New York or Hong Kong?

Neither city is a beach destination, and both treat a swim as a break from sightseeing. In Hong Kong that means warm water from late spring to autumn, guarded bays such as Repulse Bay a short bus ride from Central, rocky coves at Shek O and quieter sand on Lantau or Sai Kung, with summer storms sometimes closing the water.

New York's beaches are Atlantic ones with a different character: Coney Island's boardwalk and old rides, the long open surf beaches of the Rockaways, all at the end of a subway line. The water is cooler and swimmable only for a few summer weeks, and hot weekends bring heavy crowds.

Both are among the great eating cities, but in different ways. Hong Kong goes deep into one tradition: morning dim sum in loud teahouses, roast goose and char siu in shop windows, milk tea and pineapple buns in the cha chaan teng diners, and seafood chosen from tanks on Lamma or in Sai Kung.

New York goes wide, with almost every cuisine cooked by its own community across Queens, Brooklyn and the Bronx, plus its own classics of slice pizza, bagels and deli pastrami. Its Chinatown and Flushing cook Cantonese well, but Hong Kong is where that cuisine is at its peak.

New York is much the richer sightseeing city. The Met, MoMA, the Natural History museum and the Cloisters could fill a long stay alone, and landmarks such as the Statue of Liberty, Grand Central and the Brooklyn Bridge are familiar before you arrive.

In Hong Kong the main sight is the city itself, the skyline from the Peak or the Tsim Sha Tsui waterfront and the trams and tenements of Kowloon. M+ and the Palace Museum in West Kowloon are serious, and temples such as Man Mo and Wong Tai Sin give a Chinese texture New York lacks, but there is less old fabric to explore.

New York is the bigger night out by a wide margin. Bars run into the small hours across the boroughs, the trains keep going all night, and Williamsburg and Bushwick have warehouse clubs that go past dawn, alongside East Village dives and West Village wine bars.

Hong Kong's evenings gather in Central, with the street-drinking crowds of Lan Kwai Fong, careful cocktail bars in Soho and Sheung Wan, and later, rougher bars in Wan Chai. Clubbing is modest, but a Kowloon night of beer at seafood stalls and karaoke has no New York equivalent.

Hong Kong is the stronger choice for getting outdoors. Country parks cover much of the territory, and ridge walks like the Dragon's Back or a sunrise climb of Lantau Peak are often under an hour away by bus or MTR. Sai Kung adds kayaking among islands, sea caves and volcanic rock columns.

New York's green space is mostly designed: Central Park, Prospect Park and the High Line make fine walks rather than wild country. Real climbs mean a ninety-minute train up the Hudson to Breakneck Ridge, and the Catskills need a car.

Both offer good outings, but from Hong Kong a day trip can feel like crossing into another world. Macau's Portuguese squares are about an hour away, Guangzhou is under an hour by high-speed train, and the car-free outlying islands are closer still, though mainland trips mean a border and entry rules to check.

From New York the trips lean towards American history and art: Philadelphia's Independence Hall by train, Princeton and Yale, and the Hudson Valley's Gilded Age estates, Dia Beacon and Storm King. Long Island's wine country and the Hamptons make a longer day.

Both work well with children, with Hong Kong a little easier day to day. Its draws are Hong Kong Disneyland and Ocean Park with its pandas, plus the Peak Tram, Star Ferry and Ngong Ping cable car, all on transport that is simple with children, though summer heat and small rooms are a strain.

New York's highlights are museums and animals: the dinosaur halls of the Natural History museum, the Bronx Zoo and Central Park's carousel and playgrounds. The main drawback is getting around, as many subway stations have only stairs, which is hard with a pushchair.

Hong Kong is the easier city to move around. The MTR is fast, spotless and runs straight from the airport, one card covers trains, trams, buses and ferries, and covered walkways and the Mid-Levels escalator take the edge off hills and humidity.

New York is a fine walking city, with Manhattan's grid and a subway that runs all night. It asks more patience, though: local and express trains share lines, weekend engineering work reroutes services, stations are often stair-only and stuffy in summer, and the airport journeys are awkward.

New York has the edge for shopping, mostly through sheer range. Fifth and Madison Avenues, department stores such as Bergdorf Goodman and Macy's, SoHo's brands and Brooklyn's vintage and record shops cover every taste, along with specialist bookshops and weekend flea markets.

Hong Kong answers with tax-free malls and luxury rows in Central and Canton Road, and above all with street markets that double as sightseeing: Mong Kok's Ladies' Market and bird and goldfish markets, Sham Shui Po's fabric lanes and the curio shops of Hollywood Road. Having a suit made by a Tsim Sha Tsui tailor is a Hong Kong speciality.

Neither is cheap, but New York is the harder city on the wallet. Its hotels are costly all year, sales tax and tips add to every meal, and theatre seats, observation decks and museum entry are steep. Staying in Brooklyn, Queens or New Jersey and living on slices, bagels and food carts helps.

Hong Kong's rooms are also very expensive and tiny, and Central's bars charge Western prices. Day-to-day life is gentler on the budget, though, with cheap transport, a Star Ferry crossing that costs almost nothing, good-value noodle shops and dim sum, and hiking trails that are free.

Hong Kong's stages are smaller and harder for a visitor to use, since most local theatre is in Cantonese. Its distinctive offer is Cantonese opera, with painted faces and clattering percussion, at the Xiqu Centre or in bamboo theatres at village festivals. Beyond that there is the Hong Kong Philharmonic at the Cultural Centre on the waterfront, touring musicals and the annual Arts Festival.

New York is one of the world's great stages and the clear choice for evenings out. Broadway and Off-Broadway, the Metropolitan Opera, New York City Ballet and the Philharmonic at Lincoln Center, and Carnegie Hall would be enough on their own. Jazz has been part of the city for a hundred years and still fills basement clubs in Greenwich Village and rooms in Harlem. Add gospel on Sunday and free Shakespeare in the parks in summer, and there is something worth booking every night.

Both cities are fast and crowded, and both make rest something you seek out rather than fall into. Hong Kong's version is everyday foot reflexology and massage on almost every Kowloon block, herbal tea shops and Chinese medicine, with true quiet found at Chi Lin Nunnery or on car-free Lamma and Cheung Chau.

New York leans on bathing instead: the old Russian and Turkish bathhouse in the East Village, banyas in Brighton Beach and Korean-style spas in Queens and New Jersey. For calm, a long morning in a big park or the Brooklyn Botanic Garden does the job.