Nafplio or Thessaloniki?

In Nafplio, swimming is part of the day. Arvanitia's pebbles below Palamidi are a short walk from the old town, the sandy, pine-backed bay at Karathona is 3km away and Tolo has a longer, busier strip. The beaches are small and crowded on summer weekends, but they are close at hand.

Thessaloniki's waterfront is for strolling, not bathing, and the suburban beaches are ordinary. Its strength is Halkidiki, whose coves are better than anything near Nafplio. Kassandra is an hour's drive away, though, so a swim there becomes a day out rather than an afternoon habit.

Thessaloniki is the much stronger place to eat. Ottoman, Sephardic and Anatolian refugee cooking all shape its food, from meze at the ouzeri to morning bougatsa and the working Kapani and Modiano markets. That range is something Nafplio can't offer.

Nafplio eats well but simply: grilled octopus, slow-cooked lamb and Nemea red at harbourside tables. The better meals are out in Tolo or the villages of the Argolid plain. The main squares lean towards tourist menus, and there is little beyond Greek taverna food.

Thessaloniki has the weightier heritage. It has a run of UNESCO-listed Byzantine churches from the Rotunda to Agios Dimitrios, Roman remains around the Arch of Galerius, and two serious museums for Macedonian gold and Byzantine art. The catch is that these stand as islands in a city mostly rebuilt after the fire of 1917.

Nafplio is the reverse: there is less to see, but its old town of Venetian, Ottoman and neoclassical houses is intact, with Palamidi above and the Bourtzi in the harbour. Two or three days cover it. Thessaloniki rewards a longer stay.

The two are far apart after dark. In Thessaloniki, students and late Greek hours keep Ladadika's bars, the louder streets around Valaoritou and the outdoor tables of the Bit Bazaar busy until well past three. In summer there are open-air clubs on the edge of town, and weeknights are busy too.

Nafplio means dinner and then a drink by the harbour or off Syntagma Square. It is lively on summer weekends when visitors come down from Athens, quiet on winter weeknights, and has no clubs.

Thessaloniki has the bigger landscapes within reach. Mount Olympus and the Enipeas gorge are about an hour and a half away, Halkidiki's coast is good for sailing, and Kaimaktsalan and Seli have skiing in winter. The Seich Sou pine forest rises right behind Ano Poli.

Nafplio's outdoors are smaller in scale but start at the edge of town. There is the path around Akronafplia, the coastal trail to Karathona, limestone for climbers and kayaking off Tolo. Arcadia's fir-covered Mainalo range is the bigger outing.

Nafplio has the richer doorstep. Tiryns is ten minutes away, Mycenae under half an hour and Epidaurus about forty minutes, so three of Greece's great ancient sites fit into easy mornings. Corinth, Nemea, Mystras and the islands of Hydra and Spetses fill longer days.

Thessaloniki's day trips are strong too, centred on ancient Macedonia: the royal tombs at Vergina, Pella and Dion, plus Edessa's waterfalls and boat trips along the Mount Athos coast. These places are further apart, so more of each day goes on the road. A car helps from either city.

Neither city is built around children, and both work for families happy with ice creams and evening walks. They differ in kind. Nafplio offers a largely traffic-free old town, calm, shallow water at Karathona and Tolo and the boat out to the Bourtzi. Thessaloniki has the Noesis science centre, a small zoo and seafront playgrounds, but also heavy traffic, cluttered pavements and beaches well out of town.

Thessaloniki is easier to get around without a car. The sights lie in a flat strip along the waterfront, a metro line runs under the centre, buses fill the gaps, and taxis are cheap for the steep climb to Ano Poli.

Nafplio's old town is small and flat enough to cross on foot in minutes. Beyond it, buses are sparse, so seeing Mycenae, Epidaurus or the beaches comfortably means hiring a car and hunting for parking in summer.

Thessaloniki gives a shopper far more to work with. In Nafplio, a browse through Staikopoulou and the lanes around Syntagma Square turns up mostly souvenirs, sandals and beachwear, with a few jewellers, ceramics shops and galleries in between. Komboloi worry beads, Argolid honey and olive oil and a bottle of Nemea red are the local buys, and an hour or two covers it all.

Thessaloniki has a real high street along Tsimiski, with Greek and international chains and shoe shops, malls on the edge of town and antique stalls at the Bit Bazaar. The best things to take home are edible: spices, cheeses, loukoumi and tsipouro from the Kapani and Modiano markets. Even so, this is a morning's shopping rather than a reason to come, with no luxury district or craft tradition to plan a trip around.

Thessaloniki is the cheaper stay. It is priced for students and locals, so meze, bougatsa and nights out cost little, and hotels are sensibly priced except during big events and the autumn trade fair.

Nafplio is fair value for a Greek town that visitors know well, with reasonable tavernas and modest site fees. Its restored old-town guesthouses cater to weekend visitors from Athens, though, and cost more on Friday and Saturday nights and in high summer. Coming midweek or staying in Tolo narrows the gap.

Thessaloniki has performances all year. The State Orchestra plays at the waterfront Concert Hall, the National Theatre of Northern Greece runs seasons that are mostly in Greek, and late-night rebetiko at the tavernas is where most visitors will find the best music.

Nafplio's offer is narrower, but its highlight is extraordinary: ancient drama in the theatre of Epidaurus on summer evenings, plus concerts at Palaia Epidavros and a classical festival in town. Outside summer there is very little.

Both are restful places rather than spa destinations, and neither has a working bathing culture in town. The calm takes different forms. In Nafplio it means a small town's long lunches and the walk round the headland, with thermal water at Loutraki an hour away. In Thessaloniki it means long iced coffees on the seafront, with simple spring baths at Lagadas half an hour out.