Sunniest places to go from Madrid in October
The sunniest place you can reach from Madrid in October within 15 hours is Arona at 10.7 h, costing 456 kg CO₂e return. The lowest-carbon option is Tomelloso at 4.5 kg — 101× less carbon for 2.2 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
| Destination | How | CO₂e return | Temp | Sun/day | Rain/day | Journey |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tomelloso, Spain | Rail | 4.5 kg | 17.3 °C | 8.5 h | 2.1 mm | 4h 6m |
| Úbeda, Spain | Rail | 7.9 kg | 16.8 °C | 9.0 h | 4.0 mm | 5h 42m |
| Alicante, Spain | Rail | 10.6 kg | 21.5 °C | 9.6 h | 1.9 mm | 6h 54m |
| Ouarzazate, Morocco | Air | 275 kg | 20.2 °C | 10.2 h | 0.3 mm | 5h |
| Arona, Spain | Air | 456 kg | 20.9 °C | 10.7 h | 0.4 mm | 5h 54m |
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 Alicante (10.6 kg, 9.6 h) to Ouarzazate (275 kg, 10.2 h) buys 0.6 hours more sunshine for an extra 265 kg — 441 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 Madrid 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 Madrid
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 Madrid in October?
Arona, Spain, at 10.7 h. Reaching it emits 456 kg CO₂e return, travelling 5h 54m each way by air.
Can I get somewhere sunny from Madrid in October without flying?
Yes. Alicante reaches 9.6 h and is reachable by rail or ferry in 6h 54m, emitting 10.6 kg CO₂e return — though Arona is sunnier still, if you fly.
How much carbon does a return trip from Madrid to Arona produce?
456 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.