Phoenix or Santa Barbara?

Phoenix is hours from any coast, so swimming happens at resort pools with lazy rivers, at reservoirs on the Salt River such as Saguaro Lake and Canyon Lake, or on an inner tube drifting down the lower Salt in summer.

Santa Barbara has a real shoreline. East Beach and West Beach lie either side of Stearns Wharf, with Arroyo Burro and Butterfly Beach a short drive away and Carpinteria's shallow sand for small children. The Channel Islands keep the surf gentle, although the water is cool enough that many locals swim in wetsuits.

Both cities do Mexican food well. Phoenix's version is specifically Sonoran, with carne asada, paper-thin flour tortillas and bacon-wrapped hot dogs from evening carts, plus a strong reputation for wood-fired pizza. Beyond that the restaurant scene is reliable rather than memorable, and spread out enough that good meals usually mean a drive.

Santa Barbara eats better because its food comes from close by. Spot prawns and sea urchin come off the harbour boats, the farmers' markets are excellent, and pinot noir from the Santa Rita Hills is poured in Funk Zone tasting rooms you can walk between. Its weakness is range, with little late-night or international food beyond the taquerias of Milpas Street.

The two are close, but they reward different kinds of sightseeing. Phoenix's strengths are individual institutions: the Heard Museum's Native American collections, the large Musical Instrument Museum and Frank Lloyd Wright's Taliesin West. Each is a separate drive, and there is no old centre to wander between them.

Santa Barbara edges ahead because the town itself is the sight. Rebuilt in white stucco and red tile after the 1925 earthquake, it can be explored on foot from the County Courthouse tower up to the Old Mission, founded in 1786. It fills two or three easy days rather than a full programme.

Phoenix offers more of a night out. Old Town Scottsdale has clubs, rooftop bars and dance floors that fill at weekends, Tempe's Mill Avenue runs on the university crowd, and Roosevelt Row has cocktail lounges and craft beer. The districts are far apart, though, so you usually pick one and take a ride-hail home.

Santa Barbara's evenings are quieter and end earlier. They tend to start in Funk Zone breweries and wine bars and drift to the student bars on lower State Street. There is no club culture to speak of, so a long dinner and a nightcap is the usual night.

Both cities have mountains rising straight from the suburbs. Phoenix has desert scrambles up Camelback Mountain and Piestewa Peak, saguaro forest in the McDowell Sonoran Preserve and Sedona's red rock two hours north. All of it is restricted to early mornings in the summer heat.

Santa Barbara comes out ahead because it adds the sea and stays usable all year. Trails climb from residential streets through oak canyons to Inspiration Point, and boats leave the harbour to watch whales. You can also kayak along the shore, surf the point break at Rincon or take a boat to the sea caves of Channel Islands National Park.

The options are fairly even, but the outings feel very different. From Phoenix, a day out means the Old West and red rock: hillside Jerome, Prescott's saloon street, the Montezuma Castle cliff dwelling, Sedona, or Tucson's Mission San Xavier del Bac. The Grand Canyon is too far for a comfortable day.

From Santa Barbara, the standout trip goes over the mountains to the wineries of the Santa Ynez Valley and Danish-founded Solvang, with Ojai's orange groves as a quieter alternative. Both cities need a car for almost everything beyond town.

Phoenix has the longer list of things to do with children: the Phoenix Zoo, the Arizona Science Center, an aquarium in Scottsdale, several water parks and resorts with slides and lazy rivers, plus spring training baseball in March. These are spread across a huge metro area, so expect long stretches in the car. From June to September the heat limits young children to early mornings outdoors.

Santa Barbara is compact and works in every month. The small zoo sits on a hill above the beach, the Sea Center on Stearns Wharf has touch tanks and MOXI stands at the foot of State Street, all close together. There is calm water at East Beach and Carpinteria and a bike path along the shore. Children who want big rides will need the Los Angeles theme parks, two hours away.

Phoenix is built for driving. Scottsdale, Tempe, downtown and the trailheads are spread across a vast grid of arterial roads, and the light rail is useful only between the airport, downtown and Tempe. Most visitors hire a car from the start.

Santa Barbara is far easier without a car. You can arrive by the coastal train, walk the flat length of State Street to the waterfront and cycle the shoreline path between the wharf, harbour and East Beach. You will still want a car for the wine country and the outlying beaches.

Phoenix is the place for malls and Native American craft. A luxury mall in Scottsdale and an open-air one near the Biltmore carry the international brands, and Old Town Scottsdale adds Western wear and galleries. The souvenir with real roots is Navajo or Zuni silver and turquoise, a Hopi katsina carving or a rug, best bought from museum shops and reputable galleries.

Santa Barbara suits browsing more than a big haul. Small boutiques and galleries are tucked into fountain courtyards off State Street, such as La Arcada, Coast Village Road in Montecito sells upmarket fashion and homeware, and the Funk Zone has design shops. The things most worth taking home are a bottle from the local wineries and produce from the farmers' markets.

Phoenix is clearly the cheaper stay. Prices are typical of an American city, chain hotels along the freeways are good value, summer room rates drop sharply, and most of the hiking is free. The extra cost to plan for is the hire car.

Santa Barbara charges a premium for its setting. Beach and Montecito rooms are among the dearest in California, and dinners and tastings are priced for wealthy visitors. Staying in Goleta or Ventura, travelling midweek and eating at taquerias softens the bill without making it cheap.

Santa Barbara has slightly more for a visitor, and its venues are attractions in themselves. The Granada is a restored 1920s movie palace, the Lobero is one of California's oldest theatres and the Arlington has a Spanish-village interior. In warmer months, the Santa Barbara Bowl brings major bands to a canyon above town and the Music Academy of the West fills the town with concerts every summer.

Phoenix has a full big-city line-up of symphony, opera and ballet, as well as touring Broadway shows at Wright's round ASU Gammage. Its season runs from autumn to spring and goes quiet in summer, which is the opposite of Santa Barbara's.

Phoenix is one of America's classic resort-spa destinations. Big desert properties along Camelback Mountain and in north Scottsdale combine spas, several pools and golf, use sage, clay and agave in their treatments, and offer warm, dry winter days for lying by the pool.

In Santa Barbara the slow pace itself does most of the restoring, helped by Montecito hotel spas and plenty of yoga studios. For a dedicated retreat, many people drive an hour to the Ojai Valley. Neither city has public baths, and the closest thing in Santa Barbara is a hike to small natural hot pools above Montecito.