Laguna Beach or Monterey?

Laguna Beach is built around its beaches. Main Beach sits in the village, quieter coves such as Crescent Bay and Shaw's Cove lie to the north, and stairways lead down to Victoria Beach, Thousand Steps and Aliso in the south. The water is clear over the reefs, and by late summer it is warm enough to stay in for a long swim.

Monterey's beaches at Carmel and the Asilomar dunes are lovely to look at, but the bay stays near 14°C even at its warmest. That makes them places for picnics, sandcastles and walks rather than swimming, and anyone who goes in usually wears a wetsuit.

The two towns eat about equally well but in different ways. Laguna's strength is the setting: clifftop dining rooms at sunset, fish tacos and poke after the beach, and the Vietnamese, Mexican and Korean kitchens of inland Orange County for variety.

Monterey's cooking is more rooted in its region. Local squid, Dungeness crab and sand dabs appear on menus alongside produce from the Salinas Valley, and Pinot Noir from Carmel Valley is poured in nearby tasting rooms. In both towns it pays to avoid the dishes priced for the view.

Monterey has more history to explore. It was the capital of Spanish and Mexican Alta California, and the adobes of the State Historic Park include the Custom House and Colton Hall, where the state's first constitution was written. The Carmel Mission is ten minutes away, and Cannery Row adds a Steinbeck connection.

Laguna's heritage is its art colony. The Laguna Art Museum and the galleries along Coast Highway fill a morning, and its nearest major historic sight is the mission at San Juan Capistrano, which lies outside town.

Neither town is a place for a late night, and both go quiet well before midnight. In Laguna an evening out means a dive bar in the village or an ocean-view hotel terrace. Monterey's short run of pubs and brewpubs on Alvarado Street draws more of a local crowd, including students from the language and naval schools. For clubs, Laguna visitors drive to Newport Beach or Costa Mesa, and Monterey visitors to Santa Cruz.

Monterey has the more remarkable setting. A deep submarine canyon brings humpbacks, grey whales and orcas close to the harbour for much of the year, sea otters float beside the shoreline trail, and Point Lobos and the redwoods and waterfalls of Big Sur are a short drive south.

Laguna is strong on outdoor activities too, but on a smaller scale. Its protected coastal hills have hiking and mountain-biking trails up to the Top of the World viewpoint, and the whole shoreline is a marine reserve for tide pooling, snorkelling and paddleboarding. Dolphins are a common sight, whale-watching boats leave from nearby Dana Point, and the grey whales passing in winter are the highlight.

Laguna Beach makes a better base for day trips. Mission San Juan Capistrano is twenty minutes inland, the Catalina ferry leaves from Dana Point or Newport, and San Diego and Los Angeles are each about an hour and a half by car. The Temecula wine country makes another easy outing.

Monterey's best trips are short ones: Carmel-by-the-Sea, Pacific Grove, Steinbeck's Salinas and the old plaza at San Juan Bautista. Santa Cruz is under an hour away, but San Francisco really needs a stay of its own, and after that the options run out.

Both towns work well for families, in different ways. Laguna offers children lifeguarded beaches they can actually swim from, tide pools and the Main Beach playground, and Disneyland is about forty minutes away. The downsides are the steep beach stairways and scarce summer parking.

Monterey's centrepiece is the Monterey Bay Aquarium, with its kelp forest and otters, and the same animals can be seen for free from the waterfront path. Cold water means beach days are about sandcastles rather than swimming.

In both towns you will need a car for most things, and in both parking gets tight on summer weekends. Laguna's village is easy to explore on foot, and a free trolley runs along Coast Highway, but the town is long and hilly and many coves are reached by stairs.

Monterey is a little easier on foot. A flat coastal trail links Fisherman's Wharf, downtown, Cannery Row and the aquarium and continues to Pacific Grove, so the main sights can be done on foot or by hired bike.

Laguna is the better place to shop. Galleries along Coast Highway and the North Laguna gallery row sell plein air landscapes and glass, Forest Avenue has boutiques, and summer festivals sell crafts directly from the makers. The luxury malls of Newport Beach and Costa Mesa are half an hour away.

Monterey's own shops lean towards saltwater taffy and sea-otter gifts. The better browsing is in Carmel's boutiques and Pacific Grove's antique shops.

Both are expensive, but Laguna is harder on a budget. Even its simple motels charge clifftop prices in summer, ocean-view meals are costly, and many budget travellers stay inland and visit for the day.

Monterey costs a little less if you plan around it. The chain motels along the highway and in Seaside and Marina are cheaper, and coming midweek or in winter helps. The coastal trail and wildlife watching are free, though an aquarium visit is a significant cost for a family.

Laguna offers more to see over a stay. On summer evenings the Pageant of the Masters recreates famous artworks with live performers in a canyon amphitheatre, and the long-established Laguna Playhouse stages plays and musicals all year.

Monterey's reputation rests on its festivals: the Monterey Jazz Festival every September, the Carmel Bach Festival in summer and plays at the open-air Forest Theater. Outside those weeks there is far less going on.

Neither town has thermal baths or a bathing tradition, so relaxing in either comes down to the pace of the place and its resort spas. Laguna's calm is warm and coastal: clifftop spas, yoga studios in the village and long sunsets over the sea.

Monterey's is cooler and quieter, with fog lifting off the bay, evening walks in Pacific Grove and vineyard spas in sunny Carmel Valley. Visit midweek to avoid the summer crowds.