-blue water is less clear than Destin's, and South Beach brings crowds, music and vendors, so go to Mid-Beach or North Beach for space.

Destin eats well when it eats seafood. Harbour charter boats land snapper, grouper and royal red shrimp, which are served fried or in sandwiches on waterfront decks. Away from the fish, chains fill much of the coast highway, and the more ambitious kitchens are out along 30A.

Miami Beach has much more range. Its Latin American influence brings Cuban sandwiches, croquetas and cafecito, ceviche and arepas, and there are Florida stone crabs in winter and plenty of chef-driven restaurants. Skip the tourist menus on Ocean Drive. Little Havana is a short trip across the causeway.

The gap here is wide. Destin grew out of a fishing village and kept almost nothing of it except a small local museum. The nearest sights are the temple mound and the military aircraft collection in Fort Walton Beach.

Miami Beach has a real draw in its Art Deco Historic District, hundreds of pastel 1930s hotels that you can see on foot along Ocean Drive and Collins Avenue, with Miami Modern buildings further north. The Wolfsonian, the Bass and the Holocaust Memorial add to it, and the bigger museums are just across the bay.

Destin goes out in flip-flops. There are open-air bars on the harbour boardwalk and beach bars on Okaloosa Island, and in the afternoon boats tie up together at Crab Island. Outside summer and spring break, most nights end early.

South Beach is one of the best-known places in the world to party. Clubs with guest DJs go on until dawn, hotels hold pool parties, and late dinners fill Collins and Washington Avenues. Expect dress codes, door policies and big bills. Sunset Harbour and Mid-Beach have quieter cocktail and wine bars.

Both are flat, and in both the outdoors is mostly about the water, but the settings differ. Destin is a fishing town where the continental shelf comes close to shore, so deep-sea charters reach big game fish quickly. The state parks to the east have high white dunes and rare coastal dune lakes, with boardwalks and bike paths.

Miami Beach itself is built up, so its nature is a short drive away. There is mangrove paddling in Oleta River State Park, airboats and alligators in the Everglades about an hour away, and reefs and wrecks for snorkelling and diving in Biscayne National Park.

Destin has two good outings. The planned pastel towns of 30A, such as Seaside and Rosemary Beach, are about forty minutes east, and Pensacola is an hour west, with its colonial historic district, naval aviation museum and brick forts. After that, there is not much.

Miami Beach has more within reach. Mainland Miami alone offers Little Havana, the Wynwood murals, Vizcaya and Coral Gables, and Fort Lauderdale, Palm Beach and Key Largo are all within about an hour and a half by car.

Destin is the better family base. The water is gentle and clear on calm days, condos with kitchens and pools suit long stays, and the Okaloosa Island marine park, the water park, go-karts, mini golf and dolphin cruises are all close by. The downsides are summer traffic on the coast highway and the need to watch the rip-current flags.

Miami Beach gives children a warm sea with lifeguards and playgrounds behind the sand, best in Mid-Beach, North Beach or towards Surfside. But the zoo, the science museum and the animal parks are on the mainland, and South Beach gets loud at weekends and during spring break.

In Destin you cannot do without a car. The town runs along one congested coastal highway with few safe crossings, and public transport barely exists. Only the harbour boardwalk and the 30A bike trail work well on foot or by bike.

Miami Beach is far easier once you are there. South Beach is compact and walkable, free trolleys and buses run up Collins Avenue, and bike share and the beachwalk make cycling easy. Leaving the island is the hard part, with no rail link and slow traffic on the causeways.

Destin's shopping is mostly outlets and chains: a large outlet centre near Miramar Beach, an open-air mall, and strips selling swimwear and souvenirs. The 30A towns add small galleries and home-décor boutiques.

Miami Beach offers more at both ends of the market. Lincoln Road is a pleasant pedestrian mall of international chains, better for an evening stroll than for finding anything unusual. Bal Harbour, at the north end of the island, gathers the big European fashion and jewellery houses, which Destin has none of.

Neither place is cheap, but Destin gives you more ways to save. High season is expensive, yet from late autumn to early spring rental prices drop sharply, and cooking in a condo or staying inland or along the bay keeps costs down.

Miami Beach costs more at every turn: oceanfront rooms in winter, resort and parking fees, service charges and tipping, and South Beach cocktails and club entry. Summer rates and North Beach hotels help, and the beach itself is free.

Destin has little live performance of its own. There are cover bands on bar decks, summer lawn concerts in the 30A towns and small theatre companies in Miramar Beach and Seaside, while the regional symphony plays across the bay in Niceville.

Miami Beach has a real season from autumn to spring. An orchestra of young professionals plays in Frank Gehry's concert hall on 17th Street, and some concerts are projected onto the outside wall for people on the lawn. Miami City Ballet is based on the island, and touring shows play the Jackie Gleason Theater and the Colony Theatre.

Neither city has a bathing tradition, so this comes down to resort spas. Destin's are in the golf and beach resorts around Miramar Beach and Sandestin. Its calm is the simple kind: early walks on empty sand in spring or autumn, before the summer traffic arrives.

Miami Beach offers more, with large hotel spas that have saunas, steam rooms and plunge pools, and sunrise yoga on the sand. For a quiet stay, choose Mid-Beach or the stretch towards Surfside, because South Beach is loud and runs late.