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Nottingham · August · sunshine

Sunniest places to go from Nottingham in August

In August, the sunniest well-known place within 15 hours of Nottingham is Ankara, Turkey, 13.2 h of sun a day and 26.5 °C, about 7h 24m each way by air. Without flying, it is Marseille, France, 12.7 h of sun a day, about 12h each way by train, for about 17× less carbon (43.7 kg CO₂e return against 740 kg).

The 10 sunniest places within 15 hours of Nottingham

Ranked on sunshine in August 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. Ankara, Turkey13.2 h · 26.5 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 7h 24m · 740 kg CO₂e return
  2. Cosenza, Italy13.0 h · 25.4 °C · 1.2 mm rain a day · sea 28.3 °Cair ≈ 6h 12m · 507 kg CO₂e return
  3. Catanzaro, Italy13.0 h · 26.7 °C · mostly dry · sea 27.7 °Cair ≈ 6h 18m · 521 kg CO₂e return
  4. Mytilene, Greece13.0 h · 28.5 °C · mostly dry · sea 25.0 °Cair ≈ 7h · 656 kg CO₂e return
  5. Konya, Turkey13.0 h · 26.7 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 7h 36m · 773 kg CO₂e return
  6. Izmir, Turkey13.0 h · 29.2 °C · mostly dry · sea 25.8 °Cair ≈ 7h 6m · 679 kg CO₂e return
  7. Potenza, Italy13.0 h · 23.3 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 6h · 471 kg CO₂e return
  8. Athens, Greece12.9 h · 28.7 °C · mostly dry · sea 27.7 °Cair ≈ 6h 54m · 637 kg CO₂e return
  9. Korçë, Albania12.9 h · 22.1 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 6h 24m · 540 kg CO₂e return
  10. Pristina, Kosovo12.9 h · 23.4 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 6h 12m · 505 kg CO₂e return

Without flying

The sunniest places the train reaches within 15 hours. Marseille is 12.7 h for 43.7 kg — about 17× less carbon than flying to Ankara.

  1. Marseille, France12.7 h · 24.5 °C · mostly dry · sea 22.8 °Crail ≈ 12h · 43.7 kg CO₂e return
  2. Toulon, France12.6 h · 26.0 °C · 1.2 mm rain a day · sea 24.2 °Crail ≈ 12h 48m · 44.7 kg CO₂e return
  3. Montpellier, France12.6 h · 25.5 °C · mostly dryrail ≈ 12h 18m · 41.5 kg CO₂e return
  4. Avignon, France12.6 h · 25.6 °C · 1.3 mm rain a dayrail ≈ 11h 36m · 41.2 kg CO₂e return
  5. Turin, Italy12.2 h · 25.3 °C · 3.1 mm rain a dayrail ≈ 14h 36m · 41.2 kg CO₂e return
  6. Geneva, Switzerland11.8 h · 22.5 °C · 1.9 mm rain a dayrail ≈ 12h · 36.1 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 Nottingham in August within 15 hours is Guarda, 13.0 h, costing 366 kg CO₂e return. The lowest-carbon option is Stroud at 12.2 kg — 30× less carbon, for 3.7 hours less sunshine.

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

StroudGuarda
Where they are. Solid lines are rail or ferry, dashed are flights, from Nottingham. Pick one to compare.
Carbon against sunshine, August, departing Nottingham. Journeys of up to 15 hours each way.7 destinations. Lowest carbon Stroud at 12.2 kilograms and 9.3 h; best for sunshine Guarda at 366 kilograms and 13.0 h. Stroud · 12.2 kgNîmes · 41.1 kgGuarda · 366 kg

By rail or ferry By air

Carbon against sunshine, August, departing Nottingham. Journeys of up to 15 hours each way.

What the 15-hour limit costs: at this budget Guarda can only be reached by air — 366 kg CO₂e, in 5h 24m. Allow up to 24 hours and the train does the same journey for 53.5 kg in 22h 24m — 7× less carbon for 17h more travelling.

August from Nottingham — 7 destinations on the frontier, 6 without flying.
DestinationHowCO₂e returnTempSun/dayRain/dayJourney
Stroud, United KingdomRail12.2 kg16.1 °C9.3 h2.0 mm3h 42m
Hoddesdon, United KingdomRail12.3 kg17.7 °C10.2 h1.6 mm3h 42m
Norwich, United KingdomRail13.6 kg17.6 °C11.0 h2.0 mm3h 54m
Margate, United KingdomRail19.8 kg18.4 °C11.4 h2.4 mm5h
La Rochelle, FranceRail31.8 kg20.5 °C12.0 h1.9 mm12h 42m
Nîmes, FranceRail41.1 kg25.8 °C12.7 h0.8 mm11h 54m
Guarda, PortugalAir366 kg21.6 °C13.0 h0.0 mm5h 24m

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 Nîmes (41.1 kg, 12.7 h) to Guarda (366 kg, 13.0 h) buys 0.3 hours more sunshine for an extra 325 kg — 1084 kg of CO₂e per hour. That single step is the most expensive sunshine on the whole curve.

The pick of them

Stroud, United KingdomStroudUnited Kingdom12.2 kg CO₂e return16.1 °C · 9.3 h sun · 3h 42m by railwarm overallNîmes, FranceNîmesFrance41.1 kg CO₂e return25.8 °C · 12.7 h sun · 11h 54m by railwarm, bright and dryGuarda, PortugalGuardaPortugal366 kg CO₂e return21.6 °C · 13.0 h sun · 5h 24m by airwarm, bright and dry

The same month, asked differently

August 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 Guarda

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

Search places to stay in Guarda →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 Nottingham

August from elsewhere

Photo credits

Questions

Where is the sunniest place to go from Nottingham in August?

Guarda, Portugal, at 13.0 h. Reaching it emits 366 kg CO₂e return, travelling 5h 24m each way by air (modelled).

Can I get somewhere sunny from Nottingham in August without flying?

Yes. Nîmes reaches 12.7 h and is reachable by rail or ferry in 11h 54m (modelled), emitting 41.1 kg CO₂e return — though Guarda is sunnier still, if you fly.

How much carbon does a return trip from Nottingham to Guarda produce?

366 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.