Keystone or Santa Fe?

Neither place has a beach, and you should plan both trips without one. The water also differs. Dillon Reservoir lies right below Keystone but is too cold from snowmelt for swimming and is used for boats. From Santa Fe, locals drive about an hour to swim in Abiquiu Lake or float down the Rio Grande in summer.

Day to day, Keystone's water means hot tubs on snowy evenings. In Santa Fe it means a hotel pool after a hot afternoon.

Santa Fe has a real cuisine of its own. New Mexican cooking means red or green chile, blue corn, posole and carne adovada, served in old adobe rooms around the Plaza. Above that is a fine-dining tier that is unusual for a town of its size, and the Railyard farmers' market is worth a morning.

Keystone eats like a ski resort: burgers and craft beer at après-ski, pizza at the bases and a few more ambitious rooms, one of them reached by gondola. Elk, lamb and trout add some Colorado character. Many visitors cook in their condo or drive to Frisco or Breckenridge for more choice.

This is where the two differ most. Santa Fe was founded in 1610 and still looks like it: low adobe walls around the Plaza, the Palace of the Governors, the Loretto Chapel with its spiral staircase, and Museum Hill with its large folk art and Native American collections.

Keystone was built for skiing in the 1970s, and River Run Village is modern and practical. Its history lies outside the resort, in old mining cabins up the Snake River valley and in nearby Victorian towns such as Breckenridge.

Both are quiet after dark, but Santa Fe offers a little more to do. An evening there means a long dinner and then a margarita or mezcal on a rooftop as the sun sets over the Jemez Mountains, or a drink at a Railyard brewery. In summer the Plaza stays lively into the evening.

Keystone's evening peaks at après-ski, when the River Run decks fill with skiers still in their boots, and is mostly over soon after dinner because people want first chair. For a real night out, Keystone visitors go to Breckenridge's Main Street, and Santa Fe visitors to Albuquerque.

Keystone is a true high-mountain base. It has its own three peaks with bowls above 3,600m, Arapahoe Basin a few minutes up the road, and Breckenridge, Copper Mountain and Vail within an hour, all on dry, reliable snow. In summer the same slopes turn into lift-served biking, with Grays and Torreys Peaks and the tundra of Loveland Pass close at hand.

Santa Fe has fewer big mountain days but a wider range of landscapes. Piñon foothills, aspen forest and the Pecos Wilderness rise behind the town, while to the west lie mesas, the volcanic crater of Valles Caldera, and Rio Grande rafting. Its ski area is much smaller.

From Santa Fe, day trips reach places found nowhere else. The High Road runs through Chimayo and Truchas to Taos Pueblo, which has been lived in for about a thousand years. Bandelier's cliff dwellings, the atomic history of Los Alamos and O'Keeffe's Abiquiu are all within a drive, though most of them need a car.

Keystone's outings are mostly mining heritage and other resorts. You can visit the Victorian streets of Breckenridge and Leadville, ride the loop railway between Georgetown and Silver Plume, or drive to Vail. Denver is the bigger trip, but traffic on I-70 can make it a long one.

Keystone is designed around children. It has a large ski school, gentle lower runs, tubing, a snow fort up on the mountain and the large frozen skating rink at Lakeside Village. Condos close to the lifts take much of the work out of a family trip, though there is little for children away from the snow.

Santa Fe is safe and relaxed but made for adults. The children's museum, the toys at the folk art museum and the ladders at Bandelier fill a day or two. It works best with older children who like hiking and history. Both towns sit high enough that small children may tire in the first days.

Once you have arrived, Keystone is easier without a car. Free shuttles link River Run, Mountain House and Lakeside, and free county buses go to Dillon, Frisco and Breckenridge. The weak point is the drive up from Denver on I-70, with snow and chain rules in winter.

Santa Fe's centre is the better place to walk. The Plaza, Canyon Road and the Railyard are all within about twenty minutes on foot, and the Rail Runner train runs to Albuquerque. Beyond the centre, though, buses are infrequent, and Museum Hill, the trailheads and the pueblos all need a car.

Santa Fe is a destination for buying art and craft. Native American artists sell silver, turquoise and pottery under the portal of the Palace of the Governors. Canyon Road and the Railyard are lined with galleries, and the summer Indian Market and Spanish Market draw collectors from far away.

In Keystone, shopping means ski gear, rentals and a few gift shops in River Run. The outlet centre in Silverthorne, ten minutes away, is the main draw for clothes and outdoor wear.

Neither is cheap, but Santa Fe is easier on the budget. Its hiking, the Plaza and most gallery browsing cost nothing. Hotels along Cerrillos Road cost less than those near the Plaza, though you will usually need a hire car.

A Keystone ski week is one of the dearest trips of its kind: lift access, rentals, ski school, slopeside beds and resort meals all add up, especially over the Christmas and spring-break weeks. Free buses, condo kitchens and a summer visit soften the cost but do not change the picture.

Santa Fe has a festival of real standing. The Santa Fe Opera performs in an open-sided theatre in the hills as the sun sets, with a summer chamber music festival and a long flamenco tradition alongside it. The historic Lensic theatre keeps something on through the year.

Keystone's summer means outdoor stages in the resort and concerts at Dillon's amphitheatre by the reservoir, plus Breckenridge's classical festival nearby. In winter there is little beyond acoustic sets at après-ski and the professional theatre company in Silverthorne.

Keystone's wellness is about getting over a day of skiing: resort massages and a hot tub at almost every lodge, soaking under falling snow. For natural hot springs you have to drive over the pass to Idaho Springs.

Santa Fe is the better place to slow down. It has onsen-style soaking tubs among the pines in the foothills, and the old mineral pools at Ojo Caliente are an hour north. The town also has an unusual number of yoga studios and spas for its size, and its quiet adobe courtyards and early evenings help you unwind.