Las Vegas or Sedona?

Neither city has a beach, and nobody should choose either one for swimming. Las Vegas offers resort pools with wave pools and lazy rivers, plus the gravel shore of Boulder Beach on Lake Mead in a desert basin with no shade. Sedona's Oak Creek makes the more memorable swim, whether sliding down the sandstone chute at Slide Rock or dropping into the cool pools below Red Rock Crossing, though the spots are small and crowded on hot weekends.

Las Vegas is the far stronger place to eat. The Strip gathers steakhouses, French dining rooms and tasting menus from famous chefs, and Spring Mountain Road adds kilometres of Chinese, Korean, Japanese and Vietnamese cooking, much of it open late.

Sedona has a handful of good kitchens, Southwestern plates of chilli, corn and grilled meat, and plenty for vegetarians, with the red rock view doing much of the work. Its real bonus is the Verde Valley tasting rooms just down the road, a wine angle Las Vegas cannot match.

Neither is a sightseeing destination, and the difference is in kind. Las Vegas offers modern spectacle: the themed resorts, the fountains and the light canopy over Fremont Street. Its real history is told at the Neon Museum's yard of old signs and at the Mob Museum in the former courthouse.

Sedona's interest is older and quieter. It has the Chapel of the Holy Cross set into a butte and galleries of Western and Native American art, and the Sinagua cliff dwellings and petroglyphs at Palatki, Honanki and V Bar V are a short drive out.

On nightlife the two are opposites. Las Vegas runs around the clock, with DJ residencies in the resort clubs, dayclub pool parties, and cheaper dive bars and craft beer bars around Fremont Street. Sedona offers a brewpub or wine bar in Uptown and then an early night, since most visitors are on the trail at dawn, and its best evening show is the dark sky.

Las Vegas has fine desert within reach: Red Rock Canyon's climbing cliffs half an hour west, the flame-coloured rock of Valley of Fire and the pine trails on Mount Charleston. Every outing, though, starts with a drive out of the city.

In Sedona the landscape is the town. Buttes and spires rise straight from the edge of the streets, trails lead to Cathedral Rock, Bell Rock and West Fork, mountain bikers ride the slickrock and Oak Creek Canyon climbs into pine forest. It is the better choice for anyone planning to be outside every day.

Las Vegas has one classic outing, Hoover Dam combined with Boulder City. Beyond that, the long tours to the Grand Canyon, Zion or Death Valley are mostly days spent in a vehicle.

Sedona has more variety close by: the mountainside mining town of Jerome and the Verde Canyon Railroad, Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot within half an hour, and Flagstaff with Walnut Canyon and Wupatki further north. The towns are small, but together they fill several good days.

Las Vegas has more attractions built for children, including an indoor amusement park, a shark aquarium and the Discovery Children's Museum. They sit behind casino floors and adult advertising that are hard to avoid, though.

Sedona suits families better, as long as they enjoy being outdoors. There is Slide Rock in summer, the easy lower paths around Bell Rock and open jeep rides over the slickrock, all in a small and relaxed town. Beyond that there is little for children, and both cities work best as one stop on a wider loop through the national parks.

Las Vegas is the easier of the two without a car, if not exactly easy. Buses run the length of the Strip day and night, the monorail covers the east side, and taxis and ride-hailing fill the gaps. The size of the resorts and the summer heat make walking slower than the map suggests.

Sedona is spread along two highways around the Y junction, with only Uptown walkable and a shuttle to a few trailheads. A car is needed for nearly everything, and weekend traffic and full trailhead car parks are part of the routine.

For brands, Las Vegas is well ahead. It has the resort malls at Caesars Palace and the Venetian, the Fashion Show mall and two large outlet centres, all open late, while Sedona has no fashion shopping at all.

What Sedona offers instead is local work: the galleries and craft studios of Tlaquepaque, Native American jewellery, pottery and rugs, and its crystal and metaphysical shops. It is the place to find something you could not buy anywhere else, which Las Vegas almost never provides.

Neither is cheap, but Las Vegas gives you more ways to manage costs. Midweek rooms on the Strip and downtown can be good value, and Chinatown meals keep eating affordable. Weekends, resort fees, shows and clubs quickly undo the savings.

Sedona is expensive whatever you do, with resort and boutique lodgings, resort-town restaurants and costly jeep tours, balloon flights and spa treatments. Free trails and picnics help, and many budget travellers sleep in Cottonwood or Flagstaff and drive in.

Las Vegas is one of the great show towns. It has acrobatic and water spectacles in purpose-built theatres, magicians and comedians, and pop and country stars on long residencies. Touring Broadway musicals, ballet and the Philharmonic play at the Smith Center.

Sedona's calendar is small: chamber concerts, local theatre and the long-running film festival in late winter, plus acoustic sets and Native American flute in resort lounges. Anyone who wants a big night at a show should spend it in Las Vegas.

Las Vegas has huge resort spas with thermal circuits, salt rooms and saunas, and they are restful on a weekday morning. The casinos outside, though, keep the city switched on day and night.

Sedona is built around slowing down. Spa resorts face the red rock, yoga, meditation and breathwork sessions are easy to find, and sunrise walks to the vortexes are part of the routine, followed by dark, quiet nights. Neither city has hot springs or a bathing tradition.