Sarajevo or Zadar?

This is where the two differ most. Sarajevo sits in an inland valley about three hours from the Adriatic, so swimming means a cold mountain river, the lake at Jablanica or a pool.

In Zadar a swim is part of every summer day. People step into clear water straight off the stone promenade or at Kolovare and Borik, though these are pebble and concrete rather than sand. Nin's shallow sandy beaches and pale Sakarun on Dugi Otok are the better spots for a full day on the sand.

Both cuisines are narrow and neither does much international cooking, but Sarajevo's is the more distinctive and the more satisfying to travel for. The Baščaršija grills turning out ćevapi in somun, pita bakeries selling burek by weight, slow dishes such as begova čorba, and the long ritual of Bosnian coffee with rahat lokum give a stay real flavour.

Zadar eats well from the sea, with grilled fish, black risotto, octopus under the peka, and Pag cheese with Maraschino to finish. The menus on the peninsula tend to repeat one another, though, so the morning market by the walls is often more memorable than dinner.

Sarajevo has more to say. Ottoman Baščaršija and the Gazi Husrev-beg Mosque lead into Austro-Hungarian streets with Orthodox and Catholic cathedrals and the Old Synagogue. The Latin Bridge recalls 1914, and the Tunnel of Hope and the War Childhood Museum tell the story of the siege. Few places pack so much emotional weight into so small a centre.

Zadar's history is older and calmer: the open Roman forum, round St Donatus, the Venetian walls and a fine Museum of Ancient Glass. The Sea Organ adds a modern touch, but two days covers it all.

Neither city is wild, but Sarajevo has a slight edge because its evenings run all year. Café-bars fill from the afternoon, and students keep cellar bars and small clubs open past midnight at weekends, with cheap drinks and plenty of rakija.

Zadar's going out is seasonal: sunset at the Sea Organ, then terrace bars on the walls and along Kalelarga. Serious clubbing means a trip to Zrće on Pag in high summer, and from October the town goes quiet.

Both are excellent bases for the outdoors, but in different ways. Sarajevo is all mountains. A cable car climbs from the Old Town to Trebević and the old Olympic bobsleigh track, Jahorina and Bjelašnica offer winter skiing and summer ridge walks, and a trail leads to the stone village of Lukomir above the Rakitnica canyon.

Zadar combines mountains with sea. Paklenica's gorges suit climbers, while sailing in the Kornati, the waterfalls at Krka and kayaking along the islands add a dimension that Sarajevo lacks. Summer heat is Zadar's drawback, and winter smog in the valley is Sarajevo's.

Sarajevo's great day out is Mostar, about two hours south on a lovely train through the Neretva gorge, with Konjic and Tito's Cold War bunker along the way. Blagaj's dervish house and the fortress village of Počitelj lie a little beyond Mostar and round off the day well. Travnik and the bridge at Višegrad are rewarding too, but the roads are slow and winding.

Zadar has the wider and easier choice. Medieval Nin is twenty minutes away, hillside Šibenik and its cathedral about an hour south, and Split and Trogir around an hour and a half down the coast by motorway. Ferries from the harbour add island villages such as car-free Silba.

Zadar is the easier place with children. The old town is flat and car-free, the waterfront suits pushchairs and scooters, and the Sea Organ and the tiles that light up at night delight most children. Nin's shallow sand and short ferry rides fill the rest of the days.

Sarajevo has its own small treats, including the cable car, carriage rides to Vrelo Bosne and a little zoo that Zadar lacks. But its main sights deal with war, its hillsides are steep, and smoke and winter smog are hard on small lungs.

Getting around is about equally easy in both, though in different ways. Sarajevo's long valley is served by its old tram line, which runs from Baščaršija to Ilidža, and taxis are cheap. Away from that corridor, the buses and the steep stepped slopes are harder work.

Zadar is mostly walking: you can cross the peninsula in a quarter of an hour, and ferries leave from the edge of the old town. The local buses are basic, and in both cities the outlying sights call for a car or a tour.

Sarajevo gives shoppers more to explore. On Kazandžiluk you can hear coppersmiths hammering coffee sets, and the Bezistan and nearby lanes sell kilims, slippers and filigree, though much of it is souvenir stock.

Zadar's best buys are things to eat and drink, such as Maraschino, Pag cheese, olive oil and figs, along with Pag lace. Kalelarga is pleasant for a stroll, but neither city has much local design or luxury.

Sarajevo is far cheaper. Grills, bakeries, coffee, trams, taxis and museum entry all cost little, and good central guesthouses are well below Western European rates, with only the summer film festival pushing prices up a little.

Zadar costs about as much as a mid-range Western European city. Apartments are good value outside July and August, but high-summer rooms on the peninsula, restaurants on the main streets, national park tickets and boat trips soon mount up.

Sarajevo has the fuller stage life. The National Theatre stages opera and ballet, the Philharmonic gives regular concerts, and the MESS theatre festival in autumn and the November jazz festival are worth timing a trip around. You may also hear sevdah in traditional restaurants.

Zadar's great moment is the summer series of early music inside St Donatus, with klapa singing in the squares nearby. Outside July and August there is very little on.

Sarajevo has a slight edge thanks to Ilidža, where thermal springs used since Roman times feed a spa at the end of the tram line, with the quiet avenue of Vrelo Bosne nearby. Winter smog can make the city feel less restful.

Zadar has no real spa tradition beyond the hotels at Borik and the mud lagoon at Nin. Its kind of rest is slow mornings in cafés and sunsets over the islands from the Sea Organ steps.