Lake George or Philadelphia?

At Lake George, swimming is part of the stay itself. The clear lake warms up in July and August, and the lifeguarded state beach at the southern end of the village, Shepard Park and the islands in the Narrows are all close by. Expect fresh water, no surf and small beaches that fill early on hot weekends.

Philadelphia has no swimming of its own. The Jersey Shore has wide Atlantic sand at Ocean City, Wildwood and Cape May, but it means more than an hour each way in weekend traffic, so it is a side trip rather than the point of the visit.

Food is one of the reasons to go to Philadelphia, and it is not a reason to go to Lake George. The city has its own sandwiches, from the cheesesteak to roast pork with broccoli rabe. It has two great markets in Reading Terminal and the Italian Market, plus chef-run bring-your-own rooms and good Mexican and Vietnamese cooking in East Passyunk and Fishtown.

At Lake George you eat pizza, pancakes and burgers on waterfront decks. A few better dining rooms in Bolton Landing serve game and lake fish, and visitors who care about food end up driving to Saratoga Springs.

Philadelphia is in another league here. Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell, the Georgian streets of Society Hill, the Impressionists at the Barnes and the oddities of the Mütter Museum add up to days of sightseeing.

Lake George has Fort William Henry, a reconstruction of the fort besieged in 1757 and made famous by The Last of the Mohicans, and a small historical museum in the old courthouse. For the region's more important history at Fort Ticonderoga and Saratoga, you have to drive.

Neither city is a place for clubbing, but Philadelphia gives you a proper night out all year. It has warehouse bars and beer halls in Fishtown, cocktails around Rittenhouse Square and the long-established Gayborhood. At Lake George, the evenings belong to summer weekend boaters drinking on the decks along Canada Street, and from autumn onwards most nights in the village are quiet.

Lake George is the outdoor destination of the two. It has a 50km lake with island campsites, wide views from Black Mountain and Tongue Mountain, and the High Peaks within two hours. Add the autumn colour and skiing at Gore Mountain, and there is something to do outside in every season.

Philadelphia's green side is gentler: the wooded Wissahickon gorge in Fairmount Park, the Schuylkill River Trail past Boathouse Row and, further out, the Pine Barrens and the Poconos. That is good for a run or a day's walk, but not for a trip built around landscape.

Philadelphia's day trips run along the rail line. New York, Baltimore and Washington each make a full day out by train, and Lancaster County's Amish country is about an hour away. Gettysburg, Longwood Gardens and the Brandywine estates add more if you have a car.

From Lake George, every outing means driving. The best is Saratoga Springs, with its racecourse and mineral springs, followed by Fort Ticonderoga above Lake Champlain and the Olympic town of Lake Placid.

Both work well with children, in different ways. Lake George is a classic summer resort, with the Great Escape and its water park, a gently sloping beach with lifeguards, paddlewheel steamboats and mini golf along Canada Street. Families stay in cottages or in motels with pools, but most of it shuts outside the summer.

Philadelphia is a museum city for families. There is the giant walk-through heart at the Franklin Institute, the Please Touch Museum for under-eights, the dinosaur hall at the Academy of Natural Sciences and the country's oldest zoo. That makes it the better choice for a family trip outside the summer.

In Philadelphia you can manage without a car. William Penn's flat grid puts Old City, Society Hill, Rittenhouse Square and the Parkway museums within walking distance. SEPTA's subway, trolleys and regional rail, including the airport train, cover the rest, though the system is plain.

Lake George's village takes minutes to walk, but apart from a few seasonal trolleys, the western shore hamlets, the trailheads and the day trips all need a car, and parking in summer is a chore. Renting a boat is the best way to see the lake.

Philadelphia has a real shopping day in it. You'll find brands and boutiques on Walnut Street, independent shops in Old City and Fishtown, and the historic Jewelers' Row. The huge King of Prussia mall is half an hour out, and there is no sales tax on clothing. Lake George has souvenirs and fudge on Canada Street, outlet centres on Route 9 and a handful of shops selling Adirondack crafts and maple syrup, which make good gifts.

Neither is cheap, and the costs come in different places. Lake George is expensive in July and August, when lakefront rooms, boat rentals and theme park tickets add up. It is much cheaper on weekdays and outside the summer, and its beaches and trails cost little or nothing.

Philadelphia's hotels charge normal American city rates, but the founding sights are free, a cheesesteak makes a cheap lunch and bringing your own wine keeps dinner bills down.

Philadelphia has a full season. The Philadelphia Orchestra plays on the Avenue of the Arts, opera and ballet are staged at the 1857 Academy of Music, Curtis Institute students give recitals, and the Walnut Street Theatre is the oldest working theatre in the country. Jazz clubs and rock venues in Fishtown fill the rest of the week.

At Lake George it is a small summer offering: free concerts in Shepard Park, a September jazz weekend, an August chamber music festival and summer theatre. For anything bigger, visitors drive to the amphitheatre at Saratoga Springs.

Lake George is the more restful choice, as long as you stay away from the village in high summer. The resort hotels near Bolton Landing have full spas, a lakeside cottage sets a slow pace, and the historic mineral baths of Saratoga Springs are under an hour south. Early autumn is the calmest time.

Philadelphia is a quick, slightly gruff city. There, rest means a hotel or day spa near Rittenhouse, a drive to a Korean-style bathhouse in the suburbs, or a quiet hour in one of Penn's squares or in the Wissahickon gorge.