Palermo or Portofino?

Palermo has the better swimming, even though it means a bus ride. Mondello's half-moon of pale sand and shallow turquoise water is ideal for a whole beach day, and the rocks towards Capo Gallo and Sferracavallo give deeper, quieter swims.

Portofino's water is just as clear, and the rock ladders on the way to the lighthouse are right by the village. The sand, though, is limited to little Paraggi, mostly given over to paid clubs, and the pebble cove at San Fruttuoso, and all of it fills up quickly in summer.

Palermo is one of Italy's great eating cities, and much of the best of it is on the street. The Ballarò, Capo and Vucciria markets fry panelle and arancine, vans sell sfincione, and the sweet-and-sour, raisin-and-pine-nut cooking shows the city's Arab past. Then there are cannoli filled to order and granita with brioche.

Portofino offers good Ligurian standards, such as trofie with pesto and Recco's cheese focaccia, but mostly at expensive harbour terraces where the view counts for more than the cooking. Visitors who care about food take the bus to Camogli or Santa Margherita.

The gap here is wide. Palermo has a UNESCO-listed run of twelfth-century Arab-Norman buildings, from the gold mosaics of the Palatine Chapel to the red domes of San Giovanni degli Eremiti, plus Serpotta's stucco oratories and serious museums holding the Selinunte metopes and Antonello's Annunciata.

In Portofino the village itself is the sight: its painted harbour, the church of San Giorgio, Castello Brown and the walk to the lighthouse, with the abbey at San Fruttuoso reached by boat or trail. It is lovely, and it takes about a day.

Palermo has a real night out, even if it is mostly outdoors. The Vucciria turns into an open-air drinking spot of grills and small bars, and the wine bars of the Kalsa stay full long after a late dinner, though clubs are few.

Portofino's evening is an aperitivo and dinner facing the yachts, dressed up, and then very little else. Outside July and August the village is quiet early, and anyone wanting more heads to Santa Margherita, Rapallo or Genoa.

Both are good bases for the outdoors, but the experience is quite different. Portofino's park and marine reserve start at the edge of the village. You can walk from the harbour over the headland to San Fruttuoso and Camogli along cliff trails, some with chains, and dive among red coral walls and the Christ of the Abyss statue without needing transport.

Palermo's landscapes cover more ground: Monte Pellegrino above the city, the Zingaro coast trail past dwarf palms, and the Madonie's beech woods and near-2,000m peaks. Apart from Monte Pellegrino and Capo Gallo, though, most of it really needs a car.

Palermo has the broader range of excursions. Monreale's mosaics are half an hour away, Cefalù is an easy train ride, and further out the temples at Segesta, Selinunte and Agrigento rank among the finest Greek remains anywhere, with medieval Erice on its hilltop as well.

From Portofino the outings are gentler and mostly by water: a string of Riviera towns, the Cinque Terre and Portovenere by summer ferry, and Genoa's palaces and old centre less than an hour away. The boat rides are a pleasure in themselves, but outside the ferry season the options shrink.

Neither is easy with children, but Palermo works somewhat better. Mondello's shallow sandy bay suits small swimmers, the puppet shows of knights and Saracens go down well with older children, and families are welcome at dinner late into the evening. The summer heat and the scooters in narrow lanes are the downside.

Portofino is calm and safe, but its paths are steep steps that rule out a pushchair, the little sand there is sits mostly behind paid beach clubs, and nothing is aimed at children. Most families stay in Santa Margherita or Rapallo instead.

Getting around is about equally easy, or awkward, in both, for different reasons. Palermo's main sights line two long, flat streets that you can walk, but buses beyond the centre crawl through traffic, and Segesta or Erice really need a hire car.

Portofino is only minutes across on foot, apart from the steep climbs to the castle and the lighthouse. Getting there and away depends on one narrow coast road, which jams in summer, and on the seasonal ferries, so a car is more trouble than help.

Palermo gives you more to browse. There is Italian fashion along Via Libertà, painted ceramics and moor's-head vases, handmade marionettes, coral jewellery, a flea market by the cathedral, and capers and pistachio pesto from the markets to take home.

Portofino's few lanes behind the piazzetta hold a surprising number of luxury fashion and jewellery boutiques and resort-wear shops, plus a little lace and pesto. You can see them all in under an hour, and for anything ordinary you go to Chiavari or Rapallo.

Here the two are about as far apart as Italy allows. Palermo is one of the country's cheaper big cities: you can make a meal of several stops in the markets, trattorie and local wine cost far less than in the north, and old-town guesthouses are fairly priced outside July and August.

Portofino is among the most expensive places to stay in Italy, from its few luxury hotels to the loungers at Paraggi and the drinks on the piazzetta. Walking and the local bus are almost the only cheap things, which is why so many visitors sleep in Camogli or Santa Margherita instead.

Palermo has a real stage life. The Teatro Massimo runs a full season of opera and ballet, and the Politeama is home to the Sicilian symphony orchestra. The Opera dei Pupi, Sicily's tradition of armoured marionettes fighting through the Charlemagne legends, lives on in the city's small family-run theatres.

Portofino has no theatre or regular venue, only the occasional summer concert in the piazzetta or at the castle. For opera or concerts you would need an evening in Genoa at the Teatro Carlo Felice.

Portofino is the more restful of the two, as long as you avoid the middle of a summer day, when the tour boats arrive. Early mornings, evenings and the shoulder months are quiet, the headland paths are shaded and full of birdsong, and the hillside hotels have spas and pools.

Palermo is loud with scooters, traffic and market cries, and its quiet corners are moments rather than a mood: the Orto Botanico's palms, a cloister, the evening walk along the Foro Italico. For thermal waters you would take the train to Termini Imerese.