Frankfurt or Freiburg?

Neither city has a sea within reach, so swimming means summer lakes and pools. Frankfurt's best option is the Langener Waldsee, a gravel-pit lake with sandy shores in the forest south of town. The Main is a river to sit beside, not to swim in.

Freiburg does a little better. Its gravel pits on the Rhine plain are a short bike ride away, with warm water and grassy rather than sandy banks. The Black Forest adds Titisee and Schluchsee for a cooler, more scenic swim with hills all around.

Freiburg eats better, mainly because Baden cooking has a lighter French touch and its own wine to go with it. Expect Flammkuchen, Schäufele, Black Forest trout and ham with Pinot from the Kaiserstuhl, and the morning market around the Münster is a daily ritual. The countryside around the city has some of Germany's best fine dining.

Frankfurt's own cooking is heavier and has fewer dishes. It centres on the apple-wine taverns of Sachsenhausen, with Grüne Soße and Handkäs. Where Frankfurt wins is range: Turkish, Italian and Asian kitchens and cheap food from all over the world in the Bahnhofsviertel, which Freiburg cannot match.

The two are close here, but they offer different things. Frankfurt is a museum city. The Museumsufer lines both banks of the Main, with the Städel as its highlight and the Schirn for big exhibitions, and the rebuilt Römer stands beneath a skyline of towers unlike anything else in Germany.

Freiburg is about one handsome old town rather than great collections. You climb the Münster tower, walk through the medieval gates and follow the Bächle through the streets, and the Augustinermuseum's medieval sculpture is the main indoor stop. Both centres were rebuilt after wartime bombing, and each fills two days or so.

Frankfurt has more to go out for, especially at weekends, when a small but serious club scene carries on the techno and house tradition it shares with Offenbach. The Bahnhofsviertel is the place for late nights with some character, and Berger Straße has easy-going neighbourhood bars.

Freiburg's evenings are run by its students. There are pubs and wine bars around the Martinstor, summer crowds on the squares and along the Dreisam, and a few clubs. It is friendly and relaxed, but noticeably quieter during the semester break.

Freiburg is the clear choice for the outdoors. The Black Forest starts at the edge of town, the Schauinsland cable car takes you up to ridge trails at about 1,280m, and the Feldberg offers summer hiking and winter snow within an hour. Gorge walks and excellent mountain biking add variety.

Frankfurt's countryside is gentler. It has the beech woods and Roman frontier trails of the Taunus, the Stadtwald inside the city and flat cycling along the Main. That is good for walking and cycling, but it lacks Freiburg's height and drama.

Frankfurt has the edge thanks to its rail hub. Heidelberg, the castle-lined Rhine Gorge and Cologne are all about an hour away, and Mainz, Wiesbaden, Würzburg and Marburg are easy to reach as well. You could fill a week without repeating yourself.

Freiburg's appeal lies in crossing borders more than in the number of places. Basel is under an hour away by train, and Colmar, the Alsace wine villages and Strasbourg put France within a day out, although some of these are easier by car.

Freiburg is the easier city with children. It is small, flat and safe, the Bächle channels keep younger ones busy for free, and the Schauinsland cable car and the Mundenhof animal park make simple outings. Europa-Park, Germany's largest theme park, is about 40 minutes north.

Frankfurt works well for a few days, with the Senckenberg dinosaurs, the central zoo and the Palmengarten glasshouses. Its museums also help when it rains, which is where Freiburg has little to offer.

You won't need a car in either city, but they work differently. Frankfurt runs on one integrated network of U-Bahn, S-Bahn and trams that reaches out to the Taunus, Mainz and Wiesbaden, and the airport is a short train ride from the centre, though the zones take some learning.

Freiburg is a city for walking and cycling. The old town is largely car-free, trams run out to the suburbs, and regional trains climb through the Höllental and run along the Rhine plain to Basel. Only Alsace and some of the valleys are easier with a hire car.

Frankfurt is the better place to shop. It has the department stores and malls of the Zeil, luxury fashion and jewellery around Goethestraße, and independent shops on Berger Straße and Schweizer Straße.

Freiburg is modest by comparison and has no luxury shopping. Its strengths are local: wine, schnapps and ham at the Münster market, cuckoo clocks and wood carvings, and small bookshops and organic stores in the Gerberau.

Neither city is cheap, and in both the hotel is the main cost, with trade fairs pushing it higher. The timing works in opposite directions, though. Frankfurt's rooms are priced for business travellers, so weekends and summer are when you save. Freiburg is at its busiest and most expensive on summer weekends, when staying in a Black Forest village can help.

Day-to-day spending is reasonable in both. Frankfurt has its cider taverns and Turkish grills, and Freiburg has market snacks and restaurants in the student quarter. In Freiburg the main sights cost little or nothing.

Frankfurt has the bigger stage. Its opera company is among the most respected in Germany, and the Alte Oper hosts the regional radio symphony orchestra and touring ensembles. Drama, contemporary dance and jazz in cellar clubs fill out a season that goes quiet in summer.

Freiburg offers a good evening out rather than a reason to travel. Theater Freiburg puts on opera and drama, and the Freiburger Barockorchester is a leading period-instrument ensemble. The summer Zelt-Musik-Festival fills the months when Frankfurt's season pauses.

Freiburg is the more restful base. There is a thermal bath on the city's eastern edge, Bad Krozingen and Badenweiler are a short trip south, and the city's own pace, with its café terraces and paths along the Dreisam, makes it easy to slow down.

Frankfurt itself is a working city at a working pace, but the spa towns around it are excellent. Wiesbaden's Art Nouveau Kaiser-Friedrich-Therme and Bad Homburg's thermal baths are each worth a day out.