Kaunas or Vilnius?

Neither city is a beach destination. Both are far inland, and swimming means fresh water in July and August.

The settings differ. Kaunas has sandy spots along its large reservoir and on the Nemunas at Panemune, and it is the nearer of the two to the Baltic coast at Palanga, though that is still a long return trip. Vilnius swimmers go to the Green Lakes and other pine-fringed lakes on the city's northern edge, or to the shores around Trakai.

Both cities serve the same hearty Lithuanian food: cepelinai, cold pink beetroot soup, rye bread and smoked meats. Vilnius has the edge, with a wider spread of modern Nordic and Baltic kitchens, a stronger craft beer and coffee scene, and the old iron market hall at Halės for cheese, honey and forest berries. It is also close to Trakai, the home of the Karaim kibinai pastry.

Kaunas eats more simply. It has good traditional cooking along Laisves aleja and in the Old Town, mead and herbal bitters, and a handful of modern kitchens, and most visitors will have tried the best of it within a few days.

Vilnius has the bigger and more varied historic centre. Its baroque Old Town, with the Gate of Dawn, St Anne's and the Cathedral below Gediminas Tower, is something you can wander for days. The Museum of Occupations, in the former KGB building, and the traces of the Jewish "Jerusalem of the North" give it a weight of history Kaunas cannot quite match.

Kaunas is different in kind, not just smaller. Its highlight is the twentieth century: the UNESCO-listed interwar modernist district, built when the city was the provisional capital, with the white Christ's Resurrection Church and its rooftop terrace above it. Add the Ciurlionis museum and the Ninth Fort, and it is well worth two days.

Vilnius is clearly the livelier of the two. It has more cocktail bars and craft beer pubs around Vokiečių and Pylimo streets, terraces that stay full on light summer evenings, and an electronic scene in courtyards and old industrial buildings where the bigger clubs stay open until dawn at weekends.

Nights in Kaunas are calmer and shorter. A typical evening is dinner followed by beer or mead in a vaulted brick cellar off Laisves aleja, with only a few clubs open late. When the students leave for the summer, even the weekends quieten down.

Vilnius has more nature within easy reach. The city sits among wooded hills, the regional parks of Pavilniai and Verkiai have steep trails a short bus ride from the centre, and summer balloon flights drift over the Old Town. Further out are the lakes of Trakai and Aukštaitija National Park.

Kaunas is flatter and gentler. The best of its outdoors is the Azuolynas oak grove, cycle paths along the reservoir and the rivers, and a day of hiking or canoeing on the Nemunas Loops.

The two are about equally well placed for outings, and they share many of the same destinations. From Kaunas the best day out is Vilnius and its baroque Old Town, an hour away by train, and from Vilnius the trip to Kaunas is just as easy. Kernave and the Rumsiskes open-air museum are within easy reach of both.

What differs is what lies nearest. Kaunas has the manor houses and castles along the Nemunas, among them Raudondvaris and Raudone, the old spa town of Birstonas down the river, and a long but manageable drive to the Hill of Crosses. From Vilnius the main draw is Trakai, whose island castle and Karaim village are only half an hour away rather than the hour it takes from Kaunas, and the sculpture parks in the forests north of the city are a quieter extra.

Both are safe, calm cities where children are easy to manage, though neither has much built specifically for them. What they offer differs. Kaunas has a small zoo in the oak grove, two old funiculars and a museum full of carved devils that young children tend to love.

Vilnius has no zoo but makes up for it with the Gediminas Tower funicular, rowing boats at Trakai, the Energy and Technology Museum, and large indoor water parks for cold days.

Vilnius is a little easier to get around. The Old Town, Užupis and Gediminas Avenue are a few minutes' walk apart, the airport is a short train or bus ride from the centre, and trains go straight to Trakai and Kaunas.

Kaunas is built along a single line. Laisves aleja runs from the modernist centre to the Old Town, but the Ninth Fort, Pazaislis and the reservoir all need a bus or taxi. Neither city has a metro or tram, and both have cobbles and hills to cope with.

Neither city is somewhere to shop seriously, but Vilnius has more to browse. The craft workshops and galleries of the Old Town and Užupis sell linen, ceramics and amber, Halės market is good for food to take home, and the Kaziukas folk fair fills the streets every March.

Kaunas is more practical, with chains on Laisves aleja and malls on the edge of the centre. Its souvenirs are much the same: amber, linen, woven sashes and honey from market stalls.

Both are inexpensive by Western European standards, with cheap transport, low museum entry and filling traditional lunches. Kaunas is slightly cheaper again, mainly because its central hotels and apartments cost noticeably less than those in the capital. In Vilnius, Old Town rooms cost more on summer weekends.

Vilnius has the fuller stage. The National Opera and Ballet runs a full repertoire through the season, the National Philharmonic plays in its grand hall, the city is the centre of the country's avant-garde theatre directors, and the Vilnius Jazz festival comes round every autumn.

Kaunas is more modest but well rounded. It has operetta and musicals at the State Musical Theatre on Laisves aleja, a respected drama theatre, a spring jazz festival and summer concerts at Pazaislis Monastery. In both cities most theatre is performed in Lithuanian.

Kaunas is the better choice for a restful stay. The wood-fired pirtis with birch whisks and a cold plunge can be found at saunas in the city and around its lakes, and Birstonas, with its sanatoriums and spa hotels, is about 40 minutes down the river.

In Vilnius the pirtis mostly means a trip to a countryside guesthouse, and the nearest proper spa town, Druskininkai, is almost two hours away. In town, relaxing means hotel spas, water-park saunas and slow mornings in Užupis cafés.