Geneva or Innsbruck?

Neither city has a beach in the real sense, but Geneva does lake swimming better. The Bains des Pâquis jetty sits right in the harbour with the Jet d'Eau in view, and Genève-Plage and the Eaux-Vives shore add lawns, pebbles and pools within walking distance of the centre.

In Innsbruck, a swim means heading up to the small Lanser See or Natterer See on the plateaus, or out to the beautiful but chilly Achensee. Those lakes are pleasant in July and August, but they are an excursion rather than part of an ordinary city afternoon.

Geneva eats better and more widely. Its kitchen is French at heart, with lake perch, fondue in panelled brasseries and local Chasselas and Gamay from the canton's own vineyards, and the international community supports a broad choice of cuisines and fine dining in Carouge and the Old Town.

Innsbruck's cooking is narrower and heartier: Gröstl, Kaspressknödel, Speck and Kaiserschmarrn, usually best eaten at a mountain hut after a walk. In town the coffee houses with strudel are the most appealing part. Neither city has much street food, but Innsbruck's student quarter is kinder to a modest appetite.

The two are evenly matched for sights, but the stories they tell are very different. Geneva's are about the Reformation and diplomacy: St Pierre Cathedral, where Calvin preached, the Reformation Wall, the Palais des Nations, the Red Cross museum and a visit to CERN.

Innsbruck's are imperial. The Golden Roof, the Hofburg and the Hofkirche, where Maximilian's tomb is ringed by bronze giants, all lie within a few minutes of each other, and Ambras Castle's cabinet of curiosities adds depth on the edge of town. Either fills two or three days.

Neither city is a place for big nights, and the difference is mostly one of character. Geneva's evenings run from the late bars of the slightly rough Pâquis to Carouge's wine terraces and the squat-born club nights of Plainpalais and Jonction, all at Swiss prices.

Innsbruck's centre of gravity is the row of bars and small clubs in the brick arches under the railway viaduct, filled by a large student crowd. In winter much of the real partying moves out to après-ski in the resorts.

Both are excellent outdoor bases, but Innsbruck is in a different league for immediacy. From the old town a funicular and cable car reach a ridge at about 2,300m in under half an hour, with the Karwendel behind it and the Stubai Glacier holding snow for most of the year.

Geneva looks at its mountains more than it stands among them. The Salève cable car, the Jura ridge and sailing on the lake are close, but Chamonix and the high Alps take about an hour by road.

Geneva has the richer list of easy days out, much of it reached by lake steamer. Nyon, Lausanne, the Lavaux vineyard terraces and the Château de Chillon line one shore, while medieval Yvoire and canal-laced Annecy are on the French side.

Innsbruck's strength is reach along the Alpine rail lines. Hall in Tirol and Rattenberg are close, and Munich, Salzburg and Italian Bolzano with Ötzi the Iceman are each a little under two hours away. The Bavarian castles around Füssen need a car, though.

Families will find the two much alike: safe, small and short of attractions built for children, so the difference lies in where the fun is. Geneva's best bets are indoors and by the water, with the big animal dioramas of the Natural History Museum, lakeside playgrounds and rides on the yellow harbour boats.

Innsbruck sends children upwards. The Alpenzoo with its ibex, bears and wolves is on the funicular line, and the huts have playgrounds and the slopes have ski schools. Rainy days are harder to fill there than in Geneva.

Geneva is the smoother city to move around. Its airport is a few minutes from the main station by train, the harbour boats belong to the same network as the punctual trams, and regional rail reaches both the French suburbs and the rest of Switzerland.

Innsbruck's flat, compact centre is equally walkable, and its funicular gives unusually direct access to the peaks. Beyond the city, though, the remote valleys and lakes are much easier with a car.

For shopping, Geneva is far ahead, and luxury is the reason. The Rue du Rhône is a world address for watches and jewellery, backed by Old Town chocolatiers, Carouge's craft workshops and the Plainpalais flea market.

Innsbruck's Maria-Theresien-Strasse offers chains, while the old town arcades sell crystal, loden jackets, dirndls, woodcarving and Speck. Its specialist ski and outdoor shops are the real draw, and they are better than anything Geneva offers in that line.

Innsbruck is much the cheaper stay, even though it still charges Western European prices with an Alpine premium. Spring and autumn ease the bill, and the city cards help, but on an active trip cable car tickets mount up.

Geneva sits among the most expensive cities in the world for visitors, with high prices for rooms, meals and drinks, especially during conferences. Free museums, free transport for hotel guests and cheap lidos soften it, and many budget travellers simply sleep across the border in France.

Geneva has the fuller stage. The Grand Théâtre runs a complete season of opera and ballet, the Orchestre de la Suisse Romande plays in the gilded Victoria Hall, and the Bâtiment des Forces Motrices in the middle of the Rhône hosts dance and concerts.

Innsbruck's Landestheater and symphony orchestra make a respectable programme, and its summer Festival of Early Music, held in places such as the Spanish Hall at Ambras, is the one event worth planning around. Yodelling and brass folk evenings give it a flavour Geneva lacks.

Geneva has the more distinctive bathing ritual. In winter the Bains des Pâquis becomes a sauna and hammam, with regulars plunging straight into the cold lake, and the spa towns of Évian and Divonne lie just over the border.

Innsbruck's wellness is the Alpine kind: hotel spas in Igls with mountain views, a sauna after a long hike, and the large thermal complexes of the Ötztal and Zillertal about an hour away. Both towns are calm, but Geneva's lakeside Sundays are the quieter.