Santa Fe or Sedona?

Neither town has a beach. In Santa Fe, swimming means a hotel pool, an hour's drive to Abiquiu Lake or a float on the Rio Grande, so getting in the water is a planned outing rather than a quick dip.

Sedona does better because Oak Creek runs close to town. The sandstone chute at Slide Rock and the deeper pools at Grasshopper Point and Red Rock Crossing make a cold, welcome break after a summer hike, though they fill up fast on hot weekends.

Santa Fe gives you a cuisine to explore, not just meals. New Mexican cooking, with red or green chile, blue corn, posole and carne adovada, is a tradition of its own. The Railyard farmers' market is among the oldest in the United States, and the town has a fine-dining tier that is unusual for its size.

In Sedona the view often matters more than what is on the plate: sunset tables on resort terraces, Southwestern menus and plenty for vegetarians. The Verde Valley tasting rooms nearby are its best card. Neither town offers much street food or international range.

The gap here is wide. Santa Fe was founded as a colonial capital in 1610, and its adobe Plaza, the Palace of the Governors and the Loretto and San Miguel chapels are history you walk through. Behind them stand Museum Hill's folk art and Native American collections and the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum.

Sedona has the Chapel of the Holy Cross built into its butte, a small heritage museum and the Sinagua cliff dwellings at Palatki and Honanki out in the backcountry. That fills an afternoon or two, while Santa Fe needs two or three full days.

Both towns go to bed early, but Santa Fe offers a little more after dinner. There are rooftop bars for a margarita or mezcal as the sun sets over the Jemez Mountains, a few breweries around the Railyard and a livelier Plaza on summer evenings.

Sedona's brewpubs, wine bars and resort lounges are for a single drink, and the real entertainment after dark is the clear night sky. For a proper night out, Santa Fe also has Albuquerque an hour's drive away.

Both sit in superb country, and Sedona's advantage is how close and how dramatic it is. Red sandstone buttes rise straight out of town, with Bell Rock and the walk up West Fork of Oak Creek close by. The slickrock singletrack is famous among mountain bikers, and the South Rim of the Grand Canyon is about two hours away.

Santa Fe's outdoors is more varied than spectacular. It has foothill trails into the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, golden aspens in autumn, the Pecos Wilderness and winter skiing less than an hour away, with Valles Caldera and the Rio Grande Gorge further out.

Santa Fe has the richer surroundings. The High Road to Taos runs through Chimayo and Truchas to Taos Pueblo, and Bandelier's cliff dwellings, Los Alamos, Pecos and O'Keeffe's Ghost Ranch would fill many days. Several living pueblos also welcome visitors on feast days.

Sedona's outings are good but smaller. The choice includes the hillside mining town of Jerome, Montezuma Castle and Tuzigoot, the Verde Canyon Railroad and Flagstaff, and a few days cover most of them.

Neither town is built for children, and both suit families who are happy outdoors more than those who need attractions. Santa Fe has a children's museum, the toys and miniatures in the folk art collection and the ladders at Bandelier, which work best for older children curious about history. The altitude can tire small ones for the first day or two.

Sedona keeps things simpler, with Slide Rock in summer, short trails around Bell Rock and jeep tours over the slickrock. Its hotels lean towards couples and spa guests.

You will want a car in both towns, but Santa Fe's centre works on foot. The Plaza, the cathedral, Canyon Road and the Railyard are a short walk apart, and the Rail Runner reaches Albuquerque.

In Sedona, Uptown is the only walkable pocket. The rest of the town stretches along two highways that meet at the Y, and weekend traffic and full trailhead car parks are part of a stay.

Both towns sell Western and Native American art, but Santa Fe is where serious buyers go. Its most distinctive purchase comes straight from the maker. Native silversmiths and potters lay out their work in the shade of the old palace on the Plaza, and strict rules on authenticity mean you know who made what you take home. Canyon Road and the Railyard add gallery after gallery, downtown dealers stock rugs, Pueblo pottery and cowboy boots, and in summer the Indian, Spanish and International Folk Art markets bring in buyers from across the country.

Sedona offers the same kind of work on a smaller scale, in the fountain courtyards of Tlaquepaque and the galleries along the main road. What it has that Santa Fe does not is its crystal and metaphysical shops, with stones, books and readings. Uptown is mostly souvenirs, and neither town suits a fashion trip. From Sedona, that means a drive to Phoenix.

Santa Fe leaves more room to keep costs down, even though it is no bargain. Rooms along Cerrillos Road cost less than those around the Plaza, and gallery browsing and walks through the old centre are free. A hire car still adds to the bill.

Sedona costs more again, with its resorts and boutique lodges, jeep tours and spa treatments. Budget travellers often sleep in Cottonwood or Flagstaff and drive in, since the trails themselves cost little beyond a parking pass.

Santa Fe is far ahead, especially in summer. The Santa Fe Opera then performs in its open-sided theatre as the sun sets over the desert, alongside a chamber music festival and the town's long flamenco tradition. The Lensic keeps a smaller programme going through the rest of the year.

Sedona offers occasional chamber concerts, local theatre and its film festival in late winter, plus flute players and acoustic sets in resorts and bars. It has no concert hall and no regular season.

Sedona is the retreat town of the two. Destination spas look out on the red canyons, yoga, meditation and breathwork sessions are easy to find, and quiet sunrise walks to the vortexes give a stay its rhythm, though treatments come at resort prices.

Santa Fe's strength is bathing, which Sedona lacks entirely. It has onsen-style outdoor tubs among the pines above town and the old mineral springs at Ojo Caliente an hour to the north. It also has plenty of spas and yoga studios for its size, but wellness is one theme among several here rather than the main reason to come.