Ios or Zakynthos?

Both are sandy beach islands with equal pull, so the choice comes down to character. Ios keeps its swimming to a few places. The long sweep of Mylopotas below Chora has the sunbeds and the company, the sheltered coves of Manganari have calm, clear water, and the wild eastern bays are reached by rough road. When the meltemi blows, the south coast is the place to go.

Zakynthos spreads more variety along its coast. It has the resort sands of Laganas Bay, the protected turtle beaches of Gerakas and Dafni, the shallows of Tsilivi and swimming off flat rocks at Porto Limnionas. Much of its most striking water, the Blue Caves and the Navagio wreck, is reached by boat, and its sea stays a little warmer in late summer.

Neither island is a food destination, but Zakynthos gives you more to find. The village tavernas around Keri and along the north coast serve the island's own dishes, such as skordostoumbi, ladotyri cheese and mantolato nougat, with local Verdea wine.

Ios has skotyri cheese, harbour fish in Yialos and a handful of careful kitchens in Chora. In high summer, though, much of what is on offer is gyros and pizza for people heading out for the night. On both islands, eat away from the resort strips.

On either island, culture is a few pleasant hours rather than a reason to book. Ios offers atmosphere and early history: the whitewashed lanes, windmills and chapels of Chora, the Early Cycladic walls at Skarkos and the tomb of Homer that legend places in the north.

Zakynthos looks back to its Venetian and Ionian past, much of it lost in the 1953 earthquake. It has icons in the Byzantine Museum, the Solomos museum, the castle on Bochali hill and village bell towers. Ios is the prettier village to wander, while Zakynthos has the better small museums.

Ios has the bigger night out. Its bars and clubs are packed into the old lanes and square of Chora, so the whole village becomes the party, and the beach bars at Mylopotas get it going in the afternoon.

Zakynthos keeps its partying in one place, the Laganas strip with its promoters and foam parties, and leaves the rest of the island to waterfront cafés and evenings at the taverna. That makes the parties easy to avoid, but the scene is narrower than on Ios. On both islands it runs only from June to September.

Zakynthos has more to do outdoors. The marine park on Laganas Bay offers turtle-spotting at dawn, and the white cliffs of the west and the caves at Cape Skinari and Keri are made for kayaking, snorkelling and diving. Inland, olive-covered hills give quiet walking and cycling.

Ios is starker, with bare terraced hills, mule tracks out to chapels and the 700m summit of Profitis Ilias. It also has boat trips around the coast and windsurfing at Mylopotas. It is good walking country in spring and autumn, but it has no wildlife to match the turtles.

Ios is much better placed for a day away. It sits in the middle of the Cyclades, and fast boats reach Santorini in about an hour, with Akrotiri and the caldera villages. Naxos, Sikinos and Folegandros are also within reach in summer.

From Zakynthos the choices are southern Kefalonia by the summer ferry, or the mainland via Kyllini, where Chlemoutsi castle is close and Olympia makes a long day. Both islands depend on the boats, and outside summer the links from Ios thin out too.

Zakynthos is the easier island with children. Around Tsilivi, Planos and Alykes on the north-east coast there is gently shelving sand and resort hotels with pools and kids' clubs. The turtle boats and the water park inland fill the days off the beach.

Ios can manage a beach stay at Manganari or the quiet end of Mylopotas, ideally in June or September. Beyond that, Chora's steps defeat a pushchair, nothing is built for children and the party crowd sets the tone in high summer.

Ios is the simpler island without a car. Yialos, Chora and Mylopotas form a compact triangle on a frequent summer bus, and the old stepped path links port and village on foot. Only the eastern and northern bays need wheels.

Zakynthos is about 40km long, and its buses serve only the main resorts. The cliffs, villages and viewpoints of the west and north need a car or scooter on winding roads. It does have its own airport, though, while Ios can only be reached by ferry.

What sets the two apart is the kind of thing you bring home. On Ios, shopping is an evening stroll through the lanes of Chora, where shops stay open late for the crowd heading out and sell beachwear, sandals and jewellery, along with a few boutiques of Greek-made clothes and ceramics.

On Zakynthos the souvenirs are more often things to eat or local crafts: thyme honey and olive oil, or lace and weaving from the villages around Volimes in the north. Zakynthos Town also has a proper local shopping street in Alexandrou Roma. On either island, fashion and design will have to wait for Athens.

Costs come out much the same, and both islands are cheaper in June and September. Ios still offers its backpacker basics of hostels, campsites and drinks offers, though ferry fares add up. On Zakynthos, package tourism keeps resort rooms moderate, and the costs that grow over a week are boat trips, car hire and sunbeds.

Neither island has a stage season, but Zakynthos has a living tradition to listen for. Kantades serenades are sung with guitar and mandolin in tavernas, an old philharmonic band plays at religious feasts and villagers perform folk street theatre at carnival.

On Ios there is little beyond occasional summer concerts at the open-air Odysseas Elytis theatre and the music and dancing at saints' day festivals. Its music is mostly in the bars.

Zakynthos is easier to rest on because its noise stays in Laganas. The hill villages around Keri and Agios Leon, the Vasilikos peninsula and the small northern harbours are quiet in the evening. The larger resort hotels have spas, and at Xigia cool sulphur springs bubble into the sea.

On Ios calm takes planning. Come in June or September, stay near Manganari or at a quiet bay with a hotel spa or yoga, and keep away from Chora.