Lake District or Peak District?

Neither is a beach destination, but the Lake District at least has water you can get into. Wild swimmers take to Ullswater, Buttermere and Derwentwater from shingle shores and jetties. The long, empty beaches of the Cumbrian coast are good for a bracing walk.

The Peak District is landlocked, and swimming in its deep, cold reservoirs is discouraged. A summer swim there means the heated open-air pool at Hathersage or a quick dip in a limestone river.

Both regions eat in the country pub, and the Lake District has the better meals. Herdwick lamb, Cumberland sausage and sticky toffee pudding from Cartmel are local classics. Cartmel and the shores of Windermere also have farm-to-table and country-house cooking that people travel across Britain for.

The Peak District is similar in style but has fewer standout tables. Its specialities are Bakewell pudding, Hartington cheese and the farm shops around Chatsworth, which are often a better bet than the evening menus in small villages. Neither offers much beyond British country cooking.

The Peak District has more to see. Chatsworth, with its art collection and landscaped park, and the medieval Haddon Hall are among the finest country houses in England. Add Buxton's Georgian Crescent, the plague village of Eyam and Arkwright's mills at Cromford, and you have a full couple of days of sightseeing.

The Lake District's heritage is literary and quieter. It includes Wordsworth's Dove Cottage, Beatrix Potter's Hill Top, Ruskin's Brantwood and the Castlerigg stone circle. Each is a short visit, and the farmed landscape itself is the main monument.

Neither region offers a night out in the usual sense. Evenings end early in a pub by the fire, among walkers who want to be on the hills at first light. Within the park itself, the Lakes have slightly more going on. In summer, the walking towns of Ambleside and Keswick, along with Bowness on Windermere, have a few bars that are busier than anything in Buxton or Matlock, where things only run a little later at weekends.

The Peak's advantage lies outside the park. Sheffield and Manchester, each about an hour away, have the clubs and late bars that the Peak lacks. From Keswick or Ambleside, a comparable night out is much further away.

The Lake District has the bigger landscape. It is true mountain country, with routes such as Striding Edge onto Helvellyn, Scafell Pike from Wasdale and the Fairfield Horseshoe, and the glacial lakes below are good for sailing and paddling. The western valleys of Wasdale and Ennerdale are wild.

The Peak District is hill country, with no ground above 640m. It still offers a lot: the gritstone moors of Kinder Scout, climbing on Stanage Edge, and the green limestone dales of Dovedale and Lathkill. Its flat former railway lines also give easy cycling that the Lakes lack.

The Peak District sits between big cities, which gives it far more choice. Manchester and Sheffield are a short train ride away, and Derby, Nottingham and the Potteries are within reach. There are also great houses just outside the park, such as Hardwick Hall and Kedleston Hall.

Lake District outings mostly stay local: Kendal's old yards, Cartmel Priory, and the miniature railway from Ravenglass up Eskdale. Further out, Carlisle and Hadrian's Wall make good days from the northern Lakes, but most of these trips are easier by car.

The Peak District gives families more to do. Children can explore the show caves at Castleton and Buxton, ride the cable car to the Heights of Abraham, take a vintage tram at Crich and run around Chatsworth's adventure playground. Alton Towers is a short drive away, and the railway trails are safe for young cyclists.

The Lake District suits children who love the outdoors. They can ride the lake steamers, follow the Beatrix Potter trail near Hawkshead and try ghyll scrambling when they are older. Wet days, though, leave few places to go indoors.

Both are hard to get around without a car, but each has a workable car-free option. In the Lakes, the branch line to Windermere connects with buses and lake steamers through the central valleys. Wasdale and Eskdale, though, mean driving the steep Hardknott and Wrynose passes.

In the Peak, three rail lines run into the park, and walks start from station platforms at Edale and Hathersage. Away from the railways, buses are thin, especially in the evening. In both regions, summer weekend traffic clogs the busiest villages.

Neither region is a shopping trip, and both are good for outdoor gear: Ambleside and Keswick in the Lakes, Hathersage and Castleton in the Peak. The souvenirs are different. The Lakes have Herdwick wool, slate crafts and landscape galleries. The Peak has Blue John jewellery from Castleton, antique shops in Ashbourne and Leek, and Bakewell's weekly market.

The Peak District is the cheaper of the two. Its prices are those of rural England, high mainly on summer weekends. The extra cost comes from entry fees, which add up for a family visiting several houses and caves.

The Lake District is priced for heavy demand from July to September and during school breaks, and parking and pub meals add up. Both have youth hostels, bunkhouses and campsites, and in both the hills themselves are free.

The Peak District has more on stage, thanks to Buxton. Frank Matcham's Edwardian Opera House stages drama, concerts and pantomime through the year. In July, the Buxton International Festival brings opera and a large fringe, and Sheffield and Manchester are close for a full programme.

The Lake District has Theatre by the Lake in Keswick, with its repertory season, and Kendal's arts centre. Kendal's mountain festival of outdoor films and talks in November is the highlight.

The Peak District has a real spa tradition. Buxton's warm mineral springs feed a spa in the Georgian Crescent, and visitors can fill a bottle at St Ann's Well. Quiet midweek villages make it easy to slow down.

The Lake District has no thermal water. Instead it offers lakeside hotel spas around Windermere and Ullswater, with pools looking over the water, and a year-round habit of cold-water swimming in the tarns.