Mexico City or Sayulita?

There is no contest here. Mexico City is on a high plateau, hours by road from the Pacific, and swimming there means a hotel pool. If you want the coast, it has to be a separate part of the trip.

In Sayulita the day revolves around the beach. The curving bay has soft, rolling waves that suit a first surf lesson, the sheltered cove at Playa de los Muertos and the jungle path to Playa Carricitos are a walk away, and San Pancho and Punta de Mita have longer, emptier sand within half an hour.

Mexico City is one of the great places to eat in the Americas. The range runs from al pastor at late-night stands and blue-corn quesadillas at market counters in Medellín or La Merced to tasting menus in Roma and Polanco, mezcal bars and old pulquerías. The only drawback is how far apart the best places are.

Sayulita eats well in a simpler way: fish tacos, ceviche and aguachile made from the day's catch, and whole grilled fish at beach shacks. Beyond that, cafés and international menus cater to the surf crowd, and for a serious dinner people drive to Puerto Vallarta.

Mexico City could fill a week with culture alone. The excavated Templo Mayor sits beside the cathedral on the Zócalo, Rivera's murals cover the National Palace stairwell, the Sun Stone anchors the National Museum of Anthropology, and the Kahlo house waits in Coyoacán.

Sayulita offers almost nothing to see in that sense. A small plaza, a modest church and the hillside cemetery take an hour or so. Its one real cultural thread is the Huichol beadwork and yarn painting sold in its galleries.

Mexico City has nights for every taste. Cocktail bars and mezcalerías are spread through Roma and Condesa, the Centro keeps traditional cantinas, electronic clubs run until morning, and there are salsa halls and a large LGBTQ scene in the Zona Rosa.

Sayulita's evenings start with sunset drinks on the sand and move to a few blocks of bars around the plaza, lively in winter with a young surf and backpacker crowd. In the rainy summer most nights end early, and for proper clubs people head to Puerto Vallarta.

Mexico City's green space is Chapultepec and the Xochimilco canals. Real hiking at altitude is possible in the pine forests of Desierto de los Leones or between the volcanoes at Paso de Cortés, but getting there means fighting traffic out of the city, and the air is often poor in the dry season.

Sayulita has the outdoors on its doorstep, and most of it is on the water: surfing, paddleboarding and snorkelling, humpback whales in the Bay of Banderas from December to March, and boats to the Marietas Islands reserve. On land, footpaths cross the jungle-covered headlands to neighbouring coves.

Mexico City has much the stronger list. The pyramids of Teotihuacan are about an hour away, there is tiled colonial Puebla and the great pyramid at Cholula, and to the south lie Taxco, Cuernavaca and Tepoztlán. Leaving early beats the worst of the traffic.

From Sayulita the main outing is Puerto Vallarta's malecón and old town, an hour to the south, and San Blas with its mangroves makes a long day to the north. Otherwise the choice is nearby beach villages such as San Pancho and Chacala, which are pleasant but have no major heritage sites.

Mexico City has more to keep children busy. Chapultepec holds the zoo, the boating lakes and the Papalote museum, and there is also an aquarium, a theme park, a trajinera ride at Xochimilco and lucha libre. The cost is long journeys across a huge city, and the altitude can leave some visitors tired for the first day or two.

Sayulita is simpler and suits older children who love the water, with surf schools and the sheltered cove at Playa de los Muertos. There is nothing built for children beyond that, and cobbled streets with almost no pavements make pushchairs hard work.

Neither is effortless, though for opposite reasons. Mexico City's main districts are good on foot, and a cheap metro and the Metrobús link them. Still, distances are huge, trains are packed at rush hour, and most visitors also use ride-hailing cars, especially at night.

You can cross Sayulita on foot in ten minutes, though over cobbles and dirt lanes shared with golf carts. The trouble starts when you want to leave: the coastal buses are slow, so reaching neighbouring beaches means a taxi, a rented golf cart or a hire car.

Mexico City is the place to buy Mexican crafts. La Ciudadela has textiles, Oaxacan pottery and alebrijes, La Lagunilla has antiques on Sundays and San Ángel holds an art bazaar on Saturdays. On top of that come the luxury houses on Masaryk and young designers in Roma.

Sayulita is good for an hour or two of browsing, with linen, swimwear, jewellery and surf gear in small boutiques. Huichol beadwork is the best thing to take home.

Mexico City is the cheaper place to spend a week. Street food, market lunches, the metro and many museums cost little, and prices only approach European levels if you stay and dine in Roma, Condesa or Polanco.

Sayulita is priced for North American visitors. Villas, restaurants aimed at visitors, surf lessons and boat trips add up, especially over Christmas, New Year and Semana Santa. Taco stands and the free beaches help keep spending down, and rooms are noticeably cheaper in the summer low season.

Mexico City has a full programme. The Ballet Folklórico and the national opera perform at Bellas Artes, the university orchestra plays at Sala Nezahualcóyotl, mariachis gather in Plaza Garibaldi, jazz clubs dot Roma, and there is lucha libre at Arena México. Most theatre is in Spanish, but the music and dance need no translation.

Sayulita has no theatre or concert hall at all. Live music means bar bands in high season, buskers and the odd mariachi, and for a concert you go to Puerto Vallarta.

Mexico City is tiring rather than restful, with its noise, traffic and altitude. What it offers is good hotel spas in Polanco and Condesa, the temazcal steam bath and quiet mornings in Coyoacán's shaded plazas.

Sayulita is set up for unwinding. It has daily yoga in open-air shalas, week-long retreats, massage and temazcal, and days shaped by a morning surf and the sunset. The centre can be noisy in high season, so for real quiet stay on the hillsides or out towards San Pancho.