Sedona or Scottsdale?

Neither place has a coast, but Sedona has the more memorable water. Its swimming is natural: riding the sandstone chute at Slide Rock and cooling off in the creek pools under the red cliffs at Grasshopper Point and Red Rock Crossing, cold and crowded on hot weekends.

In Scottsdale, swimming mostly means the resort pool. For open water you drive out to the coves at Saguaro and Canyon Lakes or join the summer tubing crowds on the Salt River.

Scottsdale has the deeper food scene. Old Town's steakhouses, sushi bars, brunches and happy hours give plenty of choice, Sonoran Mexican cooking is all around the metro area, and Phoenix's best tables are close by.

Sedona's choice runs out after a few good kitchens. What it offers is a view with dinner, Southwestern plates, plenty for vegetarians and a hearty breakfast before a hike. Both have nearby wine country, and Sedona's is closer, in the Verde Valley tasting rooms just down the road.

Scottsdale has more to see indoors. Taliesin West, Frank Lloyd Wright's desert studio and part of his UNESCO listing, is the main draw, and the Museum of the West and the contemporary art museum add to it. The Heard Museum and the Musical Instrument Museum are a short drive away.

Sedona's sights are fewer and mostly outdoors. The Chapel of the Holy Cross, set into a butte, and the Sinagua cliff dwellings at Palatki and Honanki are the high points, along with a small heritage museum and many galleries.

This is the biggest gap between the two. Scottsdale's Old Town has a few blocks of sports bars, clubs and rooftop lounges that get loud and dressy on weekends and in spring, with quieter cocktail and wine bars around the edges.

Sedona has no real night out. A brewpub or resort lounge after dinner is about all there is, and the town goes to bed early so people can hit the trails at dawn. Stargazing is the main evening activity.

Scottsdale's McDowell Sonoran Preserve, with its saguaros, boulders and climbs like Camelback and Pinnacle Peak, is excellent for a city. Sedona is in a different league, though. Red rock buttes and spires rise straight from the edge of town, with trails to Cathedral Rock, Bell Rock and Boynton Canyon, slickrock riding that mountain bikers travel for, and the pine forest of Oak Creek Canyon to the north.

Sedona's higher altitude also makes summer walking a little easier, though early starts are still needed.

The two share a region, and Sedona is in fact Scottsdale's best day trip, about two hours north. From Scottsdale the range is wider in distance: Tucson and the San Xavier mission to the south, Goldfield ghost town close in, and Phoenix and Tempe next door.

From Sedona, the outings are shorter and closer together. Jerome, Montezuma Castle, Tuzigoot, the Verde Canyon Railroad and Flagstaff are all within an hour, and the Grand Canyon becomes a realistic day out rather than an overnight trip.

Scottsdale is easier with children. Resorts with lazy rivers and kids' clubs, the miniature trains at McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park, the OdySea Aquarium, Butterfly Wonderland and the Phoenix Zoo can fill several days.

Sedona suits older children who enjoy being outdoors. They will love Slide Rock, gentle paths around Bell Rock and the jeep tours, but there are no attractions built for children, and many hotels are aimed at couples.

You need a car in both. Scottsdale is a long grid of wide roads with easy parking, plus a free trolley linking Old Town and the shopping areas.

Sedona is smaller but more crowded at peak times. Traffic builds around the Y junction on weekends, trailhead car parks fill early, and a shuttle serves only some trails. Most visitors fly into Phoenix and drive up.

Scottsdale is the real shopping destination. A luxury mall holds the big fashion houses and department stores, and Old Town's Main Street and Marshall Way galleries trade in high-quality turquoise, Pueblo pottery and western boots.

Sedona's shopping is narrower but has its own character. You will find the courtyard galleries of Tlaquepaque, Native American crafts along the main road and a lot of crystal and metaphysical shops. For clothes, people drive to Phoenix.

Neither is cheap, but Scottsdale gives you more ways to save. Summer resort rates drop sharply, motels and business hotels line the main roads, and inexpensive Mexican food is easy to find across the metro area.

Sedona stays expensive in its busy spring and autumn seasons, and tours, balloon flights and treatments add up quickly. Most trails need only a parking pass, and budget travellers often sleep in Cottonwood or Flagstaff and drive in.

Scottsdale can fill several evenings. The Old Town performing arts centre hosts jazz, dance and comedy, the Musical Instrument Museum's theatre puts on world music, and Phoenix's symphony, opera and ballet are about half an hour away.

Sedona has occasional events rather than a season: some chamber concerts, local theatre and the long-running film festival in late winter, plus acoustic and flute sets in resort bars.

Both are strong for rest, and the difference lies in the kind of rest. Scottsdale offers polished resort spas, pools and a gentle routine of golf, long lunches and early nights.

Sedona leans more spiritual. Yoga, meditation, breathwork and alternative therapies sit alongside its canyon-view spas, and sunrise walks to the vortexes are part of a stay. That makes it the better retreat. Neither town has thermal baths, and in both, pampering comes at resort prices.