Sunniest places to go from Edinburgh in February
The sunniest place you can reach from Edinburgh in February within 15 hours is Santa Cruz de Tenerife at 10.3 h, costing 812 kg CO₂e return. The lowest-carbon option is Sunderland at 13.1 kg — 62× less carbon for 5.5 h less.
Every destination here is on the efficiency frontier: nowhere else in Europe is both sunnier in February 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 Huesca can only be reached by air — 390 kg CO₂e, in 5h 36m. Allow up to 24 hours and the train does the same journey for 73.7 kg in 23h 36m — 5× less carbon for 18h more travelling.
| Destination | How | CO₂e return | Temp | Sun/day | Rain/day | Journey |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sunderland, United Kingdom | Rail | 13.1 kg | 6.8 °C | 4.8 h | 1.7 mm | 4h 12m |
| Skegness, United Kingdom | Rail | 31.1 kg | 7.4 °C | 5.3 h | 2.2 mm | 7h 18m |
| Strasbourg, France | Air | 278 kg | 5.9 °C | 5.8 h | 2.0 mm | 5h |
| Schaffhausen, Switzerland | Air | 308 kg | 4.0 °C | 6.6 h | 1.6 mm | 5h 6m |
| Fribourg, Switzerland | Air | 313 kg | 4.3 °C | 7.2 h | 1.4 mm | 5h 12m |
| Geneva, Switzerland | Air | 318 kg | 5.1 °C | 7.7 h | 1.5 mm | 5h 12m |
| Huesca, Spain | Air | 390 kg | 6.9 °C | 8.6 h | 1.9 mm | 5h 36m |
| Seville, Spain | Air | 522 kg | 12.8 °C | 9.1 h | 1.6 mm | 6h 18m |
| Errachidia, Morocco | Air | 672 kg | 10.6 °C | 9.7 h | 0.6 mm | 7h 6m |
| Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain | Air | 812 kg | 17.6 °C | 10.3 h | 0.9 mm | 7h 48m |
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 Skegness (31.1 kg, 5.3 h) to Strasbourg (278 kg, 5.8 h) buys 0.5 hours more sunshine for an extra 247 kg — 493 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
February answers differently depending on what you're after. The warmest destinations from Edinburgh in February are a different list — hours of sunshine and degrees of warmth come apart, especially early and late in the year.
Where to stay in Santa Cruz de Tenerife
Places to stay in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, 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 Edinburgh
February 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 Edinburgh in February?
Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain, at 10.3 h. Reaching it emits 812 kg CO₂e return, travelling 7h 48m each way by air.
Can I get somewhere sunny from Edinburgh in February without flying?
Yes. Skegness reaches 5.3 h and is reachable by rail or ferry in 7h 18m, emitting 31.1 kg CO₂e return — though Santa Cruz de Tenerife is sunnier still, if you fly.
How much carbon does a return trip from Edinburgh to Santa Cruz de Tenerife produce?
812 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.