Guadeloupe or St Barts?

Both islands have excellent beaches and seas that are warm all year, but they are different kinds of beach. Guadeloupe has variety and room to spread out: white sand and calm reef lagoons along Grande-Terre's south coast, wilder, darker beaches on Basse-Terre such as Grande Anse, snorkelling off Malendure, and the empty beaches of Marie-Galante. Seaweed can wash up on some shores in certain months, and because the island is big you can usually escape it by switching coasts.

St Barts has small coves rather than long beaches, but the water is exceptionally clear, every beach is a short drive away, and they are rarely crowded. You can pick by mood: wild Saline and Gouverneur, calm lagoons at the Cul-de-Sacs, the social scene at St Jean, or Colombier, which you can only reach on foot or by boat.

The two islands are broadly level for food, but they offer quite different things. Guadeloupe's strength is Creole cooking: accras, colombo curries, court-bouillon and bokit from roadside vans, eaten at beach shacks and in market towns. On top of that there are the covered markets of Pointe-à-Pitre and rum tastings on Marie-Galante.

On St Barts the cooking is French first. There are good bakeries and well-stocked delis for villa guests, long lunches on the sand at Saline or Flamands, and polished dinners above the harbour. The choice is narrow and expensive, and there is no street food, while fine dining is the one thing Guadeloupe lacks.

Guadeloupe has much more to see. The Mémorial ACTe in Pointe-à-Pitre deals seriously with the history of slavery, and around the island there are Fort Delgrès and Fort Napoléon, Amerindian rock carvings at Trois-Rivières, Hindu temples and the old sugar estates of Marie-Galante. None of it is a reason to come on its own, but it can fill several days.

On St Barts, the Swedish clock tower, the small museum in the Wall House, the remains of the forts and the village of Corossol take an hour or two in all.

St Barts has the livelier nights, but only in season. From Christmas to spring, afternoon parties at St Jean lead into evenings at the Gustavia harbour bars, a couple of late clubs and on yacht decks, and New Year week is its loudest and most crowded time. By late summer and autumn much of it closes.

Guadeloupe is quieter and more local. Le Gosier has bars, a casino and clubs playing zouk and dancehall at weekends, and Sainte-Anne and Saint-François have waterfronts that stay busy until around midnight. Going out usually means driving. The exception is carnival, when Pointe-à-Pitre and Basse-Terre party in the streets for weeks.

This is where the two islands differ most. Guadeloupe's Basse-Terre is a volcanic, rainforest-covered national park, with the climb up La Soufrière, waterfall trails and the Route de la Traversée under huge trees. It also has diving in the Cousteau Reserve and mangroves to kayak.

St Barts is small, dry and hilly, with lovely views but only a few short walks, such as the cliff path to Colombier. Its outdoor life is on the water: snorkelling with turtles in the marine reserve and kitesurfing or paddleboarding on the Grand Cul-de-Sac lagoon. A few days covers it.

Guadeloupe makes a much better base for days out, mostly by ferry. Terre-de-Haut in Les Saintes, with its painted houses and fine bay, is the favourite, Marie-Galante is worth a night among its windmills and distilleries, and Dominica is within reach for a long day.

From St Barts the only easy trip is the hour's ferry to St Martin, which is busier and more commercial. Its other neighbours need a charter boat or a small plane, so most visitors stay on the island.

Guadeloupe is the easier choice with children. The knee-deep lagoons at Sainte-Anne are a start, and there is plenty for other days: the aquarium at Le Gosier, the zoo at Parc des Mamelles, the botanical garden at Deshaies, and snorkelling or a boat to Les Saintes for older children.

St Barts is very safe and every drive is short, and Shell Beach and the Cul-de-Sac lagoons suit toddlers. Beyond the beach and a villa pool, though, there is nothing aimed at children, and the island is geared to couples.

On both islands a hire car is close to essential, but the driving is different. Guadeloupe has good French-style roads with longer distances and slow traffic over the bridges near Pointe-à-Pitre, so many visitors stay on one wing. Ferries make the outer islands easy to reach.

On St Barts nothing is more than a few minutes away, but the roads are steep, narrow and full of hairpins, and parking in Gustavia is tight. Getting there also takes more effort, by small plane or by ferry from St Martin.

St Barts has the stronger shopping, of a narrow kind. Duty-free luxury fashion, watch and jewellery boutiques line the streets around the Gustavia harbour, and St Jean adds resort wear, though there are no markets or everyday shops worth a visit.

Guadeloupe is more about local goods. You can buy vanilla, spices and madras cloth at the Pointe-à-Pitre market and rum at the distilleries, and the rest is French chain stores.

Neither island is cheap, but there is a huge gap between them. Guadeloupe charges mainland French prices or more, yet villas and guesthouses with kitchens, market food and roadside bokit keep a stay manageable.

St Barts is among the most expensive places in the world for a vacation. Rooms, beach lunches, the small-plane flight and the car are all priced for the very wealthy, and cooking in your villa only takes a little off the bill.

Guadeloupe has the richer live tradition, and most of it is everyday rather than on a stage. Gwoka drumming at léwòz evenings, zouk everywhere, the carnival groups and the Terre de Blues festival on Marie-Galante are the things to look for, and L'Artchipel in Basse-Terre has a year-round programme.

St Barts has its January music festival in Gustavia, with classical musicians and opera singers. The rest of the year live music means bands and DJs in the harbour bars.

Guadeloupe has the edge because of its volcanic hot water. You can bathe at the Bains Jaunes in the forest, in the warm shoreline pools near Bouillante or at the small spa at Ravine Chaude, and the quiet bays of Les Saintes are good places to slow down.

St Barts has no thermal water. It relies on high-end hotel spas and therapists who come to your villa, along with a calm pace of beach, lunch and sunset, except in New Year week.