Florence or Syracuse, Sicily?

This is where the two cities differ most. Florence sits inland in the Arno valley, and the sandy Versilia coast around Viareggio is a full day out by train. In summer, cooling off usually means a hotel or public pool.

In Syracuse, swimming is part of everyday life. You can climb down from Ortigia's sea walls into clear water, spend afternoons on the gently shelving sand south of the city, snorkel in the Plemmirio coves or drive to the empty pale beaches of Vendicari.

Both are excellent places to eat, and Florence has a slight edge for range. Its food is Tuscan and meat-led: bistecca, bread soups, lampredotto from the carts, Chianti poured by the glass, and two good markets in San Lorenzo and Sant'Ambrogio. There is also a fine-dining tier on top of the trattorie.

Syracuse cooks from the sea and the citrus groves. Think swordfish, sea urchin pasta, raw prawns and spaghetti with anchovies and capers, with granita and brioche for breakfast and Nero d'Avola to drink. The choice is more strictly regional, but the Ortigia market alone makes a good morning.

Florence has more great art in one small place than almost any city in Europe. Botticelli and Leonardo in the Uffizi, Michelangelo's David, Brunelleschi's dome and the frescoes at San Marco and the Brancacci Chapel could fill a week, though you will need to book ahead and queue.

Syracuse goes back further and draws on a different past. Its highlights are the Greek theatre and the Ear of Dionysius at Neapolis, the temple columns inside Ortigia's cathedral, the Paolo Orsi museum and a Caravaggio. That is two or three rich days, set among baroque lanes rather than gallery halls.

Neither city is made for big nights, and in both the evening runs from aperitivo to a glass of wine. Florence's scene is spread across a few districts: drinkers spill over Piazza Santo Spirito, Sant'Ambrogio draws a more local crowd, the student pubs near the centre keep going all year and summer brings bars along the Arno.

Syracuse gathers almost everything on one small island, with drinks in Ortigia's piazzas and along its sea walls, then small cocktail bars in the lanes. In July and August the beach clubs on the southern coast add some dancing, but from November to March nights end early.

Syracuse has the wilder and more varied outdoors. You can follow the gorge path down to the green pools at Cavagrande, look for flamingos in the Vendicari lagoons, kayak around Ortigia's sea caves, dive at Plemmirio or spend a day on Etna.

Florence's countryside is gentler and more cultivated. It means olive terraces at Fiesole, walking and cycling among the Chianti vineyards, and the beech forests of the Casentino further out. These are lovely in spring and autumn, but there is no sea and little that feels rugged.

Both make superb bases, but Florence has the deeper list and the easier logistics. Siena, Pisa, Lucca and Bologna are all within about an hour by train or bus, and San Gimignano, Volterra, Chianti and the Val d'Orcia lie beyond them.

From Syracuse the main draw is the baroque Val di Noto. Noto, Modica, Ragusa Ibla and Scicli are all close by, with Catania, Taormina and the Piazza Armerina mosaics further away. Most of these are much easier by car than by bus.

Syracuse works rather better with children, mainly because of the sea. Gentle sandy beaches fill the afternoons, Ortigia's lanes are mostly free of cars, and the echoing Ear of Dionysius, the papyrus boat trips and the puppet theatre all appeal to young visitors.

Florence asks children to look at a lot of paintings. Climbing the dome, the secret passages of Palazzo Vecchio, the Museo Galileo and the Boboli Gardens help, as does a day at the Pinocchio park in Collodi. Narrow, crowded pavements make it tiring with a pushchair.

Florence is far simpler without a car. Its major sights are all within about twenty minutes' walk, trams run to the airport, and Santa Maria Novella station sits right in the centre for day trips by rail.

In Syracuse, walking is easy only on Ortigia and out to the archaeological park. Buses are sparse and trains are slow, and the beaches, gorges and baroque towns are realistically reached only by car, so most visitors hire one for at least part of their stay.

Florence is the far better place to shop. Its leather goods, marbled paper, Ponte Vecchio goldsmiths, Oltrarno gilders and framers, and the fashion houses on Via de' Tornabuoni reflect centuries of craft. The Sant'Ambrogio flea market and the antique dealers of Via Maggio add more.

Syracuse offers a small, pleasant selection on Ortigia, with painted ceramics, linen, coral jewellery and papyrus pictures. The most worthwhile purchases are capers, almonds and pistachio products from the market.

Syracuse is the cheaper of the two. Market sandwiches, arancini and trattoria meals with local wine cost noticeably less than in Florence, and site entry fees are moderate. Ortigia rooms in high summer and the cost of a hire car are the main expenses.

Florence charges for its fame. Central hotels are expensive for most of the year, and the admission fees for museums and the dome soon add up. Street food, market lunches and walking everywhere help, and so does staying across the river or near the station.

Florence has a proper musical life. This is the city where opera began, and the Maggio Musicale company and its spring festival offer opera, concerts and ballet through the season, with theatre at the Pergola.

Syracuse has one remarkable occasion. In late spring and early summer, Greek tragedies and comedies are staged in the ancient theatre, on stone seats where Greek audiences once sat. Beyond that there are the Sicilian puppet shows and the odd summer concert, but no opera or orchestra.

Neither city has a bathing tradition of its own, and spas in both mean hotel spas and a few day spas. The difference is in how you unwind. From Florence you can take the train to the old spa halls of Montecatini or drive to the sulphur pools of southern Tuscany. Syracuse relies on its pace instead, with long lunches, sea-wall walks and harbour sunsets that feel most restful outside August.