New York or Salem, Massachusetts?

New York's beaches are a real option on a hot day. The subway runs out to Coney Island and Brighton Beach with their boardwalk, and the Rockaways have longer, more open sand with a surfing crowd. The Atlantic there gets warm enough for comfortable summer swimming.

Salem's own shores at Salem Willows and Winter Island are harbour edges, good for a paddle and a picnic. For a proper beach you have to drive to Crane Beach or Singing Beach, and the Gulf of Maine stays noticeably colder, so swims are short.

The difference here is stark. In New York, almost every cuisine is cooked by the community that brought it, from Flushing to Arthur Avenue. On top of that sits a deep fine-dining scene, and below it are cheap slices, bagels and halal carts.

Salem does the New England staples well: chowder, fried clams, lobster rolls and North Shore oysters, served in a compact cluster of bistros and brewpubs. There is little fine dining and no market culture, so keen eaters staying there usually save their big meal for Boston.

New York's museums are on a world scale. There is the Met, MoMA, the Guggenheim and the Frick along Museum Mile, plus the Natural History museum and the Cloisters, and landmarks run from the Statue of Liberty to Grand Central. You could spend a week indoors and still leave most of it unseen.

Salem takes two focused days on foot. It tells one clear story of witch trials and the maritime wealth that followed, through the Witch House, the custom house and wharves, the House of the Seven Gables and the Federal houses of Chestnut Street. The Peabody Essex Museum is a serious anchor, and the town's history reaches back further than most of what New York has on show.

Nights out could hardly be more different. New York runs round the clock, with cocktail bars and dives on the Lower East Side, rooftop bars in Long Island City, gay bars in the Village with roots in Stonewall, and warehouse clubs in Bushwick that go on past sunrise.

In Salem, an evening means a pint in a taproom or a drink near the pedestrian centre, and the streets are quiet before midnight. October livens things up, but it feels like a festival rather than a late-night scene.

Neither is a wilderness destination, and each is modest in its own way. New York's green space is designed parkland and waterfront: Central Park, Prospect Park and the High Line. The steep climbs of Breakneck Ridge in the Hudson Highlands are an hour and a half away by train.

Salem's outdoors is coastal. There are headland walks at Marblehead and Halibut Point, sea kayaking among the harbour islands, birding on Plum Island and whale-watching boats from Gloucester. Both are at their best in autumn colour, but only New York has rocky hiking within easy reach.

Salem has the edge as a base. Boston is half an hour away by train and Marblehead is almost next door. Gloucester and Rockport on Cape Ann are on the same rail line, and Lexington, Concord, Newburyport and Portsmouth make short, varied outings.

New York's best escapes are Philadelphia by train, Princeton and New Haven, and the Hudson Valley with its Gilded Age estates, Dia Beacon and Storm King. They are rewarding, but the city's size means more time spent getting out, and the North Fork or the Hamptons take up a long day.

New York has far more made for children. There are the dinosaur halls and planetarium at the Natural History museum, the Bronx Zoo, the aquarium at Coney Island, the aircraft carrier museum and Central Park's carousel and boating. The cost is stamina: many subway stations have only stairs, hotel rooms are small and the Midtown crowds wear children out.

Salem is easier to handle, being small, flat and safe. Older children enjoy the replica tall ship, the pirate museums and the seaside arcade at Salem Willows. There is little for younger ones, though, and the darker witch material can frighten them.

New York needs no car at all. Manhattan's grid is easy to walk, the subway runs all night across four boroughs, and ferries and bike docks are everywhere. Its weak points are a confusing mix of local and express trains and awkward links to the airports.

Salem is easy only within its small centre, which takes about twenty minutes to cross on foot. The commuter rail reaches Boston and Cape Ann, but the beaches, the state forests and Concord really need a car.

New York is one of the world's great shopping cities. It has flagship stores on Fifth Avenue, luxury houses on Madison Avenue and fashion brands in SoHo, along with vintage in Williamsburg, rare books and weekend flea markets.

In Salem, shopping is a curiosity rather than a reason to visit. Essex Street and Pickering Wharf sell crystals, tarot decks, spell books and Halloween souvenirs, alongside some antiques and a few bookshops. There are no fashion or department stores, so anyone with a shopping list heads to Boston.

Both are expensive, but New York is harder on the wallet. Manhattan rooms are small and costly all year, and theatre tickets, cocktails and observation decks add up fast. Free ferries and parks and cheap slices soften the blow.

Salem's rooms carry Boston-area prices and are scarce in October, but day-to-day spending is lighter. The town is walkable, the train is inexpensive and most sights charge modest fees.

This is no contest. New York has Broadway, the Metropolitan Opera, the Philharmonic and City Ballet at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, jazz clubs in the Village, gospel in Harlem and free Shakespeare in the parks in summer.

Salem has a modest theatre company, occasional concerts at the Peabody Essex Museum and bands in a few bars, plus street performers in October. For anything bigger, visitors take the train to Boston and come back late.

Neither is a place built for unwinding, but New York gives more to someone who wants to. The East Village bathhouse, open since the late 1800s, has a hot stone sauna and an ice-cold plunge pool. Add the banyas of Brighton Beach and the Korean jjimjilbang spas, and the city has a real bathing culture. The big parks and the Brooklyn Botanic Garden offer calm too.

Salem has a few day spas, along with tarot, crystal healing and meditation in keeping with its spiritual side. Outside October, its quiet waterfront and Chestnut Street are peaceful enough for a slow walk.