Sunniest places to go from Cardiff in October
The sunniest place you can reach from Cardiff in October within 15 hours is Arona at 10.7 h, costing 713 kg CO₂e return. The lowest-carbon option is Reading at 12.3 kg — 58× less carbon for 4.6 h less.
Every destination here is on the efficiency frontier: nowhere else in Europe is both sunnier in October and lower in carbon. Anything a better option beats outright has been left out.
By rail or ferry By air
What the 15-hour limit costs: at this budget Marseille can only be reached by air — 280 kg CO₂e, in 5h. Allow up to 24 hours and the train does the same journey for 46.6 kg in 18h 36m — 6× less carbon for 13h 36m more travelling.
| Destination | How | CO₂e return | Temp | Sun/day | Rain/day | Journey |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading, United Kingdom | Rail | 12.3 kg | 12.3 °C | 6.1 h | 3.1 mm | 4h 6m |
| Portsmouth, United Kingdom | Rail | 13.2 kg | 13.6 °C | 6.7 h | 4.3 mm | 4h 12m |
| La Rochelle, France | Rail | 34.7 kg | 16.0 °C | 7.2 h | 7.3 mm | 13h 6m |
| Vichy, France | Rail | 36.2 kg | 15.0 °C | 7.9 h | 2.8 mm | 13h 48m |
| Marseille, France | Air | 280 kg | 18.2 °C | 9.0 h | 2.2 mm | 5h |
| Granollers, Spain | Air | 295 kg | 18.6 °C | 9.1 h | 2.4 mm | 5h 6m |
| Palma, Spain | Air | 352 kg | 21.1 °C | 9.9 h | 1.4 mm | 5h 24m |
| Essaouira, Morocco | Air | 575 kg | 21.4 °C | 10.2 h | 1.0 mm | 6h 30m |
| Arona, Spain | Air | 713 kg | 20.9 °C | 10.7 h | 0.4 mm | 7h 18m |
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 Palma (352 kg, 9.9 h) to Essaouira (575 kg, 10.2 h) buys 0.3 hours more sunshine for an extra 223 kg — 743 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
October answers differently depending on what you're after. The warmest destinations from Cardiff in October are a different list — hours of sunshine and degrees of warmth come apart, especially early and late in the year.
Where to stay in Arona
Places to stay in Arona, Spain, 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 Cardiff
October from elsewhere
- Amsterdam
- Barcelona
- Berlin
- Birmingham
- Bristol
- Brussels
- Cardiff
- Copenhagen
- Dublin
- Edinburgh
- Frankfurt
- Glasgow
- Leeds
- Lisbon
- Liverpool
- London
- Madrid
- Manchester
- Milan
- Munich
- Newcastle
- Nottingham
- Oslo
- Paris
- Prague
- Rome
- Sheffield
- Southampton
- Stockholm
- Vienna
- Warsaw
- Zurich
Questions
Where is the sunniest place to go from Cardiff in October?
Arona, Spain, at 10.7 h. Reaching it emits 713 kg CO₂e return, travelling 7h 18m each way by air.
Can I get somewhere sunny from Cardiff in October without flying?
Yes. Vichy reaches 7.9 h and is reachable by rail or ferry in 13h 48m, emitting 36.2 kg CO₂e return — though Arona is sunnier still, if you fly.
How much carbon does a return trip from Cardiff to Arona produce?
713 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.