Naples or Positano?

Positano is the better place to swim. Spiaggia Grande and Fornillo are right below the town, the water is clear and boats reach quieter coves. The shore is steep, coarse grey pebble, though, and every spot is taken by mid-morning in August.

Naples has the sea all round it but little beach to speak of. There are rocks below the Lungomare, small lidos in Posillipo and paid beach clubs, and the water near the port is not always clean. Its best swimming is on Procida or Ischia, or down the coast towards Positano itself.

Naples is one of Italy's great places to eat. You get Neapolitan pizza in its home city, fried street food, sfogliatelle and babà, and markets such as the Pignasecca and Porta Nolana full of fish, buffalo mozzarella and San Marzano tomatoes.

Positano offers a setting rather than a range: clams, grilled fish and lemon desserts on terraces above the sea. The same coastal menu repeats from place to place, there is no street food or market life, and many kitchens shut through the winter.

Naples has far more culture. Its Greek street plan is packed with Gothic and Baroque churches, the Archaeological Museum holds the frescoes and mosaics from Pompeii, and the Veiled Christ is in the Cappella Sansevero. There are tunnels and catacombs below ground and palaces and castles above.

In Positano the main sight is the town itself, stacked up its ravine, along with the majolica dome of Santa Maria Assunta and the painted Roman villa beneath it. That takes a morning, and for anything more you would go to Naples.

Neither is a clubbing destination, but Naples has a proper night out all year. Crowds drink on the steps around Piazza Bellini, and the smarter bars in the Chiaia alleys stay busy until well past midnight.

In Positano the evening means aperitivo with a view, a long dinner and a few bars near the beach, plus one cave club in summer. That suits a couple's romantic evening, and very little of it lasts beyond the season.

Both have outstanding scenery, of different kinds. Naples sits among volcanoes. You can walk to the crater rim of Vesuvius, explore the oak woods inside the Astroni crater, see Lake Avernus and snorkel in the Gaiola underwater park, though there is little green space within the city.

Positano has the mountains on its doorstep. The Path of the Gods ends at Nocelle above the town, trails climb through chestnut woods to ridges over 1,000m, and kayaks follow the cliffs to grottoes and the Li Galli islets. From Naples, the same walks take a long day.

Both are excellent bases, but Naples has more within easy reach and works all year. Pompeii and Herculaneum are under an hour away on the Circumvesuviana, the Caserta palace is about forty minutes away by train, and boats to the islands leave from Molo Beverello.

Positano is better placed for Amalfi, Ravello and Capri by boat. Pompeii takes about an hour and a half, though, and most ferries stop out of season, which leaves only the slow coast buses in winter.

Neither is easy with small children, but Naples gives them more to do. There are pizzerias that welcome families at any hour, Edenlandia, the zoo and the science museum at Bagnoli, and older children enjoy the tunnels, funiculars and ferries. Scooters and broken pavements still make pushchairs a struggle.

Positano is harder still. It is a town of stairs with nothing aimed at children except the sea, and its pebbly beaches shelve quickly. Older children who like swimming will love the boats, but families with toddlers do better on flatter parts of the coast.

Naples gives you more ways to get around. The centre is walkable, Metro Line 1 has stations decorated as galleries, four funiculars climb the hills and trains run along the bay, even if the buses are slow and the Circumvesuviana is packed.

You can cross Positano on foot, but only by climbing hundreds of steps. There is one local bus loop, and the coast buses crawl in summer traffic. Ferries are the easy option, mostly in season, and in neither place is a car worth having.

Naples has the wider choice. There are tailoring workshops and silk ties in Chiaia, the main shopping street of Via Toledo, the Galleria Umberto I arcade, nativity figures on Via San Gregorio Armeno, and coral and cameos from Torre del Greco.

Positano does one thing well: moda Positano, its loose white linen and printed resort wear, with sandals cut to fit while you wait, plus ceramics and lemon soaps. Beyond that one look there is little to browse.

Naples is much the cheaper base. Pizza, street food, coffee at the bar and public transport cost little, and the historic centre has plenty of modest B&Bs. Costs rise once you head out to the islands or the coast.

Positano is that coast at its most expensive, with sea-view rooms, loungers, terrace restaurants and boat trips all priced for the view. Staying in Praiano or Sorrento, or coming in May or October, brings the bill down.

Naples has the Teatro di San Carlo, the oldest opera house in Europe still in use, with a season of opera, ballet and concerts. There are also recitals at the conservatory, chamber music in churches and Neapolitan song at small shows and in the trattorias.

Positano has only occasional summer concerts in its churches and squares. Its best evening of music is the Ravello festival further along the coast, and for opera you need Naples.

Neither town is restful in itself, and the difference is in the kind of rest. Naples has real thermal water: the Agnano spa on the edge of the city and, about an hour away by hydrofoil, Ischia's terraced thermal parks. The city itself is loud.

Positano has no bathing tradition, but its upscale hotels have spas and pools cut into the cliff, and the views do the rest. It is calmest in May, June and late September, outside the summer crowds.