Lucca or Positano?

Positano has the better beaches, because the sea is right there. Spiaggia Grande and Fornillo lie below the town, Arienzo and Laurito are a boat ride away, and the water is clear and deep blue. The catch is the shore: coarse grey sand and pebbles that drop away steeply, so water shoes help, and it is packed by mid-morning in high summer.

Lucca has no sea of its own, but the train reaches Viareggio in under half an hour. There, wide sandy Versilia beaches shelve gently, which suits weaker swimmers. The dunes and pine woods of the Lecciona are an alternative to the neat rows of beach-club umbrellas. In Lucca the beach is a half-day outing, while in Positano it is the centre of the stay.

Lucca eats better and more cheaply. Its cooking is plain and rustic: spelt soup from the Garfagnana, meat-filled tordelli, chickpea cecina from bakery counters and buccellato bread. Mild hill olive oil and Montecarlo wines go with it, served in family trattorias inside the walls.

Positano's strength is the setting: clams, grilled fish and lemon desserts on a terrace above the sea. The menus repeat from one place to the next, though, and there is almost no everyday or market eating. In winter many kitchens close, while Lucca's chestnut dishes are at their best then.

Lucca offers far more to see. Its complete Renaissance walls enclose a medieval town of towers and dozens of churches. It also has the carved arcades of San Michele in Foro, the Volto Santo in the cathedral, the oval Piazza dell'Anfiteatro built on a Roman arena, and the Torre Guinigi with oaks on its top. Two full days of sightseeing are easy.

In Positano the town is itself the sight: pastel houses stacked up a ravine, the majolica dome of Santa Maria Assunta, and a Roman villa preserved under ash beneath the church. That takes a couple of hours, and serious sightseeing means a trip to Naples.

Neither is a place for a big night out, and both centre their evenings on aperitivo and a long dinner. Lucca's quiet is steady all year: wine bars and student pubs, then a walk on the walls, with dancing only on the Versilia coast, which means a late drive back. Positano has one late scene in summer, a club in a cave at the end of the main beach with a dressed-up crowd, and it goes quiet once the season ends.

Positano has the more dramatic outdoors. The Lattari mountains drop straight into the sea, the Path of the Gods runs high above terraced lemon groves to Nocelle, and kayaks follow the cliffs to grottoes and the Li Galli islets. Mountains and sea are side by side, both reachable from your door.

Lucca's countryside is gentler close to town: the 4km ring of the walls, cycle paths along the Serchio and olive-covered hills. For real hiking you go north to the marble peaks of the Apuan Alps or the beech woods of the Garfagnana, about an hour away. Lake Massaciuccoli adds birdwatching that Positano cannot offer.

Both are excellent bases, but they work differently. From Lucca, trains run all year to Pisa, Pistoia, Montecatini and Florence. The villas of Marlia and Collodi, and the marble town of Pietrasanta, are close by, so a day out takes little planning in any season.

From Positano, the outings go by sea: Capri, Amalfi, Ravello's gardens and Sorrento. Pompeii and Herculaneum can be reached via the local train. These are some of the best-known sights in southern Italy, but they depend on ferries that mostly run from spring to autumn, and on a slow coast road at other times.

Lucca is much the easier place with children. The flat, traffic-free centre is ideal for pushchairs, and riding a family quadricycle round the walls is a highlight. The Pinocchio Park at Collodi and the gently shelving Versilia sand are both close.

Positano is built of stairs, which makes pushchairs useless, and its beaches drop off quickly. Older children who love boats and swimming will be happy there, but parents of toddlers will struggle.

Getting around Lucca is easy. The centre inside the walls is compact, flat and mostly closed to cars, bikes are hired near every gate, and the station just outside the southern walls has regular trains along the Tuscan line. A car only helps for the villas and mountain villages.

In Positano, even a short walk means hundreds of steps. The local bus climbs the one road through the upper town, and coastal buses crawl and fill up in summer. Ferries are the easiest way to move along the coast, but mostly in season, and a car is more trouble than it is worth.

There is little to choose between them, but what you buy differs. Lucca's shopping is varied but small-town: the fashion and jewellery shops of Via Fillungo behind old Liberty-style shopfronts, delicatessens for oil and farro, and a monthly antiques market around the cathedral. Positano sells one strong look: loose white linen and printed resort wear, sandals cut to fit while you wait, and painted ceramics.

Lucca is far kinder to the wallet. It is priced like ordinary central Italy, cheaper than Florence. The walls and most churches are free, and rooms just outside the walls are good value, although beds are scarce during summer festivals.

Positano is among the most expensive places to stay in the country. You pay extra for the view on a hotel room, a lounger or a dinner, and boat trips and transfers add up. Staying in Praiano or Sorrento, or visiting in May or October, softens the cost.

Lucca has a far richer music scene, built around Puccini, who was born here. Church recitals of his arias run through most of the year, and the Teatro del Giglio has an opera season. Big outdoor concerts fill Piazza Napoleone in July, and the lakeside Puccini Festival at Torre del Lago is half an hour away.

Positano has only the odd summer concert of its own. Its best evening of music is a trip to Ravello's festival, with concerts on a terrace above the sea. For opera you go to Naples.

For relaxation the two are close, but they relax you in different ways. Lucca's calm comes from traffic-free streets and evening walks on the walls. When you want a soak, the old spa towns are easy to reach: Montecatini Terme by train, the cave pools of Monsummano, and the steam grottoes of Bagni di Lucca.

Positano relies on its upscale hotel spas and cliff-cut pools, with the sea below. Its crowded lanes and endless steps make high summer anything but restful, so it is at its calmest in May, June and late September.