Dubrovnik or Sarajevo?

This is the widest gap between the two. Dubrovnik swims all summer, off the rocks below the seaward walls, at Banje and in the coves of Lapad and Babin Kuk. The swimming is better still by boat at Lokrum, the Elafiti islands or Cavtat, though the shore is pebble and concrete rather than sand.

Sarajevo has no sea at all. Summer swimming means cold mountain rivers, Jablanica lake or a pool. Anyone who wants the Adriatic should add a few days on the coast afterwards, and that coast could well be Dubrovnik's.

Sarajevo eats better, and with less effort. Ćevapi come off grills all over Baščaršija, pita bakeries sell burek by weight, traditional eateries serve slow dishes like begova čorba, and Bosnian coffee is a ritual. The table is distinctive, even if the range is narrow.

Dubrovnik's strengths come from the sea and the vineyards: Ston oysters, black risotto and Plavac Mali from Peljesac. The Old Town's tourist menus let it down, though, and eating well means finding konobas in Lapad, Gruz or Konavle.

Dubrovnik has the more complete set piece: a walled city still almost whole. You can walk the full circuit of the walls, then the Stradun, the Rector's Palace, the old Franciscan pharmacy and Fort Lovrijenac on its rock. It works as one unified sight, best seen early before the summer crowds.

Sarajevo's sights are smaller but more varied in what they mean. Mosques, both cathedrals and the Old Synagogue stand within minutes of each other, and the Latin Bridge marks 1914. The siege is told through the Tunnel of Hope and the War Childhood Museum. The 1990s left a mark on both cities, but in Sarajevo they shape the whole visit.

Neither is a clubbing city, but Sarajevo gives you a fuller evening for more of the year. Café-bars fill from the afternoon, a student crowd keeps cellar bars and small clubs going at weekends, and cheap drinks make a long night easy.

Dubrovnik's evenings are about the setting: a sunset drink at the rock bars below the walls, wine bars in the lanes and a club inside the Revelin fortress. It is a summer scene, and from November to March much of it shuts.

Both have mountains, but Sarajevo is ringed by them. The cable car to Trebević starts at the edge of the Old Town. The Olympic peaks of Jahorina and Bjelašnica, under an hour away, give winter skiing and summer ridge walks, and the shepherds' village of Lukomir sits above the Rakitnica canyon.

In Dubrovnik the outdoors is about mountains meeting the sea: kayaking round the walls, the view over the islands from Mount Srd, and the lakes and pine forest of Mljet. It is the better place to be on the water, but its bare hillsides are hard going in summer.

Dubrovnik's outings cross borders and water. The Bay of Kotor in Montenegro, with the walled town of Kotor and the village of Perast, is the classic day, and Trebinje in Bosnia is under an hour away. Ferries also run to the car-free Elafiti islands and round to Cavtat. Mostar is a long day from here, and summer queues at the border can add hours.

Sarajevo's trips stay inside the country and follow river gorges. Mostar is about two hours away on the scenic train along the Neretva, with Konjic and Tito's bunker on the same line. Travnik lies to the north-west and the bridge at Višegrad to the east. The roads are slow and winding, so a car or a tour helps.

Dubrovnik is the easier family base, mainly because of the water. Children have calm coves in Lapad, Lokrum's peacocks, the small aquarium and the cable car. The catch is the stairs and the summer crowds, so families do best staying near the beaches.

Sarajevo is warmly welcoming, and its flat Old Town is easy with a pushchair. The Trebević cable car, the streams of Vrelo Bosne and the small zoo make good outings. But most sights deal with history and war, and smoke from the grills and winter smog are hard on young children.

Neither city needs a car for the sights, but they ask different things of your legs. Dubrovnik is a place of climbs and crossings. You will probably sleep outside the walls and ride in by bus, and the best swimming is reached by boat rather than on foot. The Stradun itself is level, but almost every lane off it turns into a staircase, so a day here involves far more climbing than the short distances on the map suggest.

Sarajevo is the easier city to wander. Its centre lies flat along the valley floor, and the tram runs straight down it from the bazaar out to Ilidža, so you rarely have to think about routes. The catch is that much lies off the line: the Tunnel of Hope and the ski mountains mean a taxi or a tour, in the same way that Dubrovnik's trips into Konavle and Montenegro are easier with a car.

Sarajevo has more to buy, and more to watch being made. Coppersmiths hammer coffee sets on Kazandžiluk, the Bezistan and nearby lanes sell carpets and kilims, and ordinary malls cover practical needs. Dubrovnik offers little beyond souvenirs and a few local crafts, such as Konavle embroidery, coral jewellery and candied orange peel from the morning market.

The difference is stark. Sarajevo is one of Europe's cheapest capitals. Meals, trams, taxis, museum entry and central guesthouses all cost little.

Dubrovnik is Croatia's most expensive city. Summer rooms near the Old Town cost as much as in a Western European capital, and the walls, cable car and boat trips add up. Staying in Lapad or Cavtat and coming outside summer helps, but it is still a costly trip.

Sarajevo has a stage life through the season. The National Theatre puts on drama, opera and ballet, the Philharmonic plays regularly, MESS brings theatre in autumn and the jazz festival comes in November. You may also hear sevdah in traditional restaurants.

Dubrovnik's stage is essentially its Summer Festival in July and August, with theatre and concerts at Fort Lovrijenac and the Rector's Palace. Outside those weeks there is little to plan an evening around.

Sarajevo has a real place to go for it: the thermal springs at Ilidža, used since Roman times and reached by tram. The shaded avenue of Vrelo Bosne is nearby, and the long, slow coffee is a daily habit.

Dubrovnik has no bathing tradition and only hotel spas, and its Old Town in summer is crowded rather than calm. Rest there comes from timing and place: the quieter spring and autumn, or a stay on the Elafiti islands or in Cavtat.