Granada, Nicaragua or Leon, Nicaragua?

Neither city is a beach resort, but León has the sea and Granada does not. Granada's lakefront is a promenade, not a place to swim, so swimming means a trip out to the crater lake at Laguna de Apoyo. Apoyo is clear, calm and warm, and arguably nicer for an easy swim than anything near León.

From León, the Pacific beaches at Poneloya and Las Peñitas are a short ride away, and many visitors spend a few nights there. The sand is dark volcanic and the waves and rip currents are strong, so this coast suits surfers better than people who just want to float. The calmer water at the end of Las Peñitas is the safest place to swim.

The two eat much the same way: cheap, filling and local, with evening fritanga grills, gallo pinto and nacatamales, and hardly any fine dining in either. The difference is in the details. Granada has its own dish, vigorón, sold at kiosks around the central park, and a strip of restaurants for visitors along La Calzada that ranges from decent to forgettable. León eats more in its markets, with lunch counters at the Mercado Central, quesillo sold everywhere, and student cafés and juice bars around the cathedral.

León has more to see. Its cathedral is the largest in Central America and a World Heritage Site, and you can walk on its white roof among the domes. Around it are a dozen more churches, the old indigenous quarter of Subtiava, the Ortiz-Gurdián art collection, Rubén Darío's family home and the revolutionary murals, which together fill two or three days.

Granada's appeal is more about how it looks than what it holds. Its ochre and blue houses, courtyards and yellow cathedral make the prettier townscape, and the view from La Merced's bell tower and the Zapatera statues at San Francisco are the highlights. Two days covers it.

León is the livelier of the two, because its university keeps the bars full. From Thursday to Saturday, students and backpackers pack the cheap rum and beer bars and a few reggaeton and salsa clubs near the cathedral. It is still a small scene with no cocktail or club culture, and a taxi home late at night is wise.

In Granada, going out mostly means tables spilling onto Calle La Calzada and a few hostel bars. It is friendly and relaxed, but on weeknights the town is quiet before midnight, and a couple of nights out covers it.

Both are surrounded by volcanoes and both are strong for outdoor trips, but the effort involved is different. Granada's nature is gentler. You can walk misty cloud forest trails on Mombacho among orchids and howler monkeys, kayak through Las Isletas past herons and fishing villages, or drive right up to the steaming crater rim at Masaya.

León's is harder work. The bare Maribios chain is where you sandboard down Cerro Negro, hike Telica to see its glowing crater at night, or set off before dawn to climb Momotombo or San Cristóbal. On the coast there are the mangroves and turtle beaches of Juan Venado, and surf for beginners.

Granada has the more useful surroundings. Masaya's craft market and Monimbó quarter are about half an hour away, the pottery workshops of San Juan de Oriente and the lookout at Catarina are just beyond, and Managua or a long day at San Juan del Sur are both possible.

León has one excellent outing, the ruins of León Viejo on Lake Managua, a World Heritage Site that has more history than anything near Granada. After that there are only the rum distillery at Chichigalpa and the basilica at El Viejo, and Granada and Masaya are too far to visit in a day.

Both are hard work with small children. Neither has zoos, theme parks or museums for children, and both have relentless heat and broken pavements. Granada is a little gentler, with horse-drawn carriage rides, the boat trip to the monkey island in Las Isletas, calm swimming at Apoyo and the drive up to Masaya's crater.

León suits adventurous teenagers better, with volcano boarding and mangrove boat trips. Its beaches are too rough for young swimmers, so younger children mostly end up by the hotel pool.

Both centres are compact grids you can walk, with the same uneven pavements and midday heat. León is easier overall. Its shared taxis and tricycle taxis are everywhere, and the old buses from the market terminals go straight to the beaches, so you can manage without a tour.

Granada is just as easy on foot, with horse carriages for hot afternoons, but getting out of town is harder. Its buses leave from informal terminals and take some working out, so most visitors book shuttles or hire drivers to reach Apoyo, the volcanoes and the coast.

Granada is clearly the better place to shop, as long as crafts are what you want. Shops along La Calzada and around the park sell hammocks, Pueblos Blancos pottery, rocking chairs, carvings and cigars, there are a few small galleries, and the country's main craft market at Masaya is close by. León's markets are for everyday goods, interesting to walk through, but beyond a few shops near the cathedral selling hammocks, leatherwork, coffee and rum, there is little to take home.

Both are very cheap by North American or European standards, and León is cheaper by a small margin. León's student economy keeps hostels, market lunches and beer cheap, and the buses to the coast cost almost nothing. Granada costs more mainly in its boutique hotels in restored mansions and its restaurants on La Calzada, while in León the main costs are guided volcano trips.

León has more of a performance life, though mostly outdoors. The neoclassical Teatro Municipal José de la Cruz Mena hosts occasional concerts and folk dance. The Gigantona fills the streets with drums and verse at festival times, Holy Week brings sawdust carpets in Subtiava, and the Purísima and Gritería in early December bring altars, singing and fireworks.

Granada's music mostly plays to diners. Marimba players and folkloric dancers perform around the central park and on La Calzada, some hotels hold dance evenings, and patron saint festivities add processions.

Neither city has a bathing tradition or a real spa scene, so in both you have to arrange your own rest. Granada makes that easier. The town moves slowly enough that a free afternoon at the hotel feels like part of the trip rather than time lost. The walk through town in the evening, once the heat lifts, is a pleasure in itself, and a massage at one of the better hotels is easy to book. A full rest day by the water also fits into a city stay without changing base.

In León the city works against rest. Students and traffic keep the centre awake, and the massage and yoga on offer are basic. Travellers who want to unwind usually leave the colonial centre altogether and move to the Pacific villages for a couple of nights. There they rest to the sound of the surf rather than with spa treatments.