Park City or Sedona?

Neither town has a coast, but Sedona has the better water to cool off in. At Slide Rock you can ride the creek down a sandstone chute into cold pools, and there are swimming holes below red cliffs at Grasshopper Point and Red Rock Crossing.

In Park City, summer swimming means a drive down to Jordanelle Reservoir, with its sandy areas and a short, cool season. Most visitors only get wet in a hotel pool or hot tub.

Park City eats a little better, thanks to its ski crowd. Main Street and the resort bases have polished restaurants serving elk, bison, trout and steak, and après-ski on the slopeside decks is a ritual in itself.

In Sedona the view often matters more than the cooking. Expect Southwestern dishes built on chilli and corn, plenty of vegetarian and health-minded menus, and wine tastings in the Verde Valley nearby. In both towns the choice runs out after a few good meals.

Both towns have only a few sights, and both are fairly thin on culture, but the history is different. Park City's story is silver mining: the wooden storefronts on Main Street, old headframes on the slopes, the museum in the old city hall, and the Olympic museums from 2002.

Sedona's past is older and partly Native American. The Sinagua cliff dwellings at Palatki and Honanki and the V Bar V petroglyphs sit a short drive out of town, and the Chapel of the Holy Cross is built into a butte.

Park City has the livelier evenings, though only in season. Après-ski moves on to the saloons and cocktail bars of Main Street, and some winter weekends bring DJs or bands before it all closes fairly early.

Sedona goes to bed early because people are on the trail at dawn. A brewpub or wine bar after dinner is about all there is, and the better show is the dark sky full of stars.

Both are outstanding outdoor bases, but the scenery could hardly be more different. Park City is high alpine country in the Wasatch, with deep powder in winter and aspen ridges, singletrack and lift-served biking in summer.

Sedona is desert, with red sandstone buttes and spires reached by trails such as Cathedral Rock and Devil's Bridge, and mountain biking on slickrock. Oak Creek Canyon and the Grand Canyon's South Rim are also within reach. Sedona is at its best in spring and autumn, while Park City is a winter and summer place.

Sedona has more to fill a few days out. Jerome, the old copper town on its hillside, is about forty minutes away, and Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot are closer still. Flagstaff and the Verde Canyon Railroad add variety.

From Park City, the main outing is Salt Lake City, with Temple Square and a real city's choice of restaurants. Beyond that there are the steam railway in the Heber Valley, Swiss-style Midway and Ogden's railroad street, and after those most of what lies within reach is landscape.

Park City is much the easier place with children. The ski areas have learning slopes and ski schools, and the Olympic Park has coasters, ziplines and freestyle jumpers landing in a splash pool. Summer brings alpine slides and climbing walls, and the free buses take the hassle out of getting around. The main drawbacks are the altitude for the first day or two and the cost.

Sedona suits families who already love the outdoors, with Slide Rock and jeep tours as the highlights. Most hotels are aimed at couples, and heat and exposed trails call for care with small children.

Park City works well without a car once you are there. Free buses connect Old Town, both ski bases and Kimball Junction, and the airport is about 40 minutes away by shuttle.

Sedona is spread out along two highways. Only Uptown is easy on foot, so trailheads, the chapel and every day trip need a car. Traffic and trailhead parking can be tight on busy weekends, and most visitors drive two hours up from Phoenix.

There is little to choose between them for shopping, but they sell different things. Park City offers resort browsing on Main Street, with Western boots, outdoor gear, ski fashion and galleries, plus outlet stores at Kimball Junction.

Sedona is better for crafts. Tlaquepaque's courtyards are full of galleries and studios, and there is Native American jewellery, pottery and rugs, along with the town's crystal and metaphysical shops.

Both are expensive resort towns, and Sedona is only slightly easier on the budget. Park City in ski season, with lift tickets, ski school and slopeside rooms, is about as costly as North American mountain trips get, although summer and autumn are noticeably cheaper.

In Sedona, spring and autumn rates are high, but most trails cost no more than a parking pass. In both towns, people on a budget sleep somewhere cheaper and drive in: Salt Lake City or the Heber Valley for Park City, and Cottonwood or Flagstaff for Sedona.

Park City has more to see, especially in summer, when the Utah Symphony plays on the lawns at Deer Valley and free concerts are held in town. The 1920s Egyptian Theatre on Main Street has comedy and plays all year.

Sedona has no concert hall and no regular season. Chamber concerts, local theatre and the long-running film festival in late winter make up most of its calendar.

This is where Sedona pulls well ahead. It is a destination for retreats, with yoga, meditation, breathwork and alternative therapies alongside the resort spas, and sunrise walks to the vortexes add a ritual you will not find elsewhere.

Park City's wellness is about recovery after skiing: massages at the Deer Valley and Canyons lodges and outdoor hot tubs in the snow. It does have the warm water Sedona lacks, at the Homestead Crater spring in Midway.