Padua or San Marino?

Neither is a beach destination, but San Marino has the easier route to the sea. Rimini and Riccione are roughly half an hour downhill, close enough to see from the walls, so a beach afternoon is a simple add-on.

From Padua the sand at Sottomarina or the Venice Lido is about an hour away by car or by train and boat, which makes it a full outing. Both coasts are the same flat Adriatic stretch of umbrellas and shallow, calm water, so the real difference is distance rather than scenery.

Padua eats noticeably better. Its morning markets in Piazza delle Erbe and Piazza della Frutta, Venetian dishes such as bigoli with duck sauce and baccalà, and the early-evening spritz ritual give a stay a strong food rhythm, and Caffè Pedrocchi adds a grand old coffee house.

San Marino's Romagna cooking of piadina, passatelli and strozzapreti is honest, but many summit terraces sell the view more than the meal. The better plates are down in Borgo Maggiore's trattorias or over the border in the countryside.

Padua has much more to see. The Scrovegni Chapel alone justifies a visit, and around it are the Eremitani and Baptistery frescoes, the Basilica of Saint Anthony, Palazzo della Ragione's vast hall, Palazzo Bo and the botanical garden founded in 1545.

San Marino's appeal is the setting and its history as an ancient republic: the towers of Guaita and Cesta on the cliff edge, the Palazzo Pubblico and a few small museums. It makes a striking half day, while Padua rewards two or three days of art.

Padua at least has an evening scene. Students and locals fill Piazza delle Erbe and Piazza dei Signori over spritz until late, with wine bars in the old ghetto during term, though it is sociable rather than clubby.

San Marino goes quiet once the coaches leave, offering little more than dinner on a terrace above the coast lights. For a real night out you have to drive down to the Riviera clubs at Rimini.

Padua has the stronger outdoor options despite its flat setting. The volcanic Euganean Hills about 15km away have trails, vineyards and cycling roads, the Brenta towpaths make easy rides, and the pre-Alps around Monte Grappa and Asiago offer proper mountain walking.

San Marino puts you on the scenery itself, with cliff paths between the towers and views across to the Apennines. However, it is limited to short walks and drives through the Montefeltro hills.

Both make good bases, but Padua is the stronger one. Venice is under half an hour by train, Vicenza a quarter of an hour, and Verona, Bologna and Ferrara are all an easy rail hop away, with the Brenta villas and the walled towns of Este and Montagnana close by.

San Marino's list is attractive too: the fortress of San Leo, ducal Urbino, Ravenna's mosaics and Gradara. Most of these need a car, though, because the only regular public link is the bus down to Rimini.

San Marino has the slight edge with children, thanks to towers to climb, battlements, a cable car ride and Italia in Miniatura, Fiabilandia and the waterparks along the coast below. Its steep streets and steps are hard work with a pushchair.

Padua is flat, pedestrianised and easy to manage, with Prato della Valle for running about. Its own sights are mostly frescoes, so families usually head out to Gardaland and Lake Garda.

Padua is much easier to move around. Its centre is flat and arcaded, most sights are within a 20-minute walk, a tram runs from the station, and the main-line rail hub makes a car unnecessary.

San Marino is compact but almost every street climbs or descends by steps. Arriving without a car means the bus from Rimini, and beyond the summit and its cable car, village buses are infrequent.

Padua is the better place to shop, though neither is a destination for it. Its arcades have Italian fashion, shoe shops, university bookshops and delicatessens under the Palazzo della Ragione, plus a monthly antiques market on Prato della Valle.

San Marino's streets lean towards souvenirs, decorative crossbows, stamps and coins, and lower-tax perfume, watches and spirits, with an outlet centre in the valley.

Costs are much the same in both: moderate, northern or central Italian prices rather than resort rates. The difference lies in where the premium falls. In Padua, rooms cost more around trade fairs and graduations, but a walkable centre keeps transport costs down.

In San Marino, the summit hotels and view terraces cost more than places a few kilometres downhill, while lower taxes make fuel and spirits cheaper.

Padua has a real, if modest, programme. Teatro Verdi stages drama and some opera, and the chamber orchestra plays in settings such as the frescoed Sala dei Giganti. The Fenice in Venice and the Arena in Verona are both an easy trip away.

San Marino has little beyond occasional local concerts and the costumed Medieval Days festival in summer.

This is one of the widest gaps between the two. Padua sits beside Abano Terme and Montegrotto, one of Europe's largest thermal districts, where many spa hotels welcome day visitors to their hot mineral pools, a short ride from the sights.

San Marino has no bathing tradition and only a few hotel spas. What it offers is calm after the day crowds leave, with evening walks along the walls.