Krabi or Pattaya?

Krabi has much the better beaches. Railay West and Phra Nang sit under limestone cliffs a short longtail ride from Ao Nang, and Poda, Chicken Island and the Hong group add more clear, calm water in the dry season.

Pattaya's main beach is better for a deckchair than a swim, because the water is cloudy and full of jet skis. Jomtien is calmer, but the pale sand and clear sea are out on Koh Larn, a ferry ride away. In both places the wet months bring rougher water.

Both offer good, simple Thai eating with fresh seafood at its heart, but Pattaya gives you a little more to work with. It has long rows of night-market stalls, street carts selling som tam and grilled pork, and fish bought by weight along the Naklua waterfront. Because so many visitors stay for long periods, comfort food from home is easy to find too, though the quality varies.

Krabi's cooking is more distinctive: southern and shaped by the region's Muslim communities, with fiery curries, turmeric fish soups and roti for breakfast. It is best found at Krabi Town's walking-street market rather than on the Ao Nang strip.

Neither is a destination for heritage, but Pattaya has the finer single sight in the Sanctuary of Truth, the carved teak temple-palace at Naklua, as well as Big Buddha Hill above the bay. Krabi's one landmark is the climb of more than 1,200 steps to the Tiger Cave Temple. You go for the karst views more than for art, and beyond the riverside shophouses of Krabi Town there is little else.

This is where the two differ most sharply. Pattaya's Walking Street, big dance clubs, rooftop bars and the beer bars off Second Road run late and cheap, and the sex trade is a visible part of much of it. Jomtien and Naklua suit those who want a quieter night.

Krabi is for a few drinks after sunset: a short run of bars in Ao Nang, and hammocks, reggae and fire-spinning on Railay. There are no proper clubs and most places are quiet by midnight.

Krabi's limestone towers, lagoons and mangrove channels make it one of Thailand's great outdoor bases. Railay and Tonsai are famous for sport climbing, Ao Thalane is excellent for sea kayaking, and inland there are rainforest walks to the Emerald Pool and up Dragon Crest.

In Pattaya the outdoors is mostly at sea: snorkelling off the nearby islands, dives to sunken naval ships and kitesurfing at Na Jomtien in the dry season. The land behind is flat and built up, so Nong Nooch's gardens and the Khao Kheow hills are the main green escapes.

Pattaya has the better range of places to visit. Bangkok's royal palace and riverside temples are about two hours away by road. Koh Samet's white beaches, the fishing town of Si Racha and Koh Si Chang with its old royal summer palace fill other days.

Krabi's outings are mostly boat trips for the scenery. As places to see, the pick is Phi Phi's village, Koh Lanta's stilted Old Town and the quiet fishing villages of Koh Yao Noi, and there are no major heritage sites within easy reach.

Both work about equally well for families, but in different ways. Krabi is all about the sea: shallow, warm coves at Klong Muang and Phra Nang, resort kids' clubs and gentle boat trips, with no zoo or aquarium to fill a rainy day.

Pattaya has the attractions Krabi lacks: water parks, a walk-through aquarium and the Khao Kheow night safari. Families do best staying in Jomtien or at a resort, away from the bar streets after dark.

In Krabi the white songthaews connect Ao Nang with the beaches to the north and Krabi Town, which covers the main strip but little more. The beaches people come for are the awkward part. Railay can only be reached by longtail from Ao Nang or Krabi Town, so a day on its sand depends on the boats, and they stay ashore when the sea is heavy.

Pattaya is a little easier because its songthaews circle a fixed loop of Beach Road and Second Road and carry on to Jomtien and Naklua. Most of the coast where visitors stay lies on that one simple route, and no trip within the city depends on the weather at sea. In both places, anything further out, from Pattaya's water parks to Krabi's Emerald Pool, means a taxi, a ride-hailing app or a scooter, and the heat and broken pavements make long walks hard work.

Pattaya is the more practical place to shop. It has large air-conditioned malls with chains and supermarkets, night markets around Thepprasit and Jomtien, and tailors who make a suit in days. Krabi has Ao Nang's stalls of beachwear and souvenirs, Krabi Town's weekend walking-street market and a couple of plain malls, which is enough for essentials and little more. Neither has boutiques or serious local design.

Both are good value, and Pattaya is slightly kinder to a tight budget. A large oversupply of rooms keeps its hotels cheap, especially in the wet season, and street food, beer bars and songthaew rides cost little. Krabi Town is just as cheap, but Ao Nang costs more, and Railay, where everything arrives by boat, is the most expensive corner.

The extras add up differently. In Krabi it is island tours, longtail fares and national park fees. In Pattaya it is speedboat trips, water parks and shows.

Pattaya at least has shows worth booking: ladyboy cabaret in big theatres, dinner shows with Thai dance and martial arts, and cover bands playing late on Walking Street. Krabi offers fire-spinning on the beach, a few bar bands and Muay Thai fights staged near Ao Nang. Neither has theatre or a local arts scene.

Krabi is the more restful of the two. Massage shops line every street, and the resorts at Klong Muang, Tubkaek and Railay have sea-view spas with open-air pavilions. The Hot Springs Waterfall at Khlong Thom, about an hour's drive south, adds warm mineral pools in the forest.

Pattaya has massage on every corner and good resort spas in Naklua, Na Jomtien and on the Pratamnak headland. Against that, the centre stays loud late into the night, some massage places belong to the nightlife trade, and there are no hot springs.