Los Cabos or Sayulita?

Both are true beach destinations, but the beaches work very differently. Los Cabos has two coasts. The calm Sea of Cortez side has Medano Beach and snorkelling coves such as Chileno Bay and Santa Maria Bay. On the Pacific side the surf and undertow are too strong, so those beaches are for looking at, not swimming.

Sayulita has a single bay with gentle rolling waves, good for a first surf lesson but crowded. Swimmers often walk to the sheltered cove of Playa de los Muertos or drive to quieter sand at San Pancho and Punta de Mita. Its water is a couple of degrees warmer in winter.

Los Cabos eats better, mostly because of San José del Cabo. It has taco stands, family kitchens and farm restaurants in the hills that cook their own produce, and Baja wines and mezcal are easy to find. The grills around the Cabo San Lucas marina are the part to skip.

Sayulita has the same seafood base of ceviche, aguachile and fish tacos, and its plaza taco stands and beach shacks are good. Beyond those, it is mostly smoothie bowls and international menus, and for a serious dinner people drive to Puerto Vallarta.

Neither is a sightseeing destination, but Los Cabos has a little more to show. San José del Cabo has a small colonial centre around its plaza and mission church, and an art district with a weekly evening art walk in season. Sayulita offers a plaza, a modest church and a hillside cemetery. Its one real cultural thread is the beaded and yarn art of the Wixárika people, sold in local galleries.

Los Cabos is the clear choice for a night out. The streets behind the Cabo San Lucas marina are lined with loud bars and dance clubs that keep going into the early hours, and Medano's beach bars start well before sunset. The scene is more about volume than craft.

In Sayulita, a night out means a few blocks of mezcal and cocktail bars around the plaza, sunset drinks on the beach and the odd late DJ. It is busy in winter and much quieter in the wet summer. For proper clubs, people go to Puerto Vallarta.

Los Cabos has the richer outdoors, and most of it is out at sea. The deep water off the cape makes it one of the world's great marlin grounds, boats run to the sea lion colony at Land's End, and Cabo Pulmo National Park, about two hours up the East Cape, protects a living coral reef. Away from the coast, the desert of cactus and granite rises into the Sierra de la Laguna, where serious hikes climb into oak and pine forest.

Sayulita is set among green jungle hills rather than desert, and its outdoor life centres on surfing, from beginner waves in the bay to stronger reef breaks at Punta de Mita. In winter humpbacks come into the Bay of Banderas to calve, much as they pass the cape, and boats visit the Marietas Islands reserve. On land there are headland footpaths and mountain biking.

Day trips from Los Cabos cross open desert to old mission and mining towns. Sayulita's stay on a green coast of fishing villages, with one real city nearby. From the cape, Todos Santos, about an hour up the Pacific, has adobe streets and an old mission. La Paz on its bay makes a long day, and a car loop takes in the old mining town of El Triunfo and Miraflores, known for its leatherwork.

From Sayulita, Puerto Vallarta is an hour south, with its malecón and the cobbled old town around the crowned church of Our Lady of Guadalupe. San Pancho and Bucerías are short hops, and San Blas, with its colonial ruins and mangrove river trips, makes a longer day.

Los Cabos keeps the edge for families, but where you stay matters. The Cabo San Lucas marina gets boisterous at night, so San José del Cabo and the corridor resorts make calmer bases, and the surf on the Pacific beaches means children need close watching there. Glass-bottom boat trips are an easy outing for younger children.

Sayulita suits families whose children already love the water. Surf schools take them out on the gentle waves of the bay, and the sheltered cove of Playa de los Muertos suits younger swimmers. A villa with a pool makes the best base. Neither place has a zoo, aquarium or theme park, so in both the days revolve around the sea.

Sayulita is far simpler once you arrive, because you can cross the whole village on foot in ten minutes. Walking is rough, though: cobbles, dirt lanes and almost no pavements, and the centre jams up in peak season. Reaching the neighbouring beaches means a taxi, a rented golf cart or a hire car.

Los Cabos is spread along a resort corridor of about 30km between its two towns. Most hotels are well away from either walkable centre, so visitors depend on taxis, shuttles or a hire car.

Shopping is a sideline in both, so the difference is in style. Cabo San Lucas has malls and duty-free brands around the marina, but San José del Cabo's galleries and folk art are the better stop. Sayulita has only small boutiques selling linen, embroidered dresses, swimwear, surf gear and Huichol beadwork, enough for an hour or two of browsing.

Neither is cheap for Mexico, but Sayulita is easier on a budget. Its rooms and visitor restaurants are priced for North Americans and fill up around Christmas and Semana Santa. Still, cheap local food, the regional bus and the summer low season keep a stay within reach.

Los Cabos is one of the most expensive places in Mexico. Corridor resorts are priced at international luxury levels and restaurants around the marina charge United States beach-resort prices. Staying in San José del Cabo helps only a little.

Neither place has theatre, opera or a concert season. In Los Cabos, live music means cover bands in the Cabo San Lucas bars, mariachi and resort dinner shows. In Sayulita it means acoustic sets in bars during the high season and buskers by the plaza, and Puerto Vallarta is the nearest place for a real performance.

In Los Cabos, wellness comes through the luxury hotels. The resorts along the corridor compete on their spas, many with outdoor treatment rooms facing the sea and temazcal ceremonies, and beach yoga keeps the pace slow. Cabo San Lucas itself is noisy, so how restful your stay feels depends on where you book.

Sayulita relies on yoga and retreats rather than spas. Hillside shalas run daily classes, villas host week-long retreats, and massage, sound healing and the temazcal are easy to find. The centre gets loud in high season, so for real quiet stay on the hillsides or out towards San Pancho.