Naples, Florida or Savannah?

Naples is built on its beach in a way Savannah is not. The sand starts at the end of the streets in Old Naples, the Gulf is shallow and clear, and sunset on the sand by the pier is a nightly ritual, with wilder stretches at Delnor-Wiggins Pass and Marco Island further afield.

Savannah's swimming is half an hour away on Tybee Island, where the Atlantic beach is wide and good for walks and paddling but the water is tinted by the marshes. It makes a pleasant day, but nobody chooses Savannah for its beach.

Savannah has the stronger and more distinctive table. Lowcountry cooking gives it real character, from she-crab soup and Lowcountry boil to family-style Southern dining rooms with platters passed down the table, plus a small group of serious kitchens in restored townhouses south of Forsyth Park.

Naples eats well but safely: steak, Italian and modern American food in white-tablecloth rooms on Fifth Avenue South, with stone crab and grouper sandwiches at the dockside fish houses around Tin City the most local thing on offer.

Here the two are far apart. Savannah's 1733 grid of garden squares under live oaks survives almost whole, and walking it past the Cathedral of St John the Baptist, Factors Walk and the Owens-Thomas House, with its account of the enslaved people who worked there, is a full and thoughtful day or two.

Naples is a young resort, and its sights fit into an afternoon: the Baker Museum, the Revs Institute's racing cars for enthusiasts, and Palm Cottage with the old railway depot for a glimpse of how the town began.

Savannah is the livelier place after dark. Drinks can be carried between River Street's cobbled bars, the City Market taverns and quieter cocktail rooms, art students keep a few dive bars and dance nights going, and weekends bring a loud riverfront crowd.

Naples winds down after dinner. A wine bar or piano lounge on Fifth Avenue South or a tiki bar at sunset is the usual evening, the crowd is older, and anyone wanting clubs has to drive elsewhere.

Naples has the bigger wilderness on its doorstep. Big Cypress, the western Everglades, Corkscrew Swamp's boardwalk and the Fakahatchee Strand are all within an hour, with alligators and wading birds, and kayaking the mangroves of Rookery Bay and the Ten Thousand Islands is a standout outing.

Savannah's Lowcountry is gentler: salt marsh and tidal creeks for paddling at high tide, dolphin trips, and the oak avenue at Wormsloe or the trails of Skidaway Island. Both landscapes are flat and both are hard going in the summer heat.

Savannah has the better range of outings. Charleston's historic peninsula is a strong full day, and Beaufort, Hilton Head, Fort Pulaski, Jekyll Island and St Simons give a run of shorter trips along the coast, each with its own history.

From Naples the choices are pleasanter than they are memorable: the Edison and Ford Winter Estates in Fort Myers, shelling on Sanibel and Captiva, and Sarasota's Ringling museums at the far edge of a day. Both cities need a car for nearly all of them.

Naples is easier with children, mainly because the calm, warm Gulf lets younger ones paddle and hunt for shells for days. Naples Zoo with its boat ride past primate islands, the Golisano Children's Museum and boat trips into the mangroves round it out.

Savannah works but asks more of small legs. Forsyth Park and the squares give room to run, the trolley tours, river ferry and forts are easy treats, and the Girl Scouts founder's birthplace draws families, yet the beach and turtle centre at Tybee need a drive. Neither has a big theme park or aquarium nearby.

Savannah is far easier without a car. Its historic district is flat and compact, most hotels, restaurants and sights are a short walk apart, and a free shuttle and a small river ferry fill the gaps, though Tybee and Bonaventure still need wheels.

Naples is walkable only within the small grid of Old Naples around the pier and Fifth Avenue South. Beyond that it spreads along wide roads, buses are of little use, and the northern beaches and the Everglades all mean renting a car.

The two are close, with Naples slightly ahead and dressier. Its palm-shaded boutiques, galleries and jewellers on Fifth Avenue South and Third Street South, plus an open-air designer mall, suit resort fashion and luxury brands.

Savannah's Broughton Street is more of a browse, with independent boutiques, antique dealers, bookshops and work by art school students and graduates, while River Street leans to pralines and hot sauce.

Neither is cheap, but Naples costs noticeably more. Winter high season rates on the beachfront, restaurants pitched at a wealthy clientele and a near-essential rental car add up, and only summer or an inland chain hotel bring real savings.

Savannah's historic inns are priced for weekend visitors too, yet so much of the pleasure there is free, from the squares and Forsyth Park to the riverfront and cemeteries, and many visitors can manage without a car if they stay downtown.

The offer is similar in size but shaped differently. Naples relies on a winter season on its arts campus, with the Naples Philharmonic in its own hall, touring Broadway shows and downtown theatre, then very little in summer.

Savannah's highlight is the spring Savannah Music Festival, mixing chamber music, jazz, blues and Americana in historic theatres and churches, with the Lucas and Trustees theatres and an autumn jazz festival in Forsyth Park, so timing your visit matters there more than in Naples.

Both are restful rather than spa destinations, and neither has a bathing tradition. Naples has the edge in facilities, with large beachfront resort spas open to non-guests, plus golf and long sunset walks along the Gulf.

Savannah's calm is found on a bench in a shaded square or the porch of an old inn, though River Street at weekends and the summer humidity can undo it.