Jackson Hole or Phoenix?

Neither place is for a swimming trip, but Jackson Hole at least offers a proper outdoor swim. For a few weeks in late summer the sandy shallows of String Lake warm up enough for a dip after a hike, even though Jenny Lake stays bracing.

Phoenix's natural water is the reservoirs on the Salt River, such as Saguaro Lake, and tubing down the river in summer. Otherwise swimming means a resort pool with a lazy river.

Jackson eats better than a mountain town usually does, with elk, bison, Rocky Mountain trout and huckleberries in a handful of chef-led dining rooms and saloons around the Town Square. The choice is narrow, though, and there is almost nothing cheap.

Phoenix has more range and a cooking tradition of its own: Sonoran carne asada and machaca, paper-thin flour tortillas, bacon-wrapped hot dogs from evening carts, and serious wood-fired pizza. The best places are spread across the sprawl, so eating well usually means a drive.

Jackson's sights fit into a spare day between hikes: the antler arches on the Town Square, the National Museum of Wildlife Art above the elk refuge, and the barns of Mormon Row and the log chapel framing the Tetons.

Phoenix gives a culture-minded visitor considerably more to do, mostly in museums. The Heard Museum's Native American collection, the Musical Instrument Museum and Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West could each fill half a day. Neither place has an old quarter to wander, and in Phoenix each sight is a separate drive.

Evenings in Jackson centre on the historic saloon with saddles for bar stools and a country dance floor, plus a few brewpubs and, in winter, loud après-ski bars at Teton Village. Most people head to bed early for the trail or the lifts, and there are no clubs.

Phoenix offers a real night out, split between districts with distinct crowds. There are the clubs and rooftop bars of Old Town Scottsdale, the student bars on Tempe's Mill Avenue, and the cocktail and craft beer places of downtown and Roosevelt Row. The districts are far apart, so pick one for the evening.

Both are outdoor destinations, but Jackson Hole is in a different league. The Tetons rise sheer from the valley floor minutes from town, Yellowstone is an easy drive north, and moose, bison, elk and bears are part of an ordinary day. In winter there is steep skiing under the Teton Village tram, and in summer rafting and fly fishing on the Snake.

Phoenix's desert is rewarding in its own way, with saguaro forest in the McDowell Sonoran Preserve, scrambles up Camelback Mountain and Sedona's red rock within reach. It is mainly a cool-season landscape, though, because in summer the heat makes hiking after mid-morning dangerous.

From Jackson, the outings go into the landscape itself. The nearby towns, such as Driggs and Victor over Teton Pass or Pinedale to the south, make pleasant drives but are not worth a day on their own.

Phoenix has proper places to go for the day: the hillside mining town of Jerome, Prescott's courthouse square, the Montezuma Castle cliff dwelling on the road to Sedona, and Tucson with its adobe barrios and Mission San Xavier del Bac. All of them need a car, and the Grand Canyon is too far for a comfortable day.

Both work for families, in very different ways. Jackson Hole is about animals and open air: moose and bison seen from the car, Junior Ranger badges, a float on the Snake, a sleigh ride through the elk herd and the summer rodeo, all based in a small, easy town. The altitude and long drives tire young children, though, and a rainy day leaves little to do.

Phoenix has the attractions Jackson lacks: a zoo, an aquarium, a science centre and water parks, plus spring training baseball in March. Everything is far apart, however, and in summer the heat limits young children to early mornings outdoors.

You need a car in both, but Jackson is the easier of the two. The town's restaurants, shops and lodgings sit within a few blocks of the Town Square, a bus runs out to Teton Village and the airport is a short drive away. The parks and trailheads still need your own wheels, and winter roads call for care.

Phoenix spreads over dozens of kilometres of wide arterial roads, and the light rail only helps between the airport, downtown and Tempe. Walking is limited to small pockets such as Old Town Scottsdale, and summer heat makes even those hard going.

Jackson's shopping is a few boardwalk blocks of Western and wildlife art galleries, handmade cowboy hats and boots and good mountain gear, and then mostly souvenirs.

Phoenix has the wider range. There are large luxury and open-air malls with department stores, and Old Town Scottsdale has galleries and Western wear. Above all it is the place to buy Native American work, such as Navajo and Zuni silver, Hopi katsina carvings and rugs, from museum shops and reputable galleries.

Jackson Hole is among the most expensive places to stay in the country. Room rates are high in both summer and ski season, and meals, lift tickets, rental cars and guided trips all cost resort prices. The trails and roadside wildlife are free, and staying over the pass in Idaho helps.

Phoenix is much easier on the budget. Winter is the expensive season, but summer rooms drop sharply, freeway chain hotels are good value all year and Sonoran Mexican food is cheap and good. Budget for a rental car in either.

Jackson's stage life is concentrated in summer. The Grand Teton Music Festival brings orchestral players to the timber concert hall in Teton Village, and chuckwagon shows and country bands in the saloons fill the evenings. Out of season there is little beyond community theatre.

Phoenix keeps a full programme from autumn to spring, with the Phoenix Symphony, Arizona Opera, Ballet Arizona, touring Broadway shows at Wright's round ASU Gammage and rock and indie bands in Tempe and downtown. Its quiet season is summer.

Jackson's best kind of rest is natural: a hot spring pool in a forested canyon, reached by snowmobile or dog sled in winter, and soaking pools beside the Snake River, followed by quiet evenings. Beyond those, it is hotel spas and massages for sore skiers.

For a classic spa week, Phoenix is better set up. Large resorts along Camelback Mountain and in north Scottsdale offer full spas, treatments made with sage, clay and agave, and dry winter sun by the pool. It has no hot springs, and the best of it costs resort money.