Montevideo or Punta del Este?

Montevideo's beaches are a summer evening habit rather than a reason to travel. Pocitos, Buceo and Malvín are a short ride from the centre, and the shore is gentle and shallow. But the water is the cloudy, barely salty estuary, and you cannot surf there.

Punta del Este gives you real sea and a choice on the same peninsula. Playa Mansa has the calm, shallow estuary water that suits small children. A few minutes away, Playa Brava takes the clear Atlantic swell, and beyond La Barra and Manantiales the sand runs on for kilometres. The open-ocean side is colder and has strong currents, so it suits surfers better than casual paddlers.

Both kitchens are built around beef over wood embers, but Montevideo eats better and does so all year. The Mercado del Puerto is the classic place for a parrilla lunch with a glass of medio y medio, and old cafés and chivito counters fill out the day.

Punta del Este adds fish from the port stalls on the peninsula and lunches at the Garzón wineries, where Albariño sits alongside Tannat. Its polished beachfront dining in La Barra and José Ignacio largely closes after the summer, leaving a narrow choice.

The gap here is wide. Montevideo offers a couple of full days of sightseeing: the Palacio Salvo and citadel gate on Plaza Independencia, the cathedral and colonial houses of the Ciudad Vieja, the marble Palacio Legislativo, and museums of Torres García and the Andes air crash.

Punta del Este is a 20th-century resort with little history in its streets. Casapueblo at Punta Ballena is the one memorable sight, and with the hand sculpture and the lighthouse it fills a single day.

In high summer Punta del Este is the stronger choice. From Christmas to the end of January its clubs in La Barra run past sunrise and its beach clubs hold afternoon parties for a young, dressed-up crowd. By March this has largely faded.

Montevideo's going out is smaller and more relaxed, but it carries on all year. There are pubs in Pocitos and Punta Carretas, student bars around Cordón and Parque Rodó, and late venues in the Ciudad Vieja. In summer, much of its own party crowd heads to Punta.

Punta del Este has more to do outdoors. Boats run to the sea lion colony on Isla de Lobos, whales pass in spring, there are reliable surf breaks at La Barra, and the lagoons near José Ignacio suit kayaking and birdwatching.

Montevideo's outdoor life centres on the Rambla, more than 20km of shoreline for evening walks and rides, plus old parks such as the Prado. Beyond the city the land is flat farmland.

Montevideo is better placed for outings. Colonia del Sacramento's cobbled colonial lanes are within a long day's reach to the west, the Canelones wineries are under an hour away, and Punta del Este itself works as a coastal excursion.

From Punta del Este the obvious trip is to Montevideo, about two hours away, with José Ignacio, Piriápolis and Pueblo Garzón closer by. Colonia and Cabo Polonio are too far to do comfortably without staying overnight.

Both are easy with children, and in both, children join their parents at late dinners. Montevideo offers city outings: scooters along the Rambla, the old amusement park and pedal boats at Parque Rodó, and plenty of playgrounds. Punta del Este is a plain beach stay, with the calm, shallow Mansa side and boat trips to the sea lions. Neither has big attractions built for children.

Montevideo is the easier of the two without a car. Its bus network covers the whole city on one card, even if the routes take some learning, and taxis are easy to find. The old town and 18 de Julio are flat and walkable.

In Punta del Este only the peninsula is compact. The resort stretches for many kilometres along the coast, so reaching La Barra, José Ignacio or the wineries usually means hiring a car or taking taxis. Summer traffic on the coast road can be slow.

Neither is a shopping destination, and what differs is mainly the season. Montevideo's best moment is the Sunday sprawl of antiques and old records on Tristán Narvaja, plus craft shops selling leather, knitwear and mate gourds.

In summer Punta del Este has a little more fashion. Designer boutiques open on and around Avenida Gorlero, and La Barra and José Ignacio have linen and homeware shops, but much of this closes once the season ends.

Montevideo is not cheap, with prices close to Southern Europe, but buses, free museums and set lunches keep a stay manageable.

Punta del Este is far dearer, especially in January, when rooms, rentals and beach clubs are priced for wealthy Argentines and Brazilians. December, March and the shoulder months cost much less, though fewer places are open.

Montevideo has a real stage life of its own. Carnaval runs for more than a month, with murga troupes satirising the year on neighbourhood tablados and candombe drums leading the Llamadas through Barrio Sur and Palermo. In the rest of the year there is opera and the philharmonic at the Teatro Solís, ballet and the symphony at the SODRE, and tango milongas every week.

Punta del Este's season is short. A long-running jazz festival on a country estate each January is the highlight, and summer adds chamber concerts around José Ignacio, touring Argentine shows and casino entertainment. Outside summer there is very little to see, so for a concert or a play you need to go to Montevideo.

Neither has a bathing tradition, and treatments in both mostly mean hotel spas. The calm they offer is different. In Montevideo it is a city's ease: mate shared on the Rambla walls at sunset and unhurried cafés, all year round. In Punta del Este it is coastal quiet, with pine-shaded streets and the lagoon country around José Ignacio, at its most peaceful outside the January crowds.