Go Barsana for cultural depth. Go Vrindavan for pure energy. They are not comparable they are two different experiences entirely.
Barsana's Lathmar Holi happens eight days before the main festival. Women from Barsana beat men from Nandgaon with sticks while everyone plays colour and sings traditional Braj folk songs. The crowd is large but manageable. The atmosphere is raw, traditional, and completely unscripted. Nothing about it feels like a tourist event.
Vrindavan on the actual Holi day is a sensory flood colour, flowers, drums, and thousands of people at Banke Bihari temple in a celebration that has run unbroken for centuries. If it is your first Holi, this is where you go.
The best decision is both. Barsana on Lathmar day, Vrindavan on Holi day. Many Delhi groups do exactly this back-to-back trip and the most practical way to do it is a tempo traveller on rent in Delhi one vehicle, two days, two towns, no logistical headache.
