Muscat or Dubai?

Dubai is the better pure beach destination. It has one long run of pale sand, from Jumeirah and Kite Beach to the JBR strip, and the water is calm and shallow. Many visitors never leave their resort's private beach on Palm Jumeirah. The shoreline is man-made and has little surf, but it is easy and reliable.

Muscat's coast is more scenic and more varied. There is one long city beach at Qurum, and dark headlands hide small coves at Qantab, Al Bustan and Yiti. Boats run to secluded beaches below the cliffs and to the reefs of the Daymaniyat Islands, which are far better for snorkelling than anything near Dubai. The beach here is part of a wider trip rather than the reason for it.

Dubai is far the stronger city for eating. The canteens of Deira, Karama and Al Satwa cover much of South Asia, Iran and the Philippines, and late-night shawarma counters stay busy. Above them are the hotel dining rooms of Downtown and the Marina and the long Friday brunch. Emirati food itself takes some finding.

Muscat has more of its own cooking to try, such as pit-cooked shuwa, grilled kingfish and rosewater halwa with cardamom coffee, but only a handful of places serve it. Day to day you eat in the Indian, Pakistani and Lebanese canteens of Ruwi and Mutrah. The early fish market at Mutrah is the one food outing worth getting up for.

Muscat gives the stronger sense of an Arab city with its own past. The Sultan Qaboos Grand Mosque is a great sight in its own right. Old Muscat's walled cove is framed by Portuguese-era forts and the Al Alam Palace, and the National Museum and Bait al Zubair tell Oman's story well. The merchants' houses along the Mutrah corniche face the dhows in the harbour.

Dubai's sights are about modern spectacle: the Burj Khalifa's observation decks, the Museum of the Future and the skyline at dusk. Its older side, the wind-tower houses of Al Fahidi and the abra crossing to the Deira souks, is pleasant but small. Either city takes two or three days to see.

This is where the two differ most. Dubai has a large and glamorous night scene inside its licensed venues, with DJ clubs, rooftop bars above Sheikh Zayed Road, beach clubs on the Palm that run into the evening and brunches that last until dark. It is expensive and dressy, and nothing happens on the street.

Muscat barely goes out. Apart from a few hotel lounges and nightclubs filled with expatriates at the weekend, evenings mean a sober walk along the Mutrah corniche, shisha and a late dinner.

Muscat's setting is one of its main draws. Bare mountains drop into the sea in cliffs and inlets, the gorge of Wadi Shab and the Bimmah sinkhole are an easy drive down the coast, and Jebel Akhdar's rose terraces are two hours inland. At sea there are spinner dolphins, protected reefs and coves to kayak.

Around Dubai the outdoors means desert. You can drive the dunes, sandboard or spend a night at a camp at Al Marmoom, or kitesurf and paddleboard along the shore. The nearest mountains are around Hatta, ninety minutes away. In both cities summer heat rules out most activity except at dawn.

Muscat sits at the door of Oman's historic interior. Nizwa's round fort and Friday livestock market, the UNESCO-listed walls of Bahla, painted Jabrin Castle and the terraced village of Misfat al Abriyeen can all fill a day. Down the coast, Sur still builds wooden dhows. You need a car or a driver for all of them.

Dubai offers three strong outings: Abu Dhabi, with its Grand Mosque and the Louvre, the museums and heritage quarter of Sharjah next door, and the oases and forts of Al Ain. Beyond those the choice runs out quickly.

Dubai is designed around family attractions. There are the Legoland and theme-park cluster near Jebel Ali, water parks on the Palm, the Dubai Mall aquarium and indoor skiing, so children have plenty to do even in summer, when the heat keeps everyone indoors.

Muscat is gentler and has much less on offer. Days with children revolve around calm hotel beaches, dolphin boats and the lakes and play areas of Qurum park, and the mall in Seeb has an aquarium and a snow park. Both cities welcome children warmly, but in Muscat you spend more of the day in the car.

A driverless metro gives Dubai a backbone that Muscat lacks. Its lines link the airport, Downtown, the Marina and the old town by the Creek, and the Marina tram and the abras fill some of the gaps. Taxis cover the rest, though walking between stations in the heat is tiring.

Muscat has no real centre. It is a chain of districts joined by fast highways, and the buses are of little use to visitors, so most people hire a car. Walking works only on the Mutrah corniche and in Old Muscat's cove.

Dubai is a shopping destination in its own right. The Dubai Mall and the Mall of the Emirates hold nearly every luxury brand, with deep jewellery and watch halls, and the winter Shopping Festival brings sales. The Deira gold, spice and perfume souks add an older kind of trade.

Muscat has one real place to shop, Mutrah Souq. Its covered lanes smell of frankincense and sell silver, khanjar daggers, pashminas and perfume oils, with very little hard selling. For souvenirs made in the country it is the more rewarding of the two, but beyond it there are only suburban malls.

Muscat is the somewhat cheaper stay. Food in local canteens costs very little, fuel is cheap and the forts charge small fees. Hotel rooms are the big expense, and a hire car is part of the budget.

In Dubai, the headline attractions, hotel restaurants and alcohol all cost a great deal, and resort rates in the winter high season are steep. A cheap trip is possible if you eat in Deira and Karama and travel by metro. Both cities get noticeably cheaper in summer.

Both cities depend on a single grand house that brings in touring companies, so neither has much to find by chance on an ordinary night. Dubai's dhow-shaped Opera puts on musicals and comedy alongside ballet and orchestras, and its arena and outdoor venues bring international pop and rock tours.

The Royal Opera House Muscat leans more towards classical music, opera and Arab music stars, in a white-stone Omani building worth visiting for itself. It has a strict dress code.

Along the quiet coves south of Muscat, resort spas use frankincense in their treatments. The city around them is low-rise, uncrowded and slow, which makes it the easier place to unwind. The warm springs at Nakhal and Rustaq also give you a taste of local bathing beneath the forts.

Dubai's hotel spas are larger and just as polished, with hammams, hydrotherapy pools and long massage menus, and they work in any season. Outside them the city is fast and full of traffic. To rest properly, you stay inside your resort or go to a desert retreat inland.