Mombasa or Phuket?

Phuket has the stronger beaches, and the bigger choice. Its west coast runs through bays of different moods, from crowded Patong to calmer Kata and Karon and the empty length of Mai Khao, with boats out to island beaches where the water is clearer. The drawback is seasonal: in the monsoon months rip currents make the west-coast sea genuinely dangerous.

Mombasa's north-coast strip of Nyali, Bamburi and Shanzu is protected by an offshore reef, so the lagoons stay calm. The tide does decide when you can swim, though, because low water leaves the shallows almost dry. Diani, the best of its sand, means a ferry crossing and about an hour's drive south.

Phuket comes out slightly ahead, though the two kitchens are very different. Mombasa's is Swahili, with coconut, tamarind and cardamom in fish curries, biryani and mahamri eaten with spiced tea, plus Indian thalis and evening grills of cassava and maize. Phuket's own food is Hokkien and Peranakan, with yellow noodles, peppery braised pork and dim sum, alongside fiery southern Thai curries.

In both places the cooking worth seeking out is in the old town rather than on the beaches. Phuket also has a layer of upmarket resort restaurants, while Mombasa has little fine dining.

Mombasa has much more history to explore. Fort Jesus has stood at the harbour mouth since the 1590s and was fought over by Portuguese, Omanis and the British. Around it, the lived-in lanes of the Old Town are best walked with a local guide.

Phuket's heritage is narrower and newer, mostly the pastel Sino-Portuguese shophouses and clan houses of the tin-mining era on Thalang Road. Add Wat Chalong and the Big Buddha and you have a pleasant day, but not a reason to come.

Phuket is the place to go out. Bangla Road in Patong shuts to traffic every night and turns into a loud strip of neon bars and big clubs, while Bang Tao and Kamala have sunset beach clubs for a calmer evening.

Mombasa's nightlife sits on the north coast, with beach bars in Nyali and Mtwapa's late weekend strip playing Afrobeats and bongo flava. It is rougher round the edges and needs taxis between venues. Most resort guests stop at a sundowner.

Both are best under water, and Phuket has slightly the better of it. The limestone towers and hidden lagoons of Phang Nga Bay, explored by kayak, and the dry-season diving of the Similan Islands are hard to beat.

Mombasa answers with a marine park off its own beaches and dolphins at Kisite-Mpunguti. On land it has real wildlife, with elephants and sable antelope in Shimba Hills and Tsavo East within reach, where Phuket's land nature stops at a patch of rainforest and some gibbons.

The outings are about equal, but they take you to different things. From Mombasa you go by road to the ruined medieval Swahili towns along the coast, Jumba la Mtwana close by and Gede in its forest about two hours north, though the roads are slow. From Phuket almost everything is by boat to another island or beach town, Phi Phi or the quiet Koh Yao islands, with very little history on the way.

Phuket is clearly easier with children. Beyond the resort pools and kids' clubs it has water parks, an aquarium at Cape Panwa, elephant sanctuaries and gentle dry-season shallows at Kata and Nai Harn. Just keep children off the west-coast beaches in the monsoon and away from Patong at night.

Mombasa's resorts and reef lagoons work well, and Haller Park's giraffes and hippos are a hit. Outside the resort, though, families face malaria precautions, care with food and water, and chaotic town traffic.

Neither is easy, but Mombasa is a little less of a struggle. Fort Jesus and the Old Town lie close together on the island and can be walked, and tuk-tuks and ride-hailing cover the rest without much fuss. The slow parts are the crossings: traffic on the Nyali bridge and queues for the Likoni ferry can stretch a short hop to the beaches.

Phuket's beaches are spread around a large, hilly island. A bus from the airport runs down the west coast and links most of the main bays from Surin to Kata, but it runs infrequently and stops early in the evening, and the songthaews only go between Phuket Town and individual beaches. Most visitors end up paying high fixed taxi fares or risking scooters on steep, twisting roads.

Phuket has the wider range, with air-conditioned malls, made-to-measure tailors, a huge weekend night market and small galleries and batik shops in the old shophouses on Thalang Road.

Mombasa's shopping is narrower but more particular. It means kangas and kikois from the cloth merchants of Biashara Street, carved Swahili chests and Akamba woodcarvings, all bargained for, while Nyali's malls cover the everyday needs.

Costs come out much the same, and in both places the real divide is between local life and the resort. In Mombasa, the safari tours and the park fees foreigners pay are what push a budget up. In Phuket it is the taxis, plus room rates that climb at the main beaches from December to February and drop in the monsoon.

Neither is a place to plan around live performance. Mombasa's distinctive sound is taarab, sung Swahili poetry, though you are more likely to hear it at a wedding than on a stage, and weekend bands play benga and rumba in the north-coast bars. Phuket offers ladyboy cabaret, staged cultural shows and Muay Thai fights in Patong instead.

This is where the gap is widest. Phuket is built for relaxing, with Thai massage on every beach road, spas set in the jungle, full wellness retreats for yoga and detox, and the Muay Thai camps in Chalong for anyone who would rather train hard.

Mombasa's calm comes from the unhurried pole pole pace of the coast, resort spa pavilions facing the sea and yoga on the Diani side. The town itself is too hot and noisy to rest in.