Sunniest places to go from London in December
The sunniest place you can reach from London in December within 15 hours is Luxor at 10.0 h, costing 932 kg CO₂e return. The lowest-carbon option is Calais at 4.5 kg — 207× less carbon for 7.1 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.
By rail or ferry By air
What the 15-hour limit costs: at this budget Barcelona can only be reached by air — 286 kg CO₂e, in 5h. Allow up to 24 hours and the train does the same journey for 33.6 kg in 17h 36m — 9× less carbon for 12h 36m more travelling.
| Destination | How | CO₂e return | Temp | Sun/day | Rain/day | Journey |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calais, France | Rail | 4.5 kg | 7.8 °C | 2.9 h | 2.8 mm | 4h 6m |
| Caen, France | Rail | 7.6 kg | 7.9 °C | 3.4 h | 2.3 mm | 5h 30m |
| Rennes, France | Rail | 11.6 kg | 7.8 °C | 4.0 h | 1.9 mm | 7h 24m |
| Saint-Nazaire, France | Rail | 14.6 kg | 9.0 °C | 4.5 h | 2.5 mm | 8h 48m |
| Geneva, Switzerland | Rail | 22.1 kg | 3.3 °C | 5.0 h | 4.9 mm | 12h 12m |
| Romans-sur-Isère, France | Rail | 24.0 kg | 4.7 °C | 5.5 h | 3.0 mm | 13h 6m |
| Montélimar, France | Rail | 25.2 kg | 6.4 °C | 6.2 h | 1.6 mm | 13h 42m |
| Avignon, France | Rail | 27.1 kg | 6.9 °C | 6.8 h | 1.0 mm | 14h 36m |
| Arles, France | Rail | 27.8 kg | 7.7 °C | 7.2 h | 0.7 mm | 14h 54m |
| Barcelona, Spain | Air | 286 kg | 9.7 °C | 7.7 h | 0.6 mm | 5h |
| Alicante, Spain | Air | 368 kg | 13.3 °C | 8.5 h | 0.2 mm | 5h 30m |
| Melilla, Spain | Air | 457 kg | 15.2 °C | 8.9 h | 0.4 mm | 5h 54m |
| Bouarfa, Morocco | Air | 532 kg | 8.7 °C | 9.6 h | 0.0 mm | 6h 18m |
| Luxor, Egypt | Air | 932 kg | 18.0 °C | 10.0 h | 0.0 mm | 8h 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 Bouarfa (532 kg, 9.6 h) to Luxor (932 kg, 10.0 h) buys 0.4 hours more sunshine for an extra 400 kg — 1000 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 London 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 Luxor
Places to stay in Luxor, 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 London
December 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 London in December?
Luxor, Egypt, at 10.0 h. Reaching it emits 932 kg CO₂e return, travelling 8h 48m each way by air.
Can I get somewhere sunny from London in December without flying?
Yes. Arles reaches 7.2 h and is reachable by rail or ferry in 14h 54m, emitting 27.8 kg CO₂e return — though Luxor is sunnier still, if you fly.
How much carbon does a return trip from London to Luxor produce?
932 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.