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Brussels · December · sunshine

Sunniest places to go from Brussels in December

The sunniest place you can reach from Brussels in December within 15 hours is Aswan at 10.1 h, costing 901 kg CO₂e return. The lowest-carbon option is Düren at 4.4 kg — 205× less carbon for 7.3 h less.

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

DürenAswan
Where they are. Solid lines are rail or ferry, dashed are flights, from Brussels. Pick one to compare.
Carbon against sunshine, December, departing Brussels. Journeys of up to 15 hours each way.13 destinations. Lowest carbon Düren at 4.4 kilograms and 2.8 h; best for sunshine Aswan at 901 kilograms and 10.1 h. Düren · 4.4 kgBouarfa · 529 kgAswan · 901 kg

By rail or ferry By air

Carbon against sunshine, December, departing Brussels. Journeys of up to 15 hours each way.

What the 15-hour limit costs: at this budget Tortosa can only be reached by air — 290 kg CO₂e, in 5h. Allow up to 24 hours and the train does the same journey for 34.1 kg in 17h 48m — 9× less carbon for 12h 48m more travelling.

December from Brussels — 13 destinations on the frontier, 8 without flying.
DestinationHowCO₂e returnTempSun/dayRain/dayJourney
Düren, GermanyRail4.4 kg5.4 °C2.8 h2.5 mm4h 6m
Strasbourg, FranceRail10.4 kg4.1 °C3.3 h3.5 mm6h 48m
Mulhouse, FranceRail12.0 kg4.3 °C3.8 h3.0 mm7h 36m
Geneva, SwitzerlandRail15.7 kg3.3 °C5.0 h4.9 mm9h 18m
Sion, SwitzerlandRail16.5 kg3.7 °C5.2 h7.0 mm9h 42m
Aosta, ItalyRail18.0 kg5.3 °C6.0 h4.4 mm10h 18m
Turin, ItalyRail20.3 kg3.0 °C6.6 h0.8 mm11h 24m
Marseille, FranceRail24.9 kg9.0 °C7.5 h1.1 mm13h 30m
Tortosa, SpainAir290 kg11.0 °C7.9 h0.4 mm5h
Palma, SpainAir317 kg12.4 °C8.3 h0.6 mm5h 12m
Almería, SpainAir415 kg13.5 °C8.9 h0.2 mm5h 42m
Bouarfa, MoroccoAir529 kg8.7 °C9.6 h0.0 mm6h 18m
Aswan, EgyptAir901 kg18.7 °C10.1 h0.0 mm8h 36m

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 Bouarfa (529 kg, 9.6 h) to Aswan (901 kg, 10.1 h) buys 0.5 hours more sunshine for an extra 373 kg — 746 kg of CO₂e per hour. That single step is the most expensive sunshine on the whole curve.

The pick of them

If you'd rather have heat than sunshine

December answers differently depending on what you're after. The warmest destinations from Brussels in December are a different list — hours of sunshine and degrees of warmth come apart, especially early and late in the year.

Where to stay in Aswan

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

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 Brussels

December from elsewhere

Questions

Where is the sunniest place to go from Brussels in December?

Aswan, Egypt, at 10.1 h. Reaching it emits 901 kg CO₂e return, travelling 8h 36m each way by air.

Can I get somewhere sunny from Brussels in December without flying?

Yes. Marseille reaches 7.5 h and is reachable by rail or ferry in 13h 30m, emitting 24.9 kg CO₂e return — though Aswan is sunnier still, if you fly.

How much carbon does a return trip from Brussels to Aswan produce?

901 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.