Rabat or Ronda?

Neither is a beach destination, but Rabat at least has the Atlantic on its doorstep. The city beach below the Kasbah of the Udayas is good for watching surfers and local families, calmer sand lies a short taxi ride south towards Temara and Skhirat, and swimming in the swell means staying close to shore.

From Ronda the sea is a full day out, about 50km of hairpin bends down to the built-up beaches around Estepona and San Pedro. The Mediterranean water there is warmer, but most visitors settle for a pool in the hills.

Rabat has the wider table. You get tagines, Friday couscous, harira and grilled sardines in the medina, snail broth from evening stalls, plain Atlantic fish near the port, and French and Lebanese cooking in Agdal when you want a change.

Ronda's cooking is narrower and heartier: oxtail stew, lamb, game and cured hams from the Serranía, with chestnuts and wild mushrooms in autumn. Wine is where it wins, with tastings at wineries just outside town, while in Rabat alcohol stays mostly inside hotels.

Rabat has the broader set of sights, spread over nearly two thousand years. There is the blue-and-white Kasbah of the Udayas, the Hassan Tower beside the Mausoleum of Mohammed V, the stork-covered Roman and Marinid ruins of the Chellah and an art deco Ville Nouvelle, with a modern art museum on top.

Ronda's heritage is more compact, and its setting does most of the work. The Puente Nuevo over El Tajo, the old Maestranza bullring, the Arab baths and the rock-cut stairway of the Casa del Rey Moro fill a day or two, where Rabat needs two or three.

Neither town suits a night out, though Rabat keeps a little more going after dark. It has hotel bars and lounges in Agdal and the Hassan district, the riverside promenade and medina streets that stay busy on summer and Ramadan nights. In Ronda, evenings end with tapas and a late dinner around the Plaza del Socorro, and the town is silent by the early hours except during the September fair.

Ronda is far ahead here. The crags, vultures and Garganta Verde ravine of the Sierra de Grazalema, the Spanish fir forests of the Sierra de las Nieves, the gorge path and climbing cliffs, and the Caminito del Rey about an hour away make it a real base for walking.

Rabat's outdoors is flat and gentle by comparison: surfing at the river mouth, paddling on the Bou Regreg, easy rides in the Maamora cork forest and birdwatching at Sidi Boughaba. Its mountains are several hours away.

Rabat's strength is the train. The Hassan II Mosque in Casablanca is an hour away, Tangier and Asilah are on the high-speed line, Meknes takes about two hours, and Salé's old medina is a tram ride across the river.

Ronda has more to see within easy reach. You can visit the white villages of Setenil, Zahara, Grazalema and Arcos, the cave paintings of La Pileta and the dolmens of Antequera, or make a long day of Seville or Málaga. Most of it needs a hire car.

Rabat is the easier city with children. The medina is calm, the tram is simple, the national zoo has open African enclosures and the gardens at Bouknadel give room to play, though the waves on the city beach need close watching.

Ronda appeals more to older children, who enjoy the bridge, the walk into the gorge and the caves nearby. Steep cobbles, exposed viewpoints and nothing built for children make it harder with small ones, and a country house with a pool works best.

Both are walkable at their core, but in different ways. Rabat's sights line the river on broad, flat streets, and a tram, cheap petit taxis and a central station cover the rest, so you never need a car.

Ronda is smaller and you cross it on foot in minutes, though the lanes down into La Ciudad are steep. Its slow buses and few trains are for arriving rather than exploring, and the countryside that makes the town worth the trip is reached by car.

Rabat gives a shopper much more to do. Rue des Consuls in the medina sells carpets, including the city's own deep-pile style, along with leather, brass and embroidery, the haggling is gentle, and Salé has pottery, while Agdal and the riverside mall cover everyday needs. Ronda has chain shops on Carrera Espinel and souvenirs near the bridge, and its best buys are things to eat and drink: wine, cured meats, olive oil and convent sweets.

Rabat is the cheaper of the two day to day. Medina meals, mint tea on café terraces, tram rides and taxis all cost little, and most sights charge almost nothing. The catch is where you sleep, since the capital has more business hotels than budget riads.

Ronda is good value for Spain, with set lunches in the Mercadillo and fairly priced rural houses. Rooms overlooking the gorge cost more, costs rise at Easter and during the fair, and most visitors also need a hire car.

Rabat has more to see on stage. It is home to national institutions such as the Mohammed V National Theatre and the Grand Theatre on the Bou Regreg, and it hosts the Mawazine festival on open-air stages around the city. At other times, Andalusian and chaabi music turns up at cultural centres.

In Ronda, performance mostly means flamenco in small venues for visitors and an occasional programme at the municipal theatre. Its one standout is the Corrida Goyesca, a bullfight in eighteenth-century costume held at the September fair.

Rabat has a bathing culture that is still part of daily life. You can go to a neighbourhood hammam in the medina or Salé, or to a hotel spa for an argan oil massage. It is also the calmest of Morocco's big cities, and the kasbah's Andalusian garden and the river walks slow the pace further.

In Ronda the Arab baths are for looking at, not bathing, and treatments are limited to a few hotel spas. Rest there comes from the countryside: a farmhouse with a pool among the olive groves, once the coach parties have left.