Lisbon or Toledo?

Neither city has a beach in town, but the gap between them is wide. From Lisbon the commuter train reaches surf at Carcavelos and calmer bays at Estoril and Cascais, and Costa da Caparica and the Arrabida coves lie south of the river. The cool Atlantic makes them better for a day out than for a whole stay.

Toledo is hours from any coast, and the Tagus in its gorge is not for swimming, so in summer you cool off in a hotel or municipal pool.

Lisbon eats far better and more widely. Grilled fish and bacalhau in family tascas, clams and prawns in seafood beer halls, warm custard tarts at every pastelaria and Alentejo or Douro wine by the glass give each meal something new. The markets at Ribeira and Campo de Ourique add more choice.

Toledo's cooking is heartier and narrower: partridge, venison, carcamusas and Manchego, with convent marzipan to finish. A few regional meals in the taverns near Zocodover are rewarding, but the set menus around the cathedral make it easy to eat badly.

Both are first-rank for heritage, but in different shapes. Lisbon's sights are spread across districts: the Manueline monuments of Belem, the Baixa grid rebuilt after 1755 and the medieval lanes of Alfama below the castle. It also has stronger collections, such as the Gulbenkian and the National Tile Museum.

Toledo is one dense monument, with a Gothic cathedral, synagogues, a small mosque and El Greco's paintings all within a few streets on the same hill. It packs more layers of history into less space, while Lisbon offers broader museums and river viewpoints between its sights.

Lisbon has a real night out and Toledo largely does not. Bairro Alto's lanes fill with drinkers on weekend nights and Cais do Sodre runs later. Principe Real has quieter cocktail bars and the gay scene, and the riverside warehouse clubs go on until morning.

In Toledo the evening is a late dinner and a round of tapas around Zocodover, after which the old town falls silent. That calm is part of its appeal, but anyone wanting a club takes the train to Madrid.

Lisbon has far more outdoor variety within reach. There is the Monsanto forest park in the city, the misty Sintra hills and Cabo da Roca, kitesurfing at Guincho and surfing at Ericeira. Around Arrabida you can hike the coast or take a boat out to the Sado dolphins.

Toledo's best outdoor hour is the riverside path through the gorge below its walls, with views back from the cigarrales on the far bank. Beyond that lies the dry plain of La Mancha. The low Montes de Toledo and Cabañeros, with its deer and raptors, are rewarding but further away and less varied.

Lisbon's classic outing is the palaces of Sintra, a short train ride away, while Toledo's is a whole capital, with Madrid half an hour away by high-speed train. From Lisbon, longer days reach walled Evora with its Roman temple, the monasteries of Alcobaca and Batalha and the Templar convent at Tomar.

From Toledo, a day in Madrid can take in the Prado and the royal palace. Aranjuez, El Escorial, the windmills of Consuegra and, further afield, Segovia and Cuenca fill out the list, though most of these are easier by car.

Lisbon gives children more to do. The Oceanario and the science centre sit side by side at the Parque das Nacoes, the trams, funiculars and Santa Justa lift are rides in themselves, and Cascais is a train ride away for a beach day. The hills and slippery pavements are still hard work with a pushchair.

Toledo has armour shops and the Alcázar to fire young imaginations, plus a history theme park on the outskirts. Most of its sights are churches and paintings, though, and summer afternoons are very hot, so it works best as a short stop.

Both cities are walkable but steep, so the difference is in what helps you up the hills. Lisbon covers a wider area and backs walking with a metro, trams, funiculars, suburban trains and river ferries, all on one card. The metro misses Belem, though, and the trams are slow and crowded.

Toledo needs almost no transport: you can cross the old town on foot in twenty minutes, and public escalators carry you up from the car parks. The one awkward link is the railway station, across the river at the foot of the hill.

Lisbon has much more to browse. There are luxury labels on Avenida da Liberdade, long-established shops in Chiado, designers and antiques in Principe Real, the Feira da Ladra and the LX Factory. Tiles, cork and tinned sardines make distinctive things to carry home.

Toledo's shopping centres on damascene inlay, swords, marzipan and Talavera ceramics. It is good for one well-chosen craft piece, but much of the stock near the cathedral is generic souvenirs, and for fashion people go to Madrid.

In Lisbon the bed is what costs, and in Toledo it is the sightseeing. Coffee at the counter, tasca lunches, house wine and transport are cheap in Lisbon, but central rooms are expensive, especially in summer.

In Toledo, the small tapa that comes with a drink and the set lunches keep meals easy, and rooms outside the walls are moderate. Separate entry fees for the cathedral, synagogues and El Greco sites add up over a day of sightseeing.

Lisbon has its own living music tradition. Fado is sung nightly over dinner in Alfama, Mouraria and Bairro Alto, and the formal side adds the Gulbenkian orchestra, opera at Sao Carlos and the programme at the Centro Cultural de Belem.

Toledo's main stage is the Teatro de Rojas, with a regional programme, plus occasional organ and choral music in the churches and the processions of Corpus Christi. On an ordinary evening there is little on, and serious performances mean a trip to Madrid.

Neither city is built for rest, and neither has a bathing tradition. Lisbon edges ahead because it has more places to retreat to: hotel spas along the Estoril coast, the shade of the Gulbenkian and Estrela gardens, and nights in Sintra or Cascais away from the noisy centre.

Toledo has a few Arab-style bath houses with warm pools under vaulted ceilings, and its terraces are still before the tour groups arrive. That suits a slow night or two rather than a restorative week.