Hanoi or Luang Prabang?

Neither place has a beach, and both are a long way from the sea. Hanoi offers hotel pools and water parks near West Lake, and the coast at Ha Long or Sam Son is best treated as a separate stay.

Luang Prabang has the better swim, though not on sand. The turquoise pools below Kuang Si, under an hour away, and the smaller Tad Sae falls make a fine half-day in the forest.

Food is one of the main reasons to choose Hanoi. Pho at breakfast, bun cha at lunch, cha ca fried at the table, egg coffee up narrow stairs and fresh bia hoi at dusk turn every meal into a small outing. Much of it comes from stalls that cook a single dish.

Luang Prabang has its own Lao cooking worth trying, such as or lam stew, jeow bong chilli paste and kaipen river weed, along with good bakeries and coffee. The choice is narrow, though, and within a few days the riverside menus start to repeat.

Hanoi has more to see over several days. There are the guild streets of the Old Quarter, the Temple of Literature, the Imperial Citadel and Ho Chi Minh's mausoleum, and strong museums such as the Museum of Ethnology and Hoa Lo prison. Together they cover a thousand years, from the early dynasties to the twentieth century.

Luang Prabang is smaller but more of a piece. The whole peninsula is a UNESCO site, with Wat Xieng Thong, the Royal Palace museum and dozens of monasteries standing among colonial shophouses. The dawn alms round keeps it a living religious town. Its museums are slight, so two or three days cover it.

Hanoi has a real evening scene, even if it winds down around midnight. People drink bia hoi on low stools along Old Quarter pavements, backpacker bars around Ta Hien get loud, and there are rooftop terraces and craft beer by West Lake.

Luang Prabang has a handful of garden bars and riverside terraces, a curfew that closes them around midnight and dark, silent streets after that. For a night out, pick Hanoi.

In Luang Prabang the countryside begins where the old town ends. Green hills rise above the Mekong, and close by are Kuang Si's tiered falls with the bear sanctuary at their foot, slow boats past limestone cliffs, kayaking on the Nam Khan and treks to Hmong and Khmu villages.

Hanoi's own green space is mostly its lakes, with a path around West Lake and morning tai chi at Hoan Kiem. The karst scenery of Ninh Binh is two hours away, and Ha Long Bay and Sapa need a night away.

Day trips from Hanoi range across a whole region of temples, pagodas and craft villages. Ninh Binh pairs the early royal capital of Hoa Lu with the hillside Bai Dinh pagoda, and the Perfume Pagoda is reached by rowing boat along a river before a climb into a cave shrine. Nearer the city, Bat Trang makes ceramics, Van Phuc weaves silk, Duong Lam keeps its laterite-walled houses, and the But Thap and Tay Phuong pagodas hold remarkable old wooden carving.

Luang Prabang's outings are fewer and mostly follow the river. Nearly everyone takes the boat up the Mekong to the Pak Ou caves and their thousands of Buddha images, and the weaving villages of Ban Phanom and Ban Xang Khong are close by. The railway brings Vang Vieng and Vientiane within a day, but beyond those the surroundings are villages and countryside.

Neither city is easy with small children, but the difficulties are different. Hanoi has more to fill the days, with the water puppets, a zoo, water parks and the village houses at the Museum of Ethnology. Its motorbike traffic and blocked pavements, though, make every outing with a pushchair hard work.

Luang Prabang is the reverse. Its quiet streets are easy to walk and cycle, and Kuang Si's bears and pools and the Mekong boat rides are the highlights. Little else is aimed at children and medical care is limited, so it suits older children better than toddlers.

Luang Prabang is simpler to get around. The old town sits on a flat, compact peninsula with light traffic, so walking or a hired bicycle covers nearly everything. Tuk-tuks and boats reach the waterfalls and villages, with fares agreed before you set off.

Hanoi's main districts are also close together, but walking often means stepping into the road among the motorbikes, and the rail lines and buses are of little use to visitors. Ride-hailing cars and motorbike taxis are the practical answer.

Hanoi has a wider range. Whole Old Quarter streets are given over to a single trade, Hang Gai is the place for silk and made-to-measure clothes, and there is Dong Xuan market and a weekend night market. Lacquerware, Bat Trang ceramics and coffee are good buys, and the malls carry the international brands.

In Luang Prabang, shopping means crafts and little else. The nightly market on the main street sells textiles, Hmong embroidery, paper lanterns and silver, and the better pieces are found in the weaving studios and nearby villages.

Both are cheap, but Hanoi is cheaper still. Street meals, bia hoi, coffee, boutique hotels in the Old Quarter and ride-hailing cost very little. Only extras such as Ha Long cruises and international hotels add up.

Luang Prabang is the most expensive stop in Laos. Guesthouses, market meals and bicycle hire cost little, but restored colonial hotels, riverside wine lists and private drivers push the budget up faster than in Hanoi.

Hanoi mixes several stages and styles. Water puppetry with live music plays beside Hoan Kiem Lake, and the French colonial Opera House hosts the national symphony orchestra, ballet and opera when a programme is on. There is also ca tru sung poetry in Old Quarter communal houses and a small, long-running jazz scene. It is enough for an evening or two rather than a reason to choose the city.

Luang Prabang rests on one main show, the masked Phralak Phralam, the Lao Ramayana, danced at the theatre in the Royal Palace grounds. A few folk music and dance evenings add to it, and beyond that there is little to plan a night around.

Luang Prabang is the place to slow down. Little traffic, early nights and the daily rhythm of the alms round and the Mekong sunset make the town itself restful. Herbal saunas scented with lemongrass, gentle Lao massage and riverside yoga add to it.

Hanoi has cheap massage on almost every Old Quarter street and some polished hotel spas, but the horns and crowds rarely stop. West Lake, and the lakes at dawn, are where to find some calm.