Kansas City or Vail?

Neither city is a beach destination, and both are far from any sea. The difference lies in the water. Kansas City's sandy lake beaches in its county parks warm up through a hot summer and make a decent afternoon with children. Vail's mountain lakes stay cold even in July, so people paddle and sunbathe there, and most swimming happens in a hotel pool.

Kansas City is the place to eat well. Its barbecue is a cuisine in its own right, and visitors come to compare smokehouses, from old counters near the stockyards to petrol-station joints. Steakhouses, the River Market's Vietnamese and Ethiopian counters and the Westside's Mexican kitchens add more variety.

Vail offers polished resort dining instead: fondue, elk, Colorado lamb and long wine lists in Vail Village. It has no local food tradition and no cheap end, and in the spring and autumn off-seasons many kitchens close.

Kansas City has much more to see. The Nelson-Atkins, with its Chinese collection and Oldenburg's shuttlecocks, the National WWI Museum, and the Negro Leagues and jazz museums at 18th and Vine make two or three full days. Union Station and the Country Club Plaza add architecture.

Vail's chalet village dates only from the 1960s and copies a Tyrolean town. The Colorado Snowsports Museum and the Betty Ford Alpine Gardens fill an hour or two, and that is about all there is.

Kansas City offers more nights out, spread across several districts. The Power and Light District has big sports bars, Westport has a student bar strip, and the Crossroads has quieter cocktail and craft-beer bars. You will need a ride between them, and midweek nights end early.

Vail's evenings centre on après-ski on the slopeside terraces of Vail Village and Lionshead. A few bars and one small club stay open late on winter weekends. In summer the town is calm, and in the off-seasons it is close to silent.

This is Vail's strongest category, and Kansas City cannot compete. Vail's ski area runs from the front-side groomers to the Back Bowls and Blue Sky Basin. In summer there are high trails in the Gore Range and Holy Cross wilderness, fly fishing, rafting and golden aspens in autumn. The village sits at about 2,500m, so take the first day gently.

Around Kansas City the land is rolling prairie and river country. Swope Park, Loose Park's rose garden and the reservoirs on the edge of the metro area are pleasant for a walk or some boating. For real hiking, the Ozarks are hours away.

Vail has the better outings, though both lists are short and both need a car. Breckenridge's Victorian main street, silver-boom Leadville and the hot springs at Glenwood Springs show more of the Rockies, and Aspen and Denver are within a long drive.

From Kansas City the trips are quieter. You can see Truman's home in Independence, the university town of Lawrence, river-town Weston with its distillery, and St Joseph's Pony Express museum, which make pleasant half days.

Children get a full few days out of Kansas City. Worlds of Fun has roller coasters and a water park next door, the zoo is big enough for a whole morning, and Science City inside Union Station is hands-on. Crown Center adds an aquarium and a Legoland Discovery Centre, and summer fountains and a relaxed baseball game at Kauffman Stadium fill the gaps. The catch is all the driving between them.

Vail works for families who come to ski. Its ski schools are large, there is gentle children's terrain, and in summer the top of the gondola has ropes courses and a mountain coaster. Beyond that there is little made for children, and the altitude and the cold can be hard on toddlers.

Vail is far easier once you have arrived. The village is pedestrian, the lifts start in town, and a free bus runs the length of the valley, so many visitors never need a car. Getting there is harder, with airport shuttles and a pass that can close in snow.

Kansas City is built around the car. The Main Street streetcar links the River Market, downtown and Crown Center well enough for a day or two without one. The zoo, the theme park and the outlying sights need a car or a ride-hail.

The Country Club Plaza is the nearest thing to a real shopping district in either place. Its tiled 1920s courtyards hold chain and upmarket stores, and the Crossroads, Westport and 39th Street add vintage, design and record shops for browsing.

Vail's village lanes sell ski wear, Western boots, jewellery and galleries of mountain landscapes to a wealthy clientele. That is fine for new gear or a luxury souvenir, but there is nothing cheap and little that is independent.

Kansas City costs about what an ordinary American city does. Hotels are cheaper than on the coasts and the main art museum is free to enter. Car hire, sales tax and tips still add up, so it is not a budget destination.

Vail is in a different price bracket altogether. Slopeside rooms, lift tickets, ski school and meals all cost well above normal American levels, and the peak winter weeks cost more still. Visiting in summer or staying down the valley softens the bill but does not make it cheap.

Kansas City has music all year. The city helped create jazz, with Count Basie and Charlie Parker, and clubs around 18th and Vine still hold late jam sessions. The Kauffman Center hosts the symphony, opera and ballet.

Vail's season is shorter but serious. In July and August, Bravo! Vail brings major orchestras to the open-air Ford Amphitheater, and the Dance Festival brings leading dancers. In winter there is little beyond après-ski bands.

Vail is the better place to unwind. The big hotels have spas with outdoor hot tubs under the peaks, saunas and massage after a day on the slopes. The mineral pools and vapour caves at Glenwood Springs are about an hour away. Kansas City has hotel and day spas, the old mineral resort of Excelsior Springs to the north, and quiet mornings in Loose Park or the Nelson-Atkins sculpture park.