0xCarbon
Amsterdam · September · sunshine

Sunniest places to go from Amsterdam in September

In September, the sunniest well-known place within 15 hours of Amsterdam is Alexandria, Egypt, 11.9 h of sun a day and 27.4 °C, about 7h 36m each way by air. Without flying, it is Marseille, France, 10.7 h of sun a day, about 9h 18m each way by train, for about 26× less carbon (29.8 kg CO₂e return against 781 kg).

The 10 sunniest places within 15 hours of Amsterdam

Ranked on sunshine in September alone, among well-known places (a Wikivoyage travel guide and at least 40,000 Wikipedia readers a year), one per area and at most three per country. The carbon is shown, not used to choose: the list further down is the other question, how much sunshine each extra kilogram buys.

  1. Alexandria, Egypt11.9 h · 27.4 °C · mostly dry · sea 28.7 °Cair ≈ 7h 36m · 781 kg CO₂e return
  2. Marmaris, Turkey11.8 h · 26.5 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 6h 48m · 631 kg CO₂e return
  3. Fethiye, Turkey11.8 h · 26.0 °C · 1.6 mm rain a day · sea 27.7 °Cair ≈ 6h 54m · 648 kg CO₂e return
  4. Bodrum, Turkey11.8 h · 26.2 °C · mostly dry · sea 26.0 °Cair ≈ 6h 48m · 615 kg CO₂e return
  5. Rhodes, Greece11.8 h · 27.0 °C · mostly dry · sea 27.4 °Cair ≈ 6h 54m · 640 kg CO₂e return
  6. Damietta, Egypt11.7 h · 27.2 °C · mostly dry · sea 28.8 °Cair ≈ 7h 48m · 802 kg CO₂e return
  7. Al Fayyum, Egypt11.7 h · 30.3 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 7h 54m · 838 kg CO₂e return
  8. Limassol, Cyprus11.6 h · 26.6 °C · mostly dry · sea 27.4 °Cair ≈ 7h 30m · 747 kg CO₂e return
  9. Amman, Jordan11.6 h · 24.9 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 8h · 849 kg CO₂e return
  10. Heraklion, Greece11.6 h · 24.0 °C · mostly dry · sea 25.9 °Cair ≈ 6h 48m · 623 kg CO₂e return

Without flying

The sunniest places the train reaches within 15 hours. Marseille is 10.7 h for 29.8 kg — about 26× less carbon than flying to Alexandria.

  1. Marseille, France10.7 h · 20.6 °C · 2.2 mm rain a day · sea 22.9 °Crail ≈ 9h 18m · 29.8 kg CO₂e return
  2. Toulon, France10.6 h · 21.3 °C · 2.1 mm rain a day · sea 23.3 °Crail ≈ 10h 6m · 30.4 kg CO₂e return
  3. Lleida, Spain10.5 h · 21.7 °C · 2.3 mm rain a dayrail ≈ 14h 42m · 36.6 kg CO₂e return
  4. Zaragoza, Spain10.4 h · 20.8 °C · 2.2 mm rain a dayrail ≈ 14h 24m · 37.4 kg CO₂e return
  5. Nice, France10.3 h · 21.2 °C · 3.3 mm rain a day · sea 24.2 °Crail ≈ 11h 54m · 28.9 kg CO₂e return
  6. Avignon, France10.3 h · 20.1 °C · 3.1 mm rain a dayrail ≈ 8h 54m · 27.6 kg CO₂e return

≈ is the model's estimate (air times include getting to and through the airport); ✓ is a rail journey checked against a real timetable, with the date it was checked. Temperatures are historical daily means for 2023–2024, averaged across day and night, so afternoons run warmer.

The low-carbon trade-off

The sunniest place you can reach from Amsterdam in September within 15 hours is Granada, 11.5 h, costing 456 kg CO₂e return. The lowest-carbon option is Duisburg at 4.9 kg — 93× less carbon, for 1.6 hours less sunshine.

Every destination here is on the efficiency frontier: nowhere else this site covers is both sunnier in September and lower in carbon. Anything a better option beats outright has been left out.

DuisburgGranada
Where they are. Solid lines are rail or ferry, dashed are flights, from Amsterdam. Pick one to compare.
Carbon against sunshine, September, departing Amsterdam. Journeys of up to 15 hours each way.5 destinations. Lowest carbon Duisburg at 4.9 kilograms and 9.9 h; best for sunshine Granada at 456 kilograms and 11.5 h. Duisburg · 4.9 kgAix-en-Provence · 29.1 kgCagliari · 377 kgGranada · 456 kg

By rail or ferry By air

Carbon against sunshine, September, departing Amsterdam. Journeys of up to 15 hours each way.

What the 15-hour limit costs: at this budget Granada can only be reached by air — 456 kg CO₂e, in 5h 54m. Allow up to 24 hours and the train does the same journey for 53.5 kg in 20h 54m — 9× less carbon for 15h more travelling.

September from Amsterdam — 5 destinations on the frontier, 3 without flying.
DestinationHowCO₂e returnTempSun/dayRain/dayJourney
Duisburg, GermanyRail4.9 kg17.4 °C9.9 h3.3 mm4h 24m
Wilhelmshaven, GermanyRail7.4 kg16.8 °C10.0 h2.3 mm5h 36m
Aix-en-Provence, FranceRail29.1 kg19.3 °C10.8 h2.1 mm10h 18m
Cagliari, ItalyAir377 kg23.6 °C11.0 h0.8 mm5h 30m
Granada, SpainAir456 kg21.6 °C11.5 h0.9 mm5h 54m

Warm is not the same as pleasant, which is why sunshine and rainfall are shown alongside temperature. All three are ERA5 monthly means for 2023–2024.

Where the curve breaks

The frontier is gentle until it isn't. Going from Aix-en-Provence (29.1 kg, 10.8 h) to Cagliari (377 kg, 11.0 h) buys 0.2 hours more sunshine for an extra 348 kg — 1738 kg of CO₂e per hour. That single step is the most expensive sunshine on the whole curve.

The pick of them

DuisburgGermany4.9 kg CO₂e return17.4 °C · 9.9 h sun · 4h 24m by railwarm but wetAix-en-ProvenceFrance29.1 kg CO₂e return19.3 °C · 10.8 h sun · 10h 18m by railwarm overallGranadaSpain456 kg CO₂e return21.6 °C · 11.5 h sun · 5h 54m by airwarm, bright and dry

The same month, asked differently

September answers differently depending on what you are after, and the lists genuinely diverge: the brightest places are not the hottest, and in summer the useful question stops being where is warm at all.

Where to stay in Granada

Places to stay in Granada, Spain, on a live map. Prices and availability come from Stay22 and its booking partners.

Search places to stay in Granada →Opens the booking search in a new tab. Same partners as the map below.

Affiliate disclosure. A booking made through this map may earn 0xCarbon a commission, at no extra cost to you. It changes nothing above it: the emissions figures come from UK Government conversion factors and are computed before anyone is paid anything.See the method.

Other months from Amsterdam

September from elsewhere

Photo credits

Questions

Where is the sunniest place to go from Amsterdam in September?

Granada, Spain, at 11.5 h. Reaching it emits 456 kg CO₂e return, travelling 5h 54m each way by air (modelled).

Can I get somewhere sunny from Amsterdam in September without flying?

Yes. Aix-en-Provence reaches 10.8 h and is reachable by rail or ferry in 10h 18m (modelled), emitting 29.1 kg CO₂e return — though Granada is sunnier still, if you fly.

How much carbon does a return trip from Amsterdam to Granada produce?

456 kg CO₂e for one person, return, by air. That uses the UK Government's 2026 conversion factors, including radiative forcing for flights.

Carbon uses UK Government (DESNZ/DEFRA) 2026 conversion factors applied to great-circle distance, with radiative forcing included for flights. Rail journey times are modelled estimates, not timetabled services. Full method · download the data.