Phoenix or San Jose?

Neither city is on the coast, but San Jose at least has a real beach day within reach. It is about 45 minutes over the mountains to Santa Cruz and Capitola, sheltered beach towns on the Monterey Bay, although the cold Pacific means most people paddle or surf in wetsuits rather than swim.

Phoenix is hours from any coast. Swimming there means the desert reservoirs on the Salt River, tubing in summer or, for most visitors, a resort pool with a lazy river.

The two are evenly matched, and in both you will drive to eat well. The difference is in what you eat. Phoenix is the place for Sonoran borderland food: carne asada, thin flour tortillas, bacon-wrapped hot dogs from street carts, plus a strong name for wood-fired pizza.

San Jose's strength is Asian cooking. Its large Vietnamese community fills the strip malls of the east side with pho and banh mi, and there are good Korean and Indian places too, with Santa Cruz Mountains wineries close by.

Phoenix has the stronger museums. The Heard Museum's Native American collection, the Musical Instrument Museum and Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West are each worth the drive, though the sights are far apart and there is no historic centre to wander.

San Jose leans towards curiosities: the Winchester Mystery House, the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum, Mission Santa Clara and the Computer History Museum's account of Silicon Valley. A couple of days covers them all.

Phoenix offers more of a night out, split across districts far apart. Old Town Scottsdale has clubs and rooftop bars, Tempe's Mill Avenue is full of students, and downtown has craft beer and cocktail bars. In summer much of the drinking moves to resort pool parties.

San Jose's scene fits into a few downtown blocks around San Pedro Square and the SoFA district. It is pleasant at weekends and quiet the rest of the week, and anyone after a big night takes the train to San Francisco.

Both cities are at their best outdoors, but the scenery has nothing in common. In Phoenix, rocky desert peaks rise straight out of the suburbs, so a Camelback scramble or a walk through the saguaro forest of the McDowell Sonoran Preserve can start minutes from the hotel. From October to April that is ideal. In summer the trails are only safe at dawn.

San Jose is a valley ringed by hills, with easy foothill walks at Alum Rock on its edge. The bigger rewards need a drive: redwood groves at Big Basin and Henry Cowell over the Santa Cruz Mountains, and sea otters and the headlands of Point Lobos on the Monterey Bay. The hills are green only in winter and spring and turn gold through the dry summer.

San Jose is by far the better base for day trips. San Francisco is an hour away by Caltrain, Stanford and Berkeley are close, and Monterey, Carmel and Santa Cruz make easy outings, with Napa and Sonoma possible on a long day.

From Phoenix the distances are greater and the choice is smaller: Sedona's red rocks, hillside Jerome, Prescott and Tucson's Mission San Xavier del Bac. The Grand Canyon is too far for a comfortable day.

Both cities work for families who drive, and San Jose has a slight edge because its mild climate allows outdoor days in any season. It also has Great America and Happy Hollow, with the Santa Cruz Boardwalk and the Monterey Bay Aquarium within reach.

Phoenix has a zoo, a science centre, water parks and resort pools with slides. In summer, though, young children can only safely be outside early in the morning.

You will need a car in either city, but San Jose is the easier of the two without one. Its downtown is compact enough to walk, light rail runs north and south, and Caltrain gives a reliable link to Palo Alto and San Francisco. Rush-hour traffic on the freeways is the main thing to plan around.

Phoenix is spread over dozens of kilometres. The single light rail line is mainly useful between the airport, downtown and Tempe, and summer heat makes even short walks hard. Roads and parking, at least, are easy.

Both are mall cities with similar range. Phoenix has the more distinctive souvenir: Navajo and Zuni silver and turquoise, Hopi katsina carvings and rugs, best bought from museum shops and reputable galleries, along with the galleries and Western wear shops of Old Town Scottsdale.

San Jose's west-side mall and the open-air boutique street next to it gather the luxury brands in one place. For something more personal, there are the long-standing shops of Japantown and the Asian supermarkets.

Phoenix is clearly the cheaper of the two, especially in summer, when resort prices drop sharply. Chain hotels on the freeways are good value all year, and Sonoran Mexican food is cheap and good. The main extra cost is car hire.

San Jose is in one of the most expensive regions in the country. Hotels, restaurants, drinks and parking are all expensive. Weekend hotel rates, the eateries in suburban plazas and the free trails help a little.

Phoenix has a somewhat fuller programme. Its symphony, opera and ballet companies run regular seasons, touring Broadway shows play Frank Lloyd Wright's round ASU Gammage, and the Musical Instrument Museum has its own concert hall. Summer is quiet.

San Jose's best moments are Opera San José in the restored 1920s California Theatre and the summer jazz festival downtown. On an ordinary weeknight the choice is thin.

This is one of the clearest differences between the two. Phoenix and Scottsdale are a classic American resort retreat, with spas using desert sage and clay, several pools and golf. It is best from autumn to spring and costs resort money.

San Jose offers hotel spas and a few Korean-style bathhouses in the valley towns. For calm, people go to the quiet streets of Los Gatos and Saratoga or the Japanese gardens at Hakone and Kelley Park.