Lucerne or Monaco?

Monaco is the better place to swim. Larvotto is a real if small groomed beach with calm, clear water, rocky platforms and beach clubs add more, and the season runs from June into October, with Cap d'Ail and Menton nearby for a change of scene.

Lucerne has no sand at all, only lake baths, jetties and the lawns at Ufschötti. The water is clean and the mountain backdrop is lovely, but it is only warm enough in high summer and works as a break between excursions.

Monaco eats much better. Its starred and grand hotel dining rooms cook Ligurian and Riviera food built on olive oil, fish and herbs, and the Condamine market sells local barbagiuan and socca, though casual eating is scarce.

Lucerne offers hearty, reliable Swiss fare: Chügelipastete, rösti, raclette and lake perch in wood-panelled taverns. It is pleasant on a riverside terrace but narrow in range, and many places near the Chapel Bridge cater for tour groups.

The two are broadly level, each with a compact set of sights seen in a day or two. Lucerne's strength is a genuinely medieval townscape, with the covered Chapel Bridge, frescoed squares, the climbable towers of the Musegg Wall, the Lion Monument, and fine Picasso and Klee at the Rosengart Collection.

Monaco's appeal is royal and Belle Époque rather than medieval. The Prince's Palace and its guard ceremony, Grace Kelly's grave in the cathedral, the Oceanographic Museum on the cliff and the Casino give it more spectacle, while Lucerne has the more rewarding art collection.

Neither is a party city, but Monaco gives you more to do after dark. Evenings revolve around the Casino square, hotel bars and glossy seafront clubs, at their liveliest in summer and on Grand Prix weekend, though dress codes and prices rule out a casual night.

Lucerne winds down early: a drink by the water, a few cocktail bars near the station and a small club scene kept alive by students at weekends. The exception is Fasnacht, when the whole Old Town stays out in costume until dawn.

Lucerne's setting is in another league. The lake branches between mountains, Pilatus climbs to over 2,000m on the steepest cogwheel railway in the world, Rigi has broad ridge walks, and paddle steamers let you combine boat, train and hike in one day, with skiing in winter.

Monaco itself is built over, but the limestone cliffs behind it are dramatic. The mule path up to Èze, the coastal walks around Cap Martin and the clear water for snorkelling and diving give it a sea-and-cliff outdoors that Lucerne cannot match, even if the scale is smaller.

Both make excellent bases, and Monaco has a slight edge for variety. The coastal train reaches Villefranche, Nice and Menton within half an hour, and Antibes, Saint-Paul-de-Vence, Grasse and the Italian towns of Sanremo and Dolceacqua are all within easy range by public transport.

Lucerne's trips lean towards Swiss cities and history. Bern, Basel and Zurich are each under an hour by train, and a boat down the lake reaches the Rütli meadow and the William Tell country around Altdorf.

Lucerne is the easier choice with children. The Swiss Museum of Transport fills a whole day with trains, planes and a planetarium, and the steamers, cogwheel trains and summer toboggan run on Pilatus are adventures in themselves, though rainy days can run short of ideas.

Monaco is safe and spotless, and the aquarium's sharks and turtles, Larvotto's gentle water and the palace guards please most children. Beyond those, its formal restaurants and steep streets make it feel built for adults.

Lucerne is simpler. The station, boat piers and Old Town sit together on the flat lakefront, and steamers, trains and mountain railways run on one integrated ticket system, so even the big excursions need no car.

Monaco is tiny, about 3km from end to end, but it climbs steeply from the sea. Free public lifts and escalators help once you learn the network, and the station buried in the hillside makes the rest of the Riviera easy to reach.

Both are narrow luxury offers, with Monaco slightly ahead. The Carré d'Or around the Casino gardens gathers the big fashion houses and high jewellers in a few streets, and window-shopping there is part of an evening out.

Lucerne's speciality is Swiss watches, sold in large houses on Schwanenplatz, along with army knives, chocolate and cuckoo clocks. It has fewer fashion labels than Monaco, and in both places anyone after everyday clothes will be disappointed.

Neither can be done cheaply, and the difference between them is small. Lucerne is marginally less punishing, and supermarket picnics by the lake and a Swiss travel pass covering the boats soften the cost, though the mountain railways weigh heavily on the budget.

Monaco's hotels are priced for the very wealthy and cheap meals barely exist. The usual workaround is to sleep in Nice, Menton or Beausoleil and visit for the day, enjoying the free lifts, gardens and harbour walks.

Both punch well above their size in classical music, but in different ways. Lucerne is about the concert hall: the Lucerne Festival brings the world's leading orchestras to Jean Nouvel's lakefront hall, famous for its acoustics, mainly in late summer.

Monaco is stronger on opera and dance. The gilded Salle Garnier in the Casino hosts the Monte-Carlo Opera, Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo has an international name, and the main season runs from winter to spring, which makes it the better pick for a cold-season arts trip.

Monaco has more to offer for a pampering break. Its large thalassotherapy centre beside the Casino, with heated seawater pools and treatments, carries on a long sea-cure tradition, and the grand hotels add sizeable spas.

Lucerne's restfulness comes from the setting rather than the facilities. A slow steamer cruise, the quiet lakeside promenades and Mario Botta's mineral bath high on the Rigi, about an hour away, suit travellers who unwind by looking at mountains.