Stuttgart or Munich?

Neither city is a beach destination, but Munich gives a swimmer far more to work with. In town, people sunbathe on the gravel banks of the Isar at the Flaucher in summer. The Starnberger See and the Ammersee are under an hour away by S-Bahn, with jetties, lawns and clear, fresh alpine water.

In Stuttgart, the Neckar is a working river with barges, and the Max-Eyth-See is for boating, not bathing. Swimming there means outdoor pools, some fed by mineral springs, and the nearest proper swimming lake, Lake Constance, is more than two hours away.

Both cities serve hearty regional cooking of a similar standard, and the real difference is what you drink. Munich is a beer city: Helles in huge brewery halls and shady gardens, with roast pork, white sausage and pretzels, and the Viktualienmarkt for snacks.

Stuttgart is wine country. Trollinger and Riesling come from vineyards inside the city limits, growers open seasonal Besen taverns in their own houses, and the Swabian dishes are Maultaschen and Käsespätzle. Its Art Nouveau Markthalle matches Munich's market for browsing, and both cities have a solid fine-dining tier but a fairly narrow international range.

Munich is the richer city for sights, and its strength is royal collections. The Kunstareal alone, with the Alte Pinakothek, the Glyptothek and the Lenbachhaus, could fill several days. The Residenz, Nymphenburg Palace and the Deutsches Museum add palaces and science on a grand scale.

Stuttgart's sights come from industry and modern design: the Mercedes-Benz and Porsche museums, the Staatsgalerie and the Le Corbusier houses of the Weissenhof Estate. Wartime bombing hit both old towns, but Stuttgart's heritage is patchier, and two or three days covers the essentials.

Munich offers more of a night out, even if many evenings never leave the beer garden. The Glockenbachviertel and Gärtnerplatz area has the most cocktail bars and gay bars, Schwabing has student pubs, and a few serious techno clubs stay open until morning at weekends.

In Stuttgart, nights out centre on the bar strip along Theodor-Heuss-Strasse, with clubs in basements scattered round the centre and wine bars in the Bohnenviertel. Each city has a huge autumn beer festival, the Oktoberfest and the Cannstatter Volksfest, but outside those weeks Stuttgart goes quiet earlier.

Munich has the clear edge because the Alps are so close. Within about an hour you are in real mountain country around Garmisch-Partenkirchen and the Zugspitze, with hiking in summer and skiing in winter. In town, the English Garden and the cycle paths along the Isar give plenty of green space.

Stuttgart's countryside is gentler but starts closer to the centre. Vineyard trails and deer forests begin at the edge of its basin, and the cliffs and caves of the Swabian Jura and the northern Black Forest are about an hour away. There is plenty for walkers and cyclists, but no high peaks.

Both are excellent bases, with Munich slightly ahead for range. Salzburg and Innsbruck put Austria within easy reach, Nuremberg and Regensburg add medieval towns, and Neuschwanstein and the island palace of Herrenchiemsee are the classic royal outings.

Stuttgart's list leans towards university towns, abbeys and castles. Heidelberg is about forty minutes away by fast train, and Tübingen, Maulbronn and the palace at Ludwigsburg are close by. Hohenzollern Castle and Ulm's spire are further out, and Strasbourg makes a long day across the French border.

Both cities are safe and easy with children, but Munich has more to fill a longer stay. Hellabrunn zoo on the Isar meadows, the hands-on sections of the Deutsches Museum, the Sea Life aquarium and summer days at the lakes all help, and the flat streets are easy with a pushchair.

Stuttgart's highlight is Wilhelma, a zoo and botanical garden among Moorish-style pavilions. Killesberg park with its little railway and the fairy-tale garden at Ludwigsburg make good follow-ups. Outside the flat centre, though, the steep hills make pushing a buggy hard work.

Munich is the easier city to get around. Its old town is flat and largely pedestrianised, and the U-Bahn, S-Bahn and trams reach the museums, the palaces and the lakes. Long riverside routes make cycling a pleasure, and delays on the central S-Bahn line are the main complaint.

Stuttgart's centre is just as walkable, but the city climbs steeply out of its basin. Beyond Königstrasse you rely on the Stadtbahn, a rack railway and a funicular, or you climb the long public stairways known as Stäffele.

Munich makes the better shopping trip. Maximilianstrasse holds the luxury houses, and Dallmayr, a delicatessen trading for centuries, is worth a visit in its own right. Bavarian Tracht from specialist tailors is the purchase that is truly local, and in December the Christmas markets fill the old town with craft stalls.

Stuttgart is more about brands. There is the long Königstrasse, the old Breuninger department store for designer fashion, and the outlet town of Metzingen about half an hour away. Independent shops and markets are modest by comparison.

Neither city is cheap, but Munich is the more expensive. It is the dearest city in Germany, with hotel rooms expensive all year and more so during the Oktoberfest and trade fairs. Beer-garden picnics, free parks and lakes, and token museum fees on Sundays help keep costs down.

Stuttgart is easier on a budget. Its hotels depend on business travel, so they get noticeably cheaper at weekends and in quieter months, and tavern meals give good value for the portions. Smart restaurants and central hotels are where the money goes in both.

Both cities take their stages seriously, and Munich has the greater depth. The Bavarian State Opera in the National Theatre is one of the world's leading companies. Three orchestras of real standing play in halls such as the Herkulessaal and the Prinzregententheater, and the gilded Cuvilliés Theatre stages chamber opera.

Stuttgart's pride is its ballet, one of Europe's most respected companies since John Cranko's time, which shares the state theatre with an opera company known for bold productions. With the Bach tradition at the Liederhalle and long-running musicals at Möhringen, it makes a fine night out, but ballet tickets need booking early.

The two are well matched, and both have a real bathing culture of different kinds. In Munich it is about the setting and the size: the Art Nouveau Müller'sches Volksbad, public saunas with infusion rituals, and the large thermal complex at Erding about forty minutes away. Slow afternoons in a beer garden complete the picture.

Stuttgart's baths draw on its own mineral springs. At the Mineralbad Cannstatt and the Mineralbad Leuze you can soak indoors and out in naturally carbonated warm water, which Munich cannot match. The city's businesslike pace makes this an afternoon soak rather than a spa retreat.