The family favourite is Punta Rata, in Brela, Forbes magazine’s Best Beach in Europe 2004. Nearby Bratus is a well-kept secret even in August, while Zlatni Rat, in Bol, is famous for its windsurfing. Then there are the out-of-the-way spots. On Lopud, tiny Sunj is the Dubrovnik getaway par excellence; and from Vis, where numberless beaches are washed by seas clear to 100ft, you can swim in Bisevo’s Blue Cave as it fluoresces turquoise at midday. Magic.

History and culture: Dalmatia is no stranger to tourism. Its very name comes from the Dalmati, prehistoric Illyrians who brought with them peka cooking and jewellery designs that are still in use today. The ancient Greeks liked it so much, they emigrated in the 4th century BC, followed by the Romans, who on Vis left the trappings of a city considered by Julius Caesar to be the most distinguished in the area.

But the clincher is not the stuff of dusty museums — rather the swoony Italianate architecture. Dubrovnik, for example — Croatia’s flawless, brilliantly crafted crown jewel. Or Korcula town: where in the Cyclades can compare with this pocket-sized Dubrovnik — the alleged birthplace of Marco Polo, with a treasury of old masters to its name? Or Hvar town, a honey-hued city in miniature, the golden child of the Venetian Adriatic, its Renaissance looks as ritzy as its modern visitors? I rest my case.

James Stewart

• James Stewart is the author of Croatia (Cadogan £12.99)
  
  
  
  Turn to page two to read Dana Facaros' case for Greece
  
  ()Dana Facaros' case for Greece
  
  Croatia is gorgeous, but the Greek islands are sunnier, sexier and way more fun. Let’s just take the classics, the two dozen Cyclades, in the heart of the Aegean — for which the word “archipelago” was invented (meaning “chief sea”, it was used to describe the Aegean islands).
  
  The Cyclades are small, arid and naturally air-conditioned in summer by the meltemi wind, but what sets them apart, even from all other Greek islands, is their pure, sun-soaked lucidity — the same luminosity that long ago inspired the Big Bang of western civilisation. Their skies are bluer than blue. Their rugged contours and sugar-cube villages stand in razor-sharp focus. Their nights blaze like Tiffany’s windows. Just being there makes you feel tinglingly alive.
  
  As individuals, the Cyclades come in all flavours — hip and hedonistic (Mykonos), quiet and traditional (Anafi) or simply spectacular (Santorini), with every nuance in between. They are exceptionally user-friendly: the distances between them are short, connections frequent.
  
  And, being Greek, they soundly thump Croatia when it comes to atmosphere: friendly, informal, light-hearted, opinionated, full of Zorba-ish zest and eccentricity, they are places where you don’t feel like a tourist so much as a guest at a big house party.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Top tables: creamy yoghurt and thyme honey, grilled octopus and ouzo, spontaneous midnight music and dancing in a seaside taverna — these are old Greek-island pleasures.
  
  With the freshest seafood, free-range meats, sun-ripened fruit and vegetables, the Greeks helped to invent Mediterranean cuisine — but for years you had to wangle an invitation into someone’s home to taste it properly prepared. Tavernas stuck to chops, spuds and salads.
  
  No longer: the Greeks have discovered food with a capital F. Traditional (even ancient) Greek recipes are being updated with élan; Middle Eastern, North African and Asian influences are wowing taste buds. Eating out in Hellas has never been better.
  
  Star chefs hold court on Santorini (most famously at Koukoumavlos) and Mykonos, but islands with less bling aren’t far behind. Just follow the locals — to places such as Stou Lefteri, a superb traditional taverna hidden in the mountain village of Apiranthos on Naxos.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  Rated rooms: Cycladic hotels have the cool white minimalism of Cycladic villages. On Santorini, however, some of the finest are literally over the top — of the yawning volcanic caldera. All share vertiginous views, but Katikies (www.katikies.com) has an infinity pool and an ultra-romantic restaurant on the brink; doubles start at £330 in high season.
  
  On Mykonos, similar rates buy laid-back glamour at the Belvedere (www.belvederehotel.com), at the top of Chora. But you don’t need deep pockets: on most islands, the same price buys an entire week.
  
  
  
  I love the atmospheric Castro (www.hotel-castro.com), in a 15th-century house on Folegandros; rooms 5 and 15 have Santorini-like sea views and cost £60 in high season.
  
  Seaside complexes such as the Aloni (www.aloniparos.com), at Piso Livadi beach, on Paros, are perfect for families; four can share a room for £65. And there are always the island-hoppers’ standbys, family-rented rooms, many upscaled and starting at £15.
  
  
  
  
  
  Super sands: Greece has more Blue Flag beaches than Croatia — more than any other country in Europe, actually. Where did Luc Besson film The Big Blue? Croatia? No, the Cycladic island of Amorgos. Beaches tend to be sandy, soft and laid-back, with tavernas that make it easy to spend the day in utter laziness — but if you want to be alone, a hike or a boat will get you to a cove of your own.
  
  Sifnos has the longest stretch of sand on the Cyclades, while the more exposed beaches on Paros and Naxos offer world-class windsurfing. The latter’s close neighbours, tiny Koufonisi and the equally dinky Schinoussa, are slated to be the next cult beach destinations. Go celebrity glam on the paradise beaches of Mykonos, or seek out unique places to swim, such as Sarakiniko on Milos — a white moonscape bathed in turquoise.
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  History and culture: Croatia is a whippersnapper compared with the Cyclades, which by 3000BC had their own civilisation, famous for stylised white-marble idols that any contemporary gallery would be proud to possess. Skip ahead 1,500 years and on Santorini you can wander through a Bronze Age Pompeii — a sophisticated, urbane Minoan colony excavated from the tufa.
  
  The Cyclades are steeped in myth. Danae and Perseus were on Serifos. Sacred Delos, birthplace of Apollo, is a unique island-wide archeological site. Naxos, where Dionysos frolicked, has ancient temples and enormous kouros statues, abandoned at the quarries 2,500 years ago.
  
  Throughout a history visited by Byzantines, Venetians and Turks, the islanders never lost their sense of style. Their cubist towns are self-taught masterpieces on a human scale, including the one Cycladic “city”, Ermoupolis, on Syros — a blizzard of white draped over twin peaks. It’s like no other place on earth.
  
  
  
  
  
• Dana Facaros is the author of Greek Islands (Cadogan £12.99)
  
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