Niagara Falls or Philadelphia?

Neither city has swimming on its doorstep, so a beach day means leaving town in summer. From Niagara Falls it is about half an hour to the soft sand and shallow, calm water of Lake Erie at Crystal Beach, which suits small children.

Philadelphia's beaches are on the Atlantic, along the Jersey Shore, with wide sand and real waves. They are well over an hour away, though, and the weekend traffic is heavy. Both seasons end in early September.

Philadelphia is far the better place to eat. Its sandwiches, from cheesesteaks to roast pork with broccoli rabe, are everyday food. Reading Terminal Market and the Italian Market are worth a visit in their own right, and the bring-your-own-wine dining rooms of East Passyunk and Fishtown give the city real depth.

In Niagara Falls, eating in town mostly means chains and steakhouses around Clifton Hill, and a view of the gorge costs extra. The good meals are out in the wine country, where winery restaurants, summer fruit stands and icewine make a fine day, but one that takes planning and transport.

The gap here is wide. Philadelphia holds the founding of the United States in Independence Hall and the Liberty Bell, with the Georgian streets of Society Hill around them. Museums of real weight such as the Barnes Foundation and the Philadelphia Museum of Art add enough for several days.

Niagara Falls has a short list beyond the water: the early hydroelectric stations, Brock's Monument on Queenston Heights and the War of 1812 battlefields. Clifton Hill's wax museums are entertainment rather than heritage, and an afternoon covers most of the history.

Philadelphia has the better evenings, though neither is a clubbing city. Its nights run through neighbourhood bars: warehouse craft-beer halls in Fishtown and Northern Liberties, cocktails around Rittenhouse Square and the long-established Gayborhood, with a busy student crowd at weekends.

Niagara Falls offers a show rather than a scene. You watch the falls lit up, with fireworks in summer, then move on to the casinos and the sports bars of Clifton Hill, which go quiet in winter.

Niagara Falls wins outright, because its main sight is a natural one. Standing beside the Horseshoe Falls, taking a boat into the spray, hiking down the Niagara Glen to the rapids and cycling the river trail to Queenston give an outdoor trip a real centrepiece.

Philadelphia has plenty of green space, but it is gentle. The wooded Wissahickon gorge in Fairmount Park and the Schuylkill River Trail past Boathouse Row are excellent for a run or a ride, and the Poconos are within a long day's reach, but nothing compares with the falls.

Philadelphia's rail links make it the better base. New York, Baltimore and Washington are each a single train ride away, and Lancaster County's Amish farms, Valley Forge, Longwood Gardens and Gettysburg fill more days.

Niagara Falls has one outstanding short outing in Niagara-on-the-Lake and its wineries. Toronto is about an hour and a half away, and Buffalo is just across the border if you bring a passport. That is a good handful, but there are fewer of them and they depend more on a car or a tour.

Both cities work well with children, in different ways. Niagara Falls offers a few days of spectacle: boats into the spray, tunnels behind the water, and the arcades and mini golf of Clifton Hill. It all sits in a compact area that is easy with a pushchair, though it is loud and the paid attractions add up.

Philadelphia's draw is its museums and animals. There is the Franklin Institute, the Please Touch Museum for under-eights, the dinosaur hall, the country's oldest zoo and an aquarium across the river. The history of Old City suits older children too.

Philadelphia is easier to get around. Center City's flat grid puts Old City, Rittenhouse Square and the Parkway museums within walking distance. SEPTA's subway, trolleys and regional rail, including the airport train, cover the rest, even if the system is plain.

Niagara Falls has a small walkable core, where the promenade, the hotels and Clifton Hill are linked by the Incline Railway, and buses run out to the gorge. The wineries and anything off the river parkway are much easier with a car or a bike.

Philadelphia offers real city shopping. There are brands and boutiques on Walnut Street, independent shops in Old City and Fishtown, Jewelers' Row, the food markets and the huge King of Prussia mall, and clothing carries no sales tax.

In Niagara Falls the shopping is souvenirs on Clifton Hill and discounted brands at the outlet centres outside town. A bottle of icewine is the best thing to take home.

Neither city is a bargain, and the costs fall in different places. In Niagara Falls they depend on the season and where you stay. Hotels with a view of the falls are dear in summer, while motels on the outer strips and winter stays cost far less. The boats and Clifton Hill attractions eat into a family budget, but watching the falls costs nothing.

Philadelphia's hotels and sit-down restaurants charge American city rates, with tax and tip on top. Its free founding sights, filling sandwiches and bring-your-own-wine dinners keep a visit in check, though the art museums charge full admission.

Philadelphia is the stronger city for a concert or a play. The Philadelphia Orchestra, Opera Philadelphia and the ballet at the Academy of Music, recitals by Curtis Institute students, the Walnut Street Theatre and jazz in small clubs give it a full season.

Niagara Falls itself has casino shows and tribute acts. Twenty minutes away, though, the Shaw Festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake is a serious repertory theatre with a long season, and theatre lovers could plan a stay around it.

Setting is what separates them, since both rely on hotel spas rather than any bathing tradition. Niagara Falls has the softer backdrop, with wine-country inns where a massage follows a day of tastings, and quiet winter weekends when the town calms down. In Philadelphia calm comes in pockets: a bench in one of the leafy squares, a walk in the Wissahickon gorge or a drive out to the Korean-style bathhouses in the suburbs.