Lake District or Scottish Highlands?

Neither region is a beach destination, but the shores are different. In the Lake District, swimming means lakes and tarns with shingle shores and jetties, like Buttermere or the shallows of Derwentwater, and the Cumbrian coast is better for a walk.

The Highlands have real sand, and some of it is stunning: the silver bays of Morar and Arisaig, Achmelvich in Assynt and remote Sandwood Bay. These beaches are for picnics and rock pools, because the sea stays colder than the Cumbrian lakes even in August.

The two regions eat equally well, in different ways. The Lake District's strength is the slate-floored inn serving Herdwick lamb and Cumbrian ale, plus serious country-house cooking around Cartmel and Windermere, the home of sticky toffee pudding.

The Highlands eat from the sea. You get langoustines and scallops on the quays at Oban, Ullapool and Portree, and you can taste whisky at the distilleries. In both regions, village food away from these highlights can be plain.

The two regions are level on sights, but the heritage is different. The Lake District's is literary: Dove Cottage at Grasmere, Hill Top and Ruskin's Brantwood above Coniston Water, all within easy reach of one another.

The Highlands tell a harder story through battlefields and castles. Culloden, Urquhart above Loch Ness, Eilean Donan and the empty townships of the Clearances all reward the drives between them.

Nights are quiet in both regions and centre on the pub. In the Lake District that means walkers by the fire in Ambleside or Keswick, with an early end to the evening. Inverness has a little more going on, with late bars by the river, and Highland village bars often end the night with a dram and a folk session.

Both regions are among the finest mountain country in Britain, and the difference is scale. The Lake District is compact. Helvellyn by Striding Edge, Scafell Pike from Wasdale and gentle Catbells above Derwentwater lie in neighbouring valleys, so one week can cover several classic routes. Its crags are also where British rock climbing began.

The Highlands are far bigger and wilder. Glencoe, the Cuillin on Skye, Torridon's sandstone peaks and the arctic-feeling Cairngorm plateau offer real remoteness, with sea kayaking among the islands and modest skiing in winter. Golden and sea eagles, dolphins off Chanonry Point and whale-watching from the west coast give the wildlife a scale that Cumbria does not reach.

The Lake District has the easier outings, because distances are short. Market towns like Kendal and Cartmel are close by, and Carlisle and Hadrian's Wall are under an hour from the northern Lakes.

Highland day trips feel bigger but take more effort. The best are the ferry from Oban to Mull and Iona and the steam train over the Glenfinnan Viaduct to Mallaig, but slow roads make every trip longer than it looks on the map.

The Lake District is the easier place to bring children. Lake steamers, the miniature railway up Eskdale, the Beatrix Potter connection and short shoreline walks are all close to bases like Windermere and Ambleside.

The Highlands also have plenty for children: the Highland Wildlife Park and reindeer around Aviemore, castles to climb and dolphins to spot from the shore. But long drives on winding roads, wet days and summer midges make a family trip harder work.

You can see the central Lake District without a car. A branch line runs to Windermere, and buses and steamers link Ambleside, Grasmere and Keswick, with many walks starting at a bus stop. Only the western valleys over Hardknott and Wrynose need a car.

In the Highlands a car is close to essential. Scenic railways reach Fort William, Mallaig and Kyle of Lochalsh, but the trailheads and beaches lie down single-track roads with passing places.

Neither region is a place to shop, and both lean towards outdoor gear, which Ambleside, Keswick, Aviemore and Fort William sell in plenty. The Lake District adds Herdwick wool, slate crafts and Grasmere gingerbread. The Highlands have tweed, tartan, whisky bought at the distillery and Inverness's Victorian covered market.

The two regions cost about the same, and both get cheaper outside summer, but the money goes on different things. In the Lake District the main cost is a bed in one of the popular villages, and beds are dearest at weekends and in school breaks as well as in high summer. Pub meals and parking add to that. Because a car-free stay in the central Lakes is realistic, though, you can save on transport.

In the Highlands rooms are scarce, so they cost more and sell out early on Skye and around Glencoe. The car you will almost certainly need adds hire and fuel costs, and remote shops charge more for everyday things.

The Highlands have more live music, mostly traditional. There are fiddle and pipe sessions in Portree and Fort William pubs, ceilidhs in village halls, Gaelic song in the west, and pipe bands at summer Highland games.

The Lake District's offer is smaller but includes good theatre. Theatre by the Lake in Keswick runs a repertory season, and Kendal's November mountain festival brings outdoor films and talks.

Both regions are good for slowing down, and both have cold-water swimmers. The Lake District offers a walk-and-spa weekend in lakeside hotels on Windermere and Ullswater. The Highlands offer solitude instead, in a cottage at the end of a single-track road with only wind and birds to hear.