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Brussels · July · sunshine

Sunniest places to go from Brussels in July

In July, the sunniest well-known place within 15 hours of Brussels is Nice, France, 14.3 h of sun a day and 25.2 °C, about 10h each way by train. You can get there without flying, for 24.3 kg CO₂e return.

The 10 sunniest places within 15 hours of Brussels

Ranked on sunshine in July 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. Nice, France14.3 h · 25.2 °C · mostly dry · sea 25.4 °Crail ≈ 10h · 24.3 kg CO₂e return
  2. Bastia, France14.3 h · 27.5 °C · mostly dry · sea 26.2 °Cair ≈ 4h 48m · 248 kg CO₂e return
  3. Sofia, Bulgaria14.3 h · 24.6 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 5h 48m · 427 kg CO₂e return
  4. Ajaccio, France14.2 h · 26.1 °C · mostly dry · sea 25.1 °Cair ≈ 4h 54m · 264 kg CO₂e return
  5. Segovia, Spain14.2 h · 22.9 °C · mostly dryrail ≈ 14h 36m · 37.8 kg CO₂e return
  6. Ávila, Spain14.2 h · 22.7 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 5h 18m · 335 kg CO₂e return
  7. Sanremo, Italy14.2 h · 25.3 °C · mostly dry · sea 25.4 °Crail ≈ 11h 24m · 24.3 kg CO₂e return
  8. Visby, Sweden14.1 h · 17.5 °C · 2.2 mm rain a day · sea 16.9 °Cair ≈ 5h 6m · 296 kg CO₂e return
  9. Florence, Italy14.1 h · 26.7 °C · mostly dryrail ≈ 14h 6m · 27.8 kg CO₂e return
  10. Pristina, Kosovo14.1 h · 24.0 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 5h 36m · 394 kg CO₂e return

Without flying

The sunniest places the train reaches within 15 hours.

  1. Nice, France14.3 h · 25.2 °C · mostly dry · sea 25.4 °Crail ≈ 10h · 24.3 kg CO₂e return
  2. Segovia, Spain14.2 h · 22.9 °C · mostly dryrail ≈ 14h 36m · 37.8 kg CO₂e return
  3. Sanremo, Italy14.2 h · 25.3 °C · mostly dry · sea 25.4 °Crail ≈ 11h 24m · 24.3 kg CO₂e return
  4. Florence, Italy14.1 h · 26.7 °C · mostly dryrail ≈ 14h 6m · 27.8 kg CO₂e return
  5. Carrara, Italy14.1 h · 24.7 °C · mostly dry · sea 26.2 °Crail ≈ 13h 42m · 25.6 kg CO₂e return
  6. Madrid, Spain14.0 h · 28.1 °C · mostly dryrail ≈ 14h 36m · 38.8 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 Brussels in July within 15 hours is Aosta, 13.9 h, costing 18.0 kg CO₂e return. The lowest-carbon option is Arnhem at 4.9 kg — 4× less carbon, for 2.5 hours less sunshine.

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

ArnhemAosta
Where they are. Solid lines are rail or ferry, dashed are flights, from Brussels. Pick one to compare.
Carbon against sunshine, July, departing Brussels. Journeys of up to 15 hours each way.6 destinations. Lowest carbon Arnhem at 4.9 kilograms and 11.4 h; best for sunshine Aosta at 18.0 kilograms and 13.9 h. Arnhem · 4.9 kgHoorn · 6.1 kgMulhouse · 12.0 kgAosta · 18.0 kg

By rail or ferry By air

Carbon against sunshine, July, departing Brussels. Journeys of up to 15 hours each way.
July from Brussels — 6 destinations on the frontier, 6 without flying.
DestinationHowCO₂e returnTempSun/dayRain/dayJourney
Arnhem, The NetherlandsRail4.9 kg18.2 °C11.4 h3.6 mm4h 24m
Hoorn, The NetherlandsRail6.1 kg17.5 °C11.7 h3.8 mm4h 30m
Mulhouse, FranceRail12.0 kg20.7 °C12.2 h2.3 mm7h 54m
Geneva, SwitzerlandRail15.7 kg21.6 °C13.0 h3.2 mm7h 24m
Chambéry, FranceRail17.7 kg22.7 °C13.3 h4.7 mm8h 6m
Aosta, ItalyRail18.0 kg23.7 °C13.9 h2.3 mm10h

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.

The pick of them

The same month, asked differently

July 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 Aosta

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

Search places to stay in Aosta →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 Brussels

July from elsewhere

Photo credits

Questions

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

Aosta, Italy, at 13.9 h. Reaching it emits 18.0 kg CO₂e return, travelling 10h each way by rail (modelled).

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

Yes. Aosta reaches 13.9 h and is reachable by rail or ferry in 10h (modelled), emitting 18.0 kg CO₂e return — which is also the best on this frontier.

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

18.0 kg CO₂e for one person, return, by rail. 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.