Lake Placid or Park City?

Neither has a coast, but Lake Placid at least has swimming on its doorstep. Mirror Lake's small beach is in the middle of the village. The Saranac lakes and many ponds are close by, and the rocky holes on the West Branch of the Ausable are pleasant on a hot midsummer afternoon.

Park City's one real option is Jordanelle Reservoir down the valley, which is cool and only good in high summer, so most visitors get no wetter than a hotel pool or hot tub. If a lake swim matters, choose Lake Placid.

Park City eats noticeably better. The ski crowds keep a run of polished restaurants going on historic Main Street and at the resort bases, cooking elk, bison, trout and steaks, and après-ski on the slopeside decks is an event in itself. Salt Lake City's wider choice is a drive down the canyon.

Lake Placid feeds you well enough after a day outdoors, with diners, brewpubs, pizza and a few lakeside lodge dining rooms. The range is narrow, though, and some kitchens cut back out of season. Maple syrup and local beer are about as local as the food gets.

Neither is a culture destination, and in both a day or less covers the sights. The difference is the story they tell. Lake Placid's is Olympic: the 1980 'Miracle on Ice' rink, the ski jumps above town and the speed skating oval. John Brown's Farm, the abolitionist's home and grave, adds a piece of wider American history.

Park City's heritage is silver mining, and the town itself is the main sight. Wooden storefronts climb Main Street, mine headframes stand on the slopes, and there is a good museum in the old city hall. Its Olympic Park, built for 2002, has museums beside its working jumps.

Park City has the livelier evenings, though only by small-town standards. Après-ski starts on the decks as the lifts close. After that, Main Street's saloons and cocktail bars, a few with DJs or bands, fill up and can get rowdy on winter weekends.

In Lake Placid a night out means a beer in a Main Street brewpub or a lakeside hotel bar. There are no clubs and very little after midnight, and outside winter both towns go to bed early.

Both are outstanding mountain bases, and the mountains are why people go to either. Park City has the edge for skiers. Two large ski areas rise straight from town, Utah's dry powder falls all winter, and Alta, Snowbird, Brighton and Solitude are within an hour. In summer, singletrack trails leave from the streets and lifts carry bikes uphill.

Lake Placid is wilder and more watery: the forested High Peaks of the Adirondacks, with Mount Marcy for a big day and Cascade or Mount Jo for a half day. Its real strength is the water, with canoeing through the Saranac and St. Regis lakes, fly fishing on the Ausable and climbing at Chapel Pond. Whiteface has a long vertical drop, but the skiing is not on Park City's scale.

Neither has a long list, and from both the best outings are often into the landscape rather than to other towns. What differs is where you go. From Park City you can reach a real city in about forty minutes: Salt Lake City, with Temple Square and its museums. Closer in are the Heber Valley steam railway and Swiss-style Midway, and railroad-era Ogden is about an hour north.

Lake Placid's trips are more historic and further apart. They include the old cure town of Saranac Lake, the Wild Center at Tupper Lake and Fort Ticonderoga on Lake Champlain. Further still are Burlington, across the lake by ferry, and Montreal over the border. You need a car either way.

Park City is the smoother base for families. Both ski areas have ski schools, and free buses run to the slopes. At the Utah Olympic Park, children can ride the alpine coaster and the ziplines and watch freestyle skiers land in a splash pool. Summer adds alpine slides and climbing walls, though the altitude can tire small children for a day or two.

Lake Placid still works well for active families. There is public skating on the Olympic rinks, a toboggan chute onto the frozen lake, a long-running Christmas theme park nearby and Mirror Lake's beach in summer. The catch is the driving and the long cold winters.

Park City is much easier without a car. Free buses link Old Town, Main Street, both ski bases and Kimball Junction, many hotels run shuttles, and the airport is about forty minutes away. You only really need a car for trips into the valleys.

Lake Placid's village is compact and easy to walk. However, the trailheads, Whiteface and the lakes are spread through the mountains with few buses, and the nearest train station is an hour's drive away. Plan on a hire car and real winter driving.

Neither is a place to go for shopping, but Park City gives you more to look at. Main Street mixes galleries, Western-wear and cowboy-boot shops, jewellers and upscale ski fashion, and the outlet centre at Kimball Junction covers the basics.

Lake Placid's single stretch of Main Street is mostly outfitters, fly-fishing shops and Adirondack souvenirs such as balsam pillows and maple products. It is good for gear and gifts, and that is about all.

Both are expensive resorts, but Lake Placid is easier to do on less. Older motels on the edge of the village, self-catering cabins and the quiet spring and late-autumn weeks make a real difference, and the lakes and trails cost nothing.

Park City sits at the top of the North American resort market in ski season. Lift tickets, ski school and slopeside beds add up fast, and the Christmas and New Year weeks cost more still. Summer and autumn are cheaper, and many visitors on a budget stay in Salt Lake City or the Heber Valley and drive up.

Park City has a little more on stage, and some of it runs all year. The Egyptian Theatre, a 1920s playhouse on Main Street, puts on comedy, plays and cabaret, and the Eccles Center hosts touring shows. In summer the Utah Symphony plays on the lawns at Deer Valley.

In Lake Placid, live music is mostly a summer thing, centred on the Lake Placid Sinfonietta and its free concerts at the Mirror Lake bandshell. The arts centre adds occasional shows the rest of the year.

Park City is better set up for pampering. The big lodges at Deer Valley and the Canyons base have large spas offering massages for tired legs, and outdoor hot pools come with nearly every stay. At Midway you can swim in warm spring water inside a limestone dome.

Lake Placid's calm comes more from its setting than from treatment rooms. There are a few lodge spas with saunas and hot tubs. Otherwise it is a porch over still water, a winter fireplace and the slow walk around Mirror Lake.