Houston or Memphis?

Houston at least has a beach day within reach. Galveston Island is about an hour's drive away, with the seawall and the long, quiet West End sands, though the Gulf water is shallow, warm and murky rather than clear.

Memphis has nothing comparable. The Mississippi is a working river that nobody swims in, so cooling off means a pool, a splash pad or a drive to a country lake.

Both cities eat heartily, but Houston covers far more ground. Tex-Mex, brisket, Viet-Cajun crawfish and Gulf seafood sit alongside the Vietnamese, Chinese and Korean kitchens of Bellaire Boulevard, Nigerian and Pakistani cooking in the south-west, and chef-led restaurants in Montrose and the Heights.

Memphis goes deep on one thing instead: dry-rubbed pork ribs, pulled shoulder sandwiches and oddities like barbecue spaghetti, backed by fried catfish, greens and Delta tamales. Beyond that Southern core the choice narrows quickly, so a week of varied meals is much easier in Houston.

Memphis has the stronger pull here, because its sights tell stories of national importance. The National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel, Sun Studio, the Stax Museum and Graceland are places people cross the country to see, and Beale Street and Front Street keep some old brick character.

Houston's strength lies in collections rather than history: the Museum of Fine Arts and the natural science museum in the Museum District, the Menil Collection and the Rothko Chapel in Montrose, and mission control at Space Center Houston. It is the better city for art, but it has even less historic townscape than Memphis.

The two are evenly matched, but the nights feel very different. Memphis concentrates its going out on Beale Street, a loud, touristy party strip where you carry a drink between bars, with calmer local bars in Overton Square and Cooper-Young.

Houston has no single centre. Its nights are spread across Montrose's gay bars, the lounges of Midtown and Washington Avenue, and EaDo near the stadiums, and the open-sided icehouses make the most of warm evenings. There is more choice, but expect a ride between districts.

Neither city is a destination for outdoor people, and both sit on flat ground, but the settings differ. Houston has bayous, marsh and pine forest, with paddling on Buffalo Bayou, alligators at Brazos Bend and the spring bird migration along the coast near Galveston.

Memphis is defined by the river. You can walk or cycle the Big River Crossing into Arkansas, watch sunsets from the bluffs, and see the bison and lakes of the huge Shelby Farms Park.

Memphis has more worth driving to. Highway 61 runs south into the Delta's blues country, with Clarksdale's juke joints and the Blues Trail markers, and Oxford with Faulkner's house, Tupelo and the battlefield at Shiloh all make good days out for music and history.

Houston's list is shorter. Galveston's Strand and Victorian East End and the San Jacinto battlefield are the main trips, with the wildflower country around Brenham and Round Top further out. Austin and San Antonio are too far for a comfortable return in one day.

Houston is clearly the better family destination. Space Center Houston thrills most children, and Hermann Park packs the zoo, a miniature train and pedal boats into one place, with the Children's Museum and the natural science museum, with its dinosaur hall and butterfly centre, right next door. Galveston adds the aquarium pyramid and waterparks.

Memphis has a fine zoo in Overton Park, the Pink Palace planetarium and the bison and lakes of Shelby Farms, but together they fill a few days rather than a week. Its most important museums are better suited to teenagers.

Both cities assume you have a car, but Memphis is a little easier for visitors. Its downtown is compact enough to walk between Beale Street, the riverfront, the Civil Rights Museum and South Main, and heritage trolleys run along Main Street.

Houston's sights are spread across freeway distances. One useful light-rail line links downtown, Midtown and the Museum District, but for almost everything else, from Asiatown to the Space Center, you need a car or ride-hailing and patience in rush-hour traffic.

Houston is far ahead for shoppers. Uptown has one of the country's largest malls, with a skating rink and the luxury houses, River Oaks has upmarket open-air streets, and the Heights and Rice Village have vintage and independent shops, plus Western boots and hats as the local speciality.

Memphis's best finds are vinyl from independent record shops and music memorabilia, with small boutiques on Broad Avenue and in Cooper-Young. There is no central shopping street to explore.

Memphis comes out a little cheaper, though neither is a budget trip. Hotels away from busy downtown weekends are reasonable, and a barbecue or soul-food plate costs little, though Graceland charges full price and prices jump during the big spring festivals.

Houston also keeps its cheapest pleasures cheap, with taquerias, Asiatown noodles, free museums and the bayou parks. Its size works against you, though, as car hire, parking and long ride-hails add up faster than in compact Memphis.

Both cities are strong for live performance, but in different ways. Houston's downtown Theater District is the more formal choice, with the Houston Grand Opera and Houston Ballet at the Wortham Center, the symphony at Jones Hall, the Alley Theatre and free summer shows at the Miller Outdoor Theatre.

Memphis is the city for roots music. Beale Street bands play blues and soul from the afternoon every day of the year, Midtown adds rock and hip-hop, and the Levitt Shell, where Elvis once played, puts on free lawn concerts. Its ballet, opera and the Orpheum are good additions rather than the reason to go.

Neither city is a place to rest, though Houston has slightly more to offer, with hotel spas in Uptown, day spas in the western neighbourhoods and a few Korean-style bathhouses in the suburbs. Its calmest hour is in the Rothko Chapel or on the Menil lawns.

In Memphis, quiet comes outdoors and for free: an early walk in Overton Park or an evening on the bluffs above the Mississippi.