Gatlinburg or Tampa?

These two are about as far apart as possible here. Gatlinburg is landlocked in the mountains, and the closest it gets to swimming is wading in cold park rivers, tubing near Townsend or a lakeshore at Douglas Lake.

Tampa's own bayfront is mostly seawall, but the barrier islands across the bridges have fine white sand and gentle, warm water that suits small children. Beach days involve a drive, yet they are very good.

Tampa has a real food identity, which Gatlinburg lacks. Its cooking comes from the Cuban, Spanish and Sicilian workers of the Ybor cigar factories: the salami-layered Cuban sandwich, café con leche, a century-old tiled Spanish dining room, and grouper and stone crab along the bay.

Gatlinburg feeds a resort crowd with pancake houses, barbecue and fudge counters along the Parkway. Proper Appalachian dishes such as trout, country ham and stack cake turn up only here and there, and keen eaters drive out to Knoxville or Asheville.

Tampa has more history to see, though nothing of world rank. Ybor City's brick factories and Latin social clubs, the minareted Plant hotel and the riverside museums fill two or three days.

In town, Gatlinburg offers an observation tower and a strip of attractions. Its real heritage is in the working studios of the Arts and Crafts Community and in the log cabins and mills at Cades Cove and along the Roaring Fork, which are excursions into the park.

Tampa gives you a proper night out. You can choose rowdy dance clubs on Seventh Avenue in Ybor, polished cocktail bars in SoHo, or rooftops and craft taprooms along the Riverwalk, and in winter the Gasparilla street party takes over the bayfront.

Gatlinburg winds down early. A stroll along the lit Parkway, a moonshine tasting and a hot tub back at the cabin make up most evenings.

Gatlinburg wins clearly. Old hardwood forest, waterfalls, high ridges and black bears all begin a few minutes from the Parkway, and the seasons bring spring fireflies and October colour. The cost is weekend and leaf-season traffic on the park roads.

Tampa's outdoors is flat and watery: cypress swamp kayaking, mangrove tunnels, manatees in winter and the clear springs at Crystal River. These make good half-days, but the landscape has none of the drama of the Smokies.

The two are level for outings, but the outings differ in kind. From Gatlinburg the best day crosses the mountains by the Newfound Gap road to the Cherokee museum and Oconaluftee village, or carries on to Asheville and the Biltmore Estate. Knoxville's old market square and the Pigeon Forge shows are closer, but beyond these the choice runs out quickly.

Tampa has a wider spread of drives: the Dalí Museum in St Petersburg, the Greek sponge docks at Tarpon Springs, the Ringling estate in Sarasota and Frank Lloyd Wright's buildings at Lakeland. The trips vary more than they impress, though, since no town of real age lies within reach.

Both cater well for children, in different settings. Gatlinburg offers mountain fun: an aquarium, alpine coasters, chairlifts to treetop bridges, Dollywood nearby, and junior ranger badges and creek wading in the park.

Tampa pairs Busch Gardens' coasters and animals with ZooTampa, the Florida Aquarium and calm, shallow beaches, with Legoland and Orlando within reach. Parkway traffic is the main hassle in Gatlinburg, while in Tampa it is the long drives and the summer heat.

Neither city is easy without a car, but Gatlinburg is a little less difficult. Its downtown strip can be walked end to end, and a trolley runs out to Pigeon Forge, though cabins and trailheads still need a car.

Tampa sprawls further. The streetcar and Riverwalk cover only downtown, the Channel District and Ybor City. Buses are slow, so the beaches, Busch Gardens and every day trip mean a car or ride-hailing, plus bridge traffic at rush hour.

Tampa has a slight edge for conventional shopping, with an upscale mall carrying luxury brands, boutiques in Hyde Park Village and hand-rolled cigars in Ybor City. Gatlinburg's Parkway is mostly souvenirs and candy shops, but its crafts loop is better for handmade quilts, pottery and brooms bought from the people who make them, and the Pigeon Forge outlets are close by.

Gatlinburg stretches a budget a bit further. A big cabin shared between families, a midweek or winter stay and a free day in the park keep costs low, although Parkway attractions and Dollywood add up quickly. Tampa costs more overall. A rental car is close to essential, winter beach hotels are expensive, and only the Cuban lunch counters are really cheap.

Tampa offers the more serious programme. The Straz Center hosts opera, ballet, touring Broadway shows and the Florida Orchestra, the 1926 Tampa Theatre holds concerts, and small rock venues cluster in Ybor.

Gatlinburg's live entertainment is folksier: bluegrass in the tasting rooms, and dinner shows and gospel revues in Pigeon Forge. For anything classical, you would go to Knoxville.

Neither has a spa tradition, so the way to rest differs. In Gatlinburg it comes from a secluded hillside cabin with a hot tub and mist over the ridges, well above the noisy strip. In Tampa it means a resort spa or a slow stay on the Gulf islands, with sunsets and long lunches, away from the humid, car-bound city.