St. Petersburg, Florida or West Palm Beach?

Both are serious beach destinations, but the seas are different. St. Petersburg's Gulf beaches at St. Pete Beach, Pass-a-Grille and the wilder Fort De Soto have wide white sand and calm, shallow water. They are ideal from late spring to autumn, but in midwinter the water is too cool for more than a paddle.

West Palm Beach looks out on the Atlantic, with soft sand at Midtown Beach and quieter, broader stretches on Singer Island and at Juno. The Gulf Stream keeps the water swimmable through the winter, and Peanut Island's sheltered lagoon adds snorkelling. In both cities downtown faces sheltered water, so a beach day starts with a short trip over a bridge.

On the plate the two are much alike: easy-going Florida seafood such as grouper and stone crab claws, pleasant but not worth a trip on its own. The difference is in the setting. St. Petersburg is casual, with fish shacks in Pass-a-Grille and modern kitchens along Central Avenue. Its many craft breweries are its strongest suit, and Tampa's Cuban cooking is close by.

West Palm Beach is dressier, with waterfront terraces on Clematis Street and formal, clubby dining rooms across the bridge in Palm Beach. Its Haitian and Caribbean bakeries and lunch counters away from the centre add a flavour St. Petersburg doesn't have.

St. Petersburg has the stronger set of museums. The Dalí Museum is worth the trip on its own, and the Museum of Fine Arts, the Chihuly glass and the Arts and Crafts collection are all a short walk away on the downtown waterfront. Murals in the Central Arts District fill the streets between them.

West Palm Beach has the Norton Museum and Flagler's marble Whitehall, both rewarding. Beyond those, its sightseeing is mostly an afternoon admiring the Mediterranean Revival villas and hedged estates of Palm Beach from the street.

Neither is a clubbing town, but St. Petersburg offers more of a night out. Central Avenue has cocktail bars, rooftops and brewery taprooms within walking distance of each other, and the beach tiki bars start the evening at sunset. For something louder, Ybor City is just across the bay.

In West Palm Beach, going out means a few blocks of Clematis Street and Rosemary Square. They are busy at weekends and quiet the rest of the week, especially in summer. Palm Beach itself goes to bed early, and a big night means heading down to Miami.

The two share the same flat, hot, watery landscape, and in both the best of it is on the water. St. Petersburg is the place for paddling. Kayak trails through the mangroves of Weedon Island and Shell Key bring dolphins, rays and winter manatees, and the Pinellas Trail suits a long bike ride.

West Palm Beach is better for getting under the water. The Gulf Stream reefs are a short boat ride offshore, and the shore dive under the Blue Heron Bridge is one of the best known in the country. Inland it adds Everglades boardwalks with alligators at Grassy Waters and Loxahatchee, and to the north are the sea turtle nesting beaches.

There are about as many outings from each, but they take different forms. St. Petersburg offers several varied ones: the cigar-factory streets of Ybor City, the Ringling's mansion and circus museum in Sarasota, the Greek sponge docks of Tarpon Springs, and Orlando as a long day.

From West Palm Beach the one big outing is Miami, an easy ride on the fast train for South Beach, Little Havana and Wynwood. Otherwise it is a chain of coastal towns, from Delray Beach with its Japanese gardens and Boca Raton's pink Mizner buildings to Jupiter's red lighthouse.

Both suit a family beach vacation with small children, with gentle water and resorts and condos set up for families. St. Petersburg leans towards big days out: Busch Gardens' roller coasters and the Florida Aquarium across the bay, the rescued dolphins and sea turtles of the Clearwater Marine Aquarium to the north, and Orlando's theme parks close enough for a long day or a split stay.

West Palm Beach keeps its outings closer to home, with the drive-through Lion Country Safari, the Palm Beach Zoo, the science centre and aquarium, and the free Manatee Lagoon in winter. Orlando's parks are a long drive away, further than from St. Petersburg. In both places a car and an early start in summer are part of the routine.

Both have a compact, walkable downtown with a trolley loop, and both become car country once you head further out. The useful difference is rail. West Palm Beach has fast trains to Fort Lauderdale and Miami, so its biggest day trip needs no car, and you can cycle over the bridges to Palm Beach's Lake Trail.

St. Petersburg has no such rail link. It does have a rapid bus to St. Pete Beach, the busiest stretch of sand, and the long Pinellas Trail makes cycling a real way to get about in the cooler months.

This is where West Palm Beach pulls well ahead. Worth Avenue in Palm Beach has the luxury fashion and jewellery houses, its tiled vias are a pleasure to wander, and nearby consignment shops resell the island's designer clothes. On the mainland, Antique Row and the brand-name shops of Rosemary Square add more choice.

St. Petersburg has small independent shops instead: vintage clothes, records, and local glass and prints along Central Avenue and in the Grand Central District, plus the winter Saturday Morning Market. For big brands you drive to Tampa's malls.

Neither is cheap, but St. Petersburg is easier on the budget. Its hotels charge the most from February to April and less in summer, and staying downtown or inland rather than on the sand saves more.

West Palm Beach is one of the most expensive stretches of the coast. Palm Beach rooms are at the very top, rates are high even downtown through the winter, and restaurants are priced for a well-off crowd. In both, the beaches and waterfronts are free, a hire car is close to essential, and summer is the cheaper season.

Both have a modest, reliable stage scene. The difference is how much is on in town. West Palm Beach's Kravis Center brings Broadway tours, dance and the Palm Beach Opera to downtown, and Palm Beach Dramaworks stages serious plays, though the programme thins out in summer.

In St. Petersburg the Mahaffey Theater hosts the Florida Orchestra, and a regional theatre company, a former church used for concerts and an open-air courtyard for indie bands fill out the rest. For opera, ballet and the biggest tours you cross to Tampa. Live music in bars is more common in St. Petersburg.

Neither has a spa culture of its own, and both relax you mainly through their slow pace. St. Petersburg's ritual is watching the sunset over the Gulf and strolling the sleepy streets of Pass-a-Grille, and its spas are mostly in the historic beach hotels.

West Palm Beach has more resort polish, with large oceanfront spas and the quiet, manicured streets of Palm Beach. Its promenades along both sides of the lagoon are good for an early walk before the heat.