San Jose, Costa Rica or Tamarindo?

Tamarindo is a beach town first and last. It has a long golden bay with soft waves for surf lessons, calmer Langosta next door, wild Playa Grande across the estuary and clearer water for snorkelling at Conchal. Watch for rip currents and for the crocodiles at the river mouth.

San Jose has no coast at all. The Pacific at Jaco or Puntarenas is roughly two hours away by road, so swimming in the city means a hotel pool, and most visitors who want a beach pass through on their way to places like Tamarindo.

Neither is a place to travel for food, and both rest on the same base of sodas serving casados. San Jose adds the lunch counters of the Mercado Central, highland coffee close to where it is grown and the restaurant and craft beer strip of Barrio Escalante.

Tamarindo eats in a more international way, aimed at visitors: fish tacos, poke bowls, wood-fired pizza and ceviche from the day's catch. It has less local depth and no market life.

San Jose has the only cultural sights of the two: the gilded Teatro Nacional, the Pre-Columbian Gold Museum beneath the Plaza de la Cultura, the Jade Museum and the National Museum inside the bullet-marked Bellavista fortress. That is a day or two's worth, not more.

Tamarindo has nothing comparable. It grew from a fishing village into a surf strip, and anyone after heritage has to drive inland to the older towns of the Nicoya Peninsula.

Both are good for a few nights out rather than a scene, but the nights are different. San Jose's are local and Latin: salsa and merengue at the El Pueblo complex, craft beer in Escalante and student bars in San Pedro. You get between them by taxi, because downtown empties after dark.

Tamarindo is a small beach party town, with sunset drinks on the sand, open-air bars along the main road and a big night that moves between venues with reggaeton and electronic music, all within a few walkable blocks.

Both make strong bases for the outdoors, but they point in opposite directions. From San Jose you head up into the highlands: the craters of Poas and Irazu, cloud forest in Braulio Carrillo, waterfalls around Orosi and some of the best rafting in the Americas on the Pacuare.

Tamarindo's outdoors is at sea level. There are surf breaks for every level, diving at the Catalinas Islands, crocodiles and howler monkeys in the estuary mangroves and leatherback turtles nesting at Playa Grande. Rincon de la Vieja's volcanic landscape is about two hours inland.

San Jose has the longer list, a ring of coffee towns within easy reach. There are Cartago's basilica and church ruins, the colonial church in the Orosi valley, the orchids at Lankester, the painted oxcarts of Sarchi and farm tours on Barva and Poas. None is unmissable, but together they fill several days.

From Tamarindo the outings are mostly into nature. Trips to towns run out after the potters of Guaitil, Nicoya's old church and a change of beach at Nosara or Playas del Coco, on roads that slow down in the rain.

Tamarindo is the easier choice with children. The gentle waves suit children's surf lessons, mangrove boat trips and night-time turtle visits go down well, and staying at quieter Langosta or Playa Grande keeps families away from the noise.

San Jose has the Museo de los Ninos and the lawns of La Sabana, but broken pavements and heavy traffic make the city tiring. Its best family days, at volcano craters and waterfall gardens, are outside the city and need a car.

Neither is easy without your own transport, though the problems differ. San Jose is a city with no metro, confusing private buses and traffic that clogs the valley, so visitors rely on taxis and ride-hailing.

Tamarindo is small enough to walk, often along the sand, with golf carts and scooters for quick trips to Langosta. Getting anywhere else is the hard part: buses are slow and roads rough, so you need shuttles or a four-wheel drive.

San Jose is the better place to shop, though not a stylish one. The Mercado Central and the craft market are good for browsing coffee, leather, Boruca masks and oxcart miniatures, and the Escazu malls cover clothes.

Tamarindo has little beyond surf gear, swimwear and souvenir stands, and its Guaitil pottery is better bought in the village itself.

San Jose is the cheaper base. Soda meals, buses and taxis cost little and hotels are noticeably cheaper than on the coast, though restaurants in Escalante and park fees for foreigners are no bargain.

Tamarindo is a resort town in Central America's most expensive country, with rooms, meals and tours close to North American levels and transport costs that add up. Hostels, surf camps and sodas help, and the wet season is quieter.

San Jose has a real stage, if a modest one. The National Symphony Orchestra and ballet perform at the Teatro Nacional, folk and dance shows at the Melico Salazar, and there is Spanish-language drama in small theatres and salsa bands in the dance halls.

Tamarindo offers acoustic sets in beach bars and fire dancers on the sand, and Guanacaste folk music turns up mainly at festivals in Santa Cruz.

Tamarindo is the better place to unwind. It has daily yoga classes, retreats combining surf and yoga, massage everywhere from beach tables to resort spas, and slow days of swims and hammocks at Langosta and Playa Grande. The main strip is noisy, so choose where you stay carefully.

San Jose is a working capital with little beyond hotel spas and a mild climate. To rest, you leave the city for a lodge in the hills above Escazu or among the coffee farms on the volcano slopes.