Lyon or Portofino?

Portofino is the only one of the two where swimming belongs to the stay itself. The rocks along the lighthouse path drop into deep, clear water, Paraggi has a small sheltered sandy bay, and boats reach the cove at San Fruttuoso. The catch is size: the spots are small, much of Paraggi is paid beach clubs, and in summer everything fills early.

Lyon has no sea at all. The nearest swim is the supervised lake in the Grand Parc de Miribel-Jonage, and the Alpine lakes at Annecy and Bourget are a separate day out.

Food is one of the main reasons to choose Lyon. Bouchons serve quenelles, andouillette and praline tart, the fine-dining tradition goes back to the Mères lyonnaises, and the Halles Paul Bocuse and the Sunday markets by the Saône are a pleasure in themselves. Beaujolais and the northern Rhône wines grow close by.

Portofino offers Ligurian classics such as trofie with pesto and Recco focaccia, but from a small cluster of costly harbour terraces where you pay mainly for the view. Keen eaters head to Camogli or the hill trattorie instead.

Lyon is on another scale here. It covers two thousand years, from the Roman theatres and Gallo-Roman museum on Fourvière to Saint-Jean cathedral and the traboules of Vieux Lyon. Add the Musée des Beaux-Arts, the Musée des Confluences and the Institut Lumière, where cinema began, and you need several full days to see it properly.

Portofino's sight is the painted harbour itself, along with San Giorgio, Castello Brown and the abbey at San Fruttuoso. That makes a lovely day, but there are no museums to speak of.

Lyon has a real night out, driven by its students. It has wine and cocktail bars on the Presqu'île, pubs in Vieux Lyon, barges moored on the Rhône that turn into bars and clubs, and warehouse electronic clubs towards Gerland. Outside weekends and term time, evenings can end earlier than you might expect.

In Portofino the evening is a dressed-up aperitivo and dinner facing the yachts, and then little else. There are no clubs, and anyone wanting more goes to Santa Margherita, Rapallo or Genoa.

Portofino has the wilder outdoors, right from the door. Trails climb the headland park through holm oak and pine to Monte di Portofino and drop past cliffs to San Fruttuoso, with some exposed, chained sections. Offshore, the marine reserve offers red coral walls, seagrass and the sunken Christ of the Abyss for divers, and kayaks round the point.

Lyon's outdoors is gentler and more urban: car-free quays along the Rhône, boating in the Parc de la Tête d'Or and walks in the Monts d'Or. Serious hiking in Chartreuse and Vercors needs a car and an hour or more.

Both make excellent bases, but the outings differ. From Lyon, trains and short drives lead to Roman Vienne, medieval Pérouges, the Beaujolais villages and Burgundy around Beaune, with Annecy and the Alps further out. Wine and old towns set the theme.

From Portofino, the trips follow the coast: Camogli, Rapallo and Sestri Levante, the palaces of Genoa, and the Cinque Terre and Portovenere by ferry. Travelling by boat is half the fun, but outside summer it comes down to trains and more planning.

Lyon is much easier with children. The Parc de la Tête d'Or alone has a free zoo, pony rides, pedalos and a little train, and the Musée des Confluences has dinosaur skeletons. Guignol puppet shows and the Fourvière funiculars add to it. The only real hurdle is the steps on the hills with a pushchair.

Portofino is safe and calm, and children like the boats and the castle walk. But there are no playgrounds or attractions for them, steep steps everywhere, and paid clubs on the only sand. That is why families usually stay in Rapallo or Santa Margherita.

Lyon is a proper transit city. You walk the flat Presqu'île, and one ticket covers four metro lines, trams, buses and the funiculars up Fourvière, with bike-share along the rivers and a tram to the airport. The hills mean the odd climb or change.

Portofino is tiny on foot, but getting in and out is the problem. One narrow coast road leads from Santa Margherita, about 5km away, with scarce parking and summer jams, so the local bus and the seasonal ferries do most of the work.

Lyon gives you more to browse. Chains line rue de la République, luxury labels gather around Place des Jacobins, and Part-Dieu has a huge mall. The better finds are silk from the weaving heritage, designer workshops on Croix-Rousse and edible gifts from the Halles.

Portofino packs big fashion and jewellery houses and resort wear into a few lanes, with some lace and pesto, and you can see it all in under an hour.

Neither is cheap, but the gap is wide. Lyon has reasonably priced hotels for a large Western European city, generous set lunches and a free zoo, though rooms get tight during trade fairs and the Fête des Lumières.

Portofino ranks among the costliest places to stay in Italy. It has a handful of luxury hotels, and the view adds to every bill, from piazzetta drinks to Paraggi loungers and boat hire. Many visitors sleep in Camogli or Rapallo and come over for the day.

For an evening at a show, Lyon wins outright. It has the glass-vaulted Opéra with its company and ballet, the Orchestre National at the Auditorium, and the Célestins playhouse. It is also a dance city, with the Maison de la Danse, the Biennale, and the Nuits de Fourvière festival staged in the Roman theatres.

Portofino has the occasional summer concert in the piazzetta or at the castle. For opera or theatre, you need an evening trip to the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa.

Neither has its own bathing tradition, so the calm comes from different places. Lyon offers day spas, hammams and the open-air pool on the Rhône quays, with long lunches and quiet Sundays by the Saône. Real thermal bathing is a day trip to Aix-les-Bains.

Portofino's wellness sits in its hillside luxury hotel spas and in the stillness of shaded paths and early mornings by the water. That peace holds best off-season, since midday in high summer brings tour-boat crowds.