Rome or Salerno?

Salerno is the better choice if you want to swim. Its own grey-sand beaches are a walk from the centre, the long sandy shore towards Paestum makes a full day by the sea, and a ferry takes you to the clear water off the Amalfi Coast's pebbly coves.

From Rome the sea means a suburban train to the volcanic sand at Ostia or Fregene, where the beaches are crowded, divided into lidos and the water is rarely clear. Swimming there is a break from the heat, not a reason to go.

Rome eats better, and in a style all its own: carbonara and cacio e pepe, Jewish-style artichokes in the Ghetto, Testaccio's offal dishes and pizza al taglio, with whole neighbourhoods of good trattorias once you leave the tourist menus around the big sights.

Salerno's strength is Campanian produce eaten close to the source. Buffalo mozzarella comes from the plain towards Paestum, colatura from Cetara, and seafood, wood-fired pizza and lemon pastries are the daily fare. It is honest and good rather than a reason to travel, though its local wines beat Rome's modest Frascati.

This is where the two are furthest apart. Rome holds ancient, Christian, Renaissance and Baroque layers in one centre, from the Pantheon and Palatine to Caravaggios in side chapels and the Sistine Chapel, and a week is not enough.

Salerno has a fine Norman cathedral with Saint Matthew's relics, the medicinal garden linked to Europe's first medical school and the Arechi Castle above the gulf, all covered in a day or two. Its great ancient sites, Paestum and Pompeii, are outside the city.

Rome offers more choice after dark. Trastevere's crowded wine bars, Monti's cocktail bars, student San Lorenzo and arty Pigneto give different kinds of evening, even if serious clubbing is limited.

Salerno's going out is concentrated in a few old-town squares around Largo Campo, plus the seafront passeggiata. It is friendly and relaxed, but anyone wanting a bigger night has to go to Naples.

Salerno sits at the edge of one of Europe's great coastlines, with limestone cliffs, terraced lemon groves, old mule tracks through the Lattari mountains and the wilder Cilento national park to the south. Boat trips and kayaking make summer days out.

Rome's green spaces are its villa parks and the Appian Way, a superb ride past tombs and aqueducts, with the crater lakes of the Alban Hills nearby. The Apennines, with hiking and some winter skiing, are about ninety minutes away and take more effort to reach.

Both are excellent bases, with different destinations. From Rome you reach Ostia Antica, Tivoli's Villa d'Este and Hadrian's Villa, Etruscan tombs, Orvieto and Civita di Bagnoregio, while fast trains bring Florence and Naples within easy reach.

Salerno's day trips are the ones Rome can only manage with a long day: Paestum's Greek temples and Pompeii are each about half an hour away, ferries cross to Amalfi and Positano, and Ravello, Herculaneum and Caserta are all straightforward outings.

Neither city is set up for children, and they suit families about equally. Rome has the Bioparco zoo, rowing boats in Villa Borghese and stories of gladiators and catacombs, but long queues, cobbles and traffic make sightseeing tiring.

Salerno has no zoo or theme park, but its flat, car-free seafront with playgrounds and the shallow sandy beaches to the south make easy days. Its steep, stepped old town and winding coast roads are the drawbacks.

Getting around is about equally easy in both, for different reasons. Rome's historic centre is a walking city, from the Colosseum to Piazza Navona and Trastevere, but its few metro lines skirt the core and buses get stuck in traffic.

Salerno is smaller, a walkable strip from station to seafront to old town, with direct regional trains to Naples, Pompeii and Paestum. Its real transport is the sea: in summer, ferries are far better than the crowded coastal buses for reaching Amalfi.

Rome is far better for shopping. The fashion houses on Via Condotti, Monti's independent designers and vintage shops, antique dealers around Via dei Coronari and the huge Porta Portese flea market cover every taste.

Salerno is mostly chain stores along Corso Vittorio Emanuele. Its best buys are local: Vietri's painted majolica, limoncello and Cetara's colatura. For more than that, locals go to Naples.

Salerno is the cheaper stay by some way. Hotels cost much less than in the Amalfi villages it serves as a base for, and food and local transport are priced for residents, though ferries and lido sunbeds add up in high summer.

In Rome the main cost is accommodation, with small, expensive rooms in the centre, plus substantial fees at the Vatican, Colosseum and Borghese. Standing espresso, pizza al taglio, free drinking fountains and churches full of art help keep daily costs down.

Rome has the deeper programme. The Teatro dell'Opera moves to the Baths of Caracalla in summer, the Santa Cecilia orchestra plays at Renzo Piano's Auditorium, which also hosts jazz and world music, and churches hold frequent concerts.

Salerno's performing arts centre on the gilded Teatro Verdi and its respectable season of opera and ballet. Its best special evening is a short trip away, at the Ravello Festival's cliff-top concerts.

Neither city is a place for a spa retreat, and the closest thermal water is out of town in both cases. From Rome, the Acque Albule pools at Bagni di Tivoli and the free hot springs around Viterbo are within reach. From Salerno, Contursi Terme is about an hour inland.

What differs is how each city lets you slow down. Rome offers the Aventine and the villa gardens away from the scooters. Salerno has its long palm-lined seafront, made for slow walks at sunset.