Lyon or Zermatt?

Neither city is a beach destination, but at least Lyon gives you somewhere to swim. There is the supervised lake at the Grand Parc de Miribel-Jonage on its north-eastern edge, and the clear Alpine water of Lake Annecy or the Lac du Bourget makes a day out in high summer.

Zermatt has no bathing lake at all. Its glacial tarns are there for photographing the Matterhorn's reflection, not for swimming, so a swim means the hotel pool.

Lyon is one of the great eating cities of France. It has bouchons serving quenelles and praline tart, oysters and Bresse poultry at Les Halles Paul Bocuse, Sunday markets along the Saône, and Beaujolais and northern Rhône wines close at hand. Its set lunches put serious cooking within easy reach.

Zermatt eats well for a village, and its best meals are long lunches in mountain chalets at Findeln, Furi or Zum See, reached on skis or on foot. The menu sticks to Valais food, such as raclette, fondue and air-dried beef with Fendant or Cornalin. There is little cheap eating, and many kitchens close between seasons.

The gap here is wide. Lyon's UNESCO-listed core covers two thousand years. It runs from the Roman theatres of Lugdunum through the Renaissance courtyards and traboules of Vieux Lyon to the silk-weavers' workshops of Croix-Rousse. The Musée des Beaux-Arts and the Musée des Confluences add days of indoor sightseeing.

Zermatt's heritage has one theme: mountaineering. The Matterhorn Museum, the climbers' graves by the parish church and the old larch barns of the Hinterdorf make an absorbing morning, and after that the mountains take over.

Lyon's students give it a real choice of evenings. There are wine bars on the Presqu'île, pubs in Vieux Lyon, bars and clubs on barges moored along the Rhône, and a serious electronic scene towards Gerland and the Confluence.

In Zermatt a night out means winter après-ski: loud, cheerful slope-side bars, then a few late spots on the main street. In summer the hikers turn in after dinner, so a night owl will find more to do in Lyon in any season.

This is where Zermatt is strongest. The Matterhorn rises straight above the village, and the cog railway, gondolas and cable cars climb to the Gornergrat and to glacier terrain above 3,800m. In winter the skiing crosses into Italy. In summer the lifts open trails past the Five Lakes, marmots and the Europaweg suspension bridge.

Lyon's outdoors are gentler and closer to hand: car-free Rhône quays for running and cycling, boating in the Parc de la Tête d'Or and walks in the Monts d'Or. The Chartreuse and Vercors have proper hiking, but they are an hour or more away by car.

Lyon is surrounded by good day trips. Roman Vienne is a short train ride south and medieval Pérouges is under an hour away. To the north lie the Beaujolais villages and cellars, with Cluny and Beaune beyond, and Annecy is within reach towards the Alps.

From Zermatt every outing starts with the long train down the valley. Sion, with its castle hills among the vineyards, is worth the journey, as are Brig and Saas-Fee. Even so, most visitors spend their spare days higher up the mountains rather than further away.

Lyon gives children more variety. The Parc de la Tête d'Or has a free zoo, pedalos and a small train, and the Musée des Confluences has dinosaur skeletons. Add the Guignol puppet shows and the funiculars up Fourvière, and a wet day is easy to fill.

Zermatt is calm and car-free, with nursery slopes on the Sunnegga side and marmot-spotting walks in summer, so it suits families who ski or hike together. Beyond that little is made for children, and the highest viewpoints can be too cold and thin-aired for the very young.

Both are easy without a car, but in very different ways. Lyon has a full city network: a flat, walkable Presqu'île, four metro lines, trams, funiculars up to Fourvière and bike-share along the rivers. The hills sometimes mean a climb or a change.

Zermatt bans ordinary cars, so you arrive by train via Täsch, walk the compact village and use electric taxis or ski buses for the edges. The transport that matters goes uphill: the cog railway, the underground funicular and the gondolas, all a short walk from the centre.

Lyon has the range. There are chains on the rue de la République, luxury labels around Place des Jacobins and the big Part-Dieu mall. It also has silk scarves, designer workshops on Croix-Rousse and food from the Halles to carry home.

Zermatt's one main street sells Swiss watches, jewellery and Matterhorn souvenirs. Its ski and mountaineering outfitters are genuinely good if you need gear, but there is little else to browse.

Neither is cheap, but the gap is large. Lyon costs about what any large Western European city does, its set lunches make good cooking affordable and the zoo is free. Rooms only become scarce during trade fairs and the Fête des Lumières.

Zermatt is among the most expensive places in the Alps, from plain hotel rooms to terrace drinks and the lifts every visitor uses. Self-catering and a bed in Täsch help, but the same week will still cost far more than in Lyon.

Lyon has a proper stage calendar. There is opera and ballet under the glass vault of the Opéra, the Orchestre National at the Auditorium and drama at the Célestins. Dance stands out, at the Maison de la Danse and in the Biennale, and in summer the Nuits de Fourvière puts performances in the Roman theatres.

Zermatt has no theatre or concert hall. Zermatt Unplugged in spring and a chamber music festival in late summer are worth planning a visit around. Otherwise the live music is a band in an après-ski bar.

Zermatt is the better pick for a spa break. It has a large number of excellent hotel spas with pools, saunas and mountain views, and some sell day access to non-residents. The car-free streets are free of traffic noise, though the mood in peak weeks is more active than slow.

Lyon has a few hammams and day spas and a large open-air pool on the Rhône quays. Its calm comes more from long lunches and quiet Sunday mornings by the Saône. Neither has a bathing tradition of its own, but from Lyon the spa town of Aix-les-Bains makes an easy day out.