Milan or Saint-Tropez?

This is Saint-Tropez's strongest category. Pampelonne has kilometres of pale sand with beach clubs and stretches of public beach. Wilder coves lie further down the peninsula, and the small beaches at Les Graniers and La Ponche are good for a quick swim in town.

Milan is on an inland plain. In summer, locals swim at the Idroscalo basin or the open-air pools. For a real swim, visitors take the train to the pebbly lidos of Como or Maggiore, which makes it a day out rather than part of the trip.

Milan eats better and has more variety. You get butter-rich northern dishes such as saffron risotto, ossobuco and cotoletta, cooking from every Italian region, a serious fine-dining scene and aperitivo snacks that can replace supper. Its weak spot is the ordinary food around the Duomo.

Saint-Tropez offers grilled fish, bouillabaisse, aïoli and pale local rosé over long lunches on the sand, plus the Place des Lices market and its cream-filled tarte tropézienne. The best restaurants are very good, but simple, honest meals are hard to find, and much of the town closes in winter.

Milan has the major sights: the marble Duomo, the Last Supper, the Pinacoteca di Brera, the Castello Sforzesco and the Ambrosiana with Leonardo's drawings. They are grouped in clusters across a mostly modern city rather than in one old quarter, but together they fill several days.

Saint-Tropez's main sight is the Musée de l'Annonciade, a fine small collection of pointillist and Fauvist painting tied to Signac's years on the harbour. Add the citadel's maritime museum and a walk through La Ponche, and you have seen the town's heritage in a day.

Milan gives more choice on more nights of the year. Canal-side bars line the Navigli, Brera is smarter, Isola is more relaxed, Porta Venezia has a gay scene, and the clubs range from dressy Corso Como to warehouse parties.

Saint-Tropez's nightlife is more famous but narrower. It means beach-club afternoons, champagne on the harbour and a few clubs open until dawn, all with table service and a dress code. The two peak at opposite times: Saint-Tropez is liveliest in August, which is exactly when Milan empties.

Milan's own setting is the flat, often hazy Po plain, where the parks and canal towpaths give little more than easy cycling out into the rice fields. The real outdoors starts about an hour north by train, on the steep wooded shores of Como and Maggiore and on the Grigne ridges above Lecco, with serious hiking and via ferrata. The ski resorts of the Valtellina and Aosta valleys can be reached in winter, but only as a full day out.

Saint-Tropez has more of it, and right on the doorstep. The Sentier du Littoral leads from the town past pine-backed coves to the capes of Camarat and Taillat and is at its best in spring and autumn. The Maures forests suit walking and mountain biking, and the gulf is good for sailing, snorkelling and diving. The national park islands of Port-Cros and Porquerolles are within reach too, though in summer the risk of fire can close some trails.

Milan is one of the best bases in Italy for day trips. High-speed trains reach Verona, Turin and Bologna, and Bergamo's upper town and Bellagio are about an hour away. The Certosa di Pavia, Mantua, Cremona, the Borromean Islands and Lugano are all within easy reach.

Saint-Tropez's outings are pleasant but small: the hilltop villages of Ramatuelle and Gassin, Grimaud's castle, the canals of Port Grimaud by boat, wine tastings, and Porquerolles for a full day. Most depend on roads that clog in high summer.

Milan has more for children, even though it is not built around them. The science and technology museum, with its submarine and hands-on labs, is good on a rainy day, Parco Sempione has playgrounds, and Leolandia and Gardaland are close enough for a day out.

In Saint-Tropez, the gently shelving sand at Pampelonne and Gigaro is ideal for toddlers, but there is little else for them. Adult-oriented beach clubs, summer traffic and high prices lead many families to stay in Sainte-Maxime and come over by boat.

Milan is far easier. Five simple metro lines, a dense tram network and a flat centre mean you never need a car. Direct trains go from Centrale and Cadorna to the lakes, and the only real hassle is the long transfer from Malpensa.

Saint-Tropez is a few minutes' walk from end to end, but it has no railway, and the main beaches are several kilometres out. Visitors rely on cars, scooters or taxis on a single gulf road that jams for hours in July and August. The passenger boats across the bay are often the best way in.

Milan is a world fashion capital. The great Italian houses have flagships around Via Montenapoleone, La Rinascente stands by the Duomo, and the city adds design showrooms, everyday shopping on Corso Buenos Aires, vintage shops in Porta Ticinese and Navigli antique markets.

For a town its size, Saint-Tropez has a striking number of summer luxury boutiques, plus handmade Tropézienne sandals and linen and pottery at the Place des Lices market. Beyond resort wear the choice is thin, and many shops close for the winter.

Neither is cheap, but Saint-Tropez costs considerably more. In summer, rooms, loungers and harbourside meals are priced for the yachting crowd, and taxis or parking come on top. Budget visitors stay across the gulf, picnic from the market and swim from the public beaches.

Milan is expensive for Italy, especially during trade fairs and fashion weeks, but there are ways to save. Public transport is fairly priced, office-worker lunch menus are good value, aperitivo can replace dinner, and a hotel near an outer metro stop cuts the bill.

This is one of the widest gaps between the two. Milan has La Scala, whose season opens each December, the Piccolo Teatro, a fine symphony orchestra, musicals at the Arcimboldi, jazz rooms and big summer concerts at San Siro.

Saint-Tropez has open-air classical and jazz concerts on the citadel in summer and the musket-firing Bravade procession in May. For opera or theatre, you have to drive to Toulon or Nice.

Milan has a little more on offer, though neither is a classic place to unwind. Its thermal spa complex has outdoor pools and saunas, the restored 1930s Bagni Misteriosi pools are good on a summer afternoon, and the quiet lake villas are only an hour away.

Saint-Tropez has no bathing tradition, only hotel and villa spas aimed at their guests. Its real calm comes with the season: in May, June and September, mornings at the citadel and pétanque under the plane trees make it more restful than busy Milan.