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Paris · January · sunshine

Sunniest places to go from Paris in January

The sunniest place you can reach from Paris in January within 15 hours is Arona at 9.9 h, costing 710 kg CO₂e return. The lowest-carbon option is Dieppe at 4.4 kg — 161× less carbon for 5.7 h less.

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

DieppeArona
Where they are. Solid lines are rail or ferry, dashed are flights, from Paris. Pick one to compare.
Carbon against sunshine, January, departing Paris. Journeys of up to 15 hours each way.11 destinations. Lowest carbon Dieppe at 4.4 kilograms and 4.2 h; best for sunshine Arona at 710 kilograms and 9.9 h. Dieppe · 4.4 kgErrachidia · 494 kgArona · 710 kg

By rail or ferry By air

Carbon against sunshine, January, departing Paris. Journeys of up to 15 hours each way.

What the 15-hour limit costs: at this budget Almería can only be reached by air — 350 kg CO₂e, in 5h 24m. Allow up to 24 hours and the train does the same journey for 41.1 kg in 21h — 9× less carbon for 15h 36m more travelling.

January from Paris — 11 destinations on the frontier, 7 without flying.
DestinationHowCO₂e returnTempSun/dayRain/dayJourney
Dieppe, FranceRail4.4 kg5.9 °C4.2 h2.8 mm4h 6m
Laval, FranceRail7.3 kg5.4 °C4.8 h2.9 mm5h 24m
Vannes, FranceRail11.8 kg6.8 °C5.3 h3.8 mm7h 30m
Sion, SwitzerlandRail14.0 kg3.3 °C5.9 h3.2 mm8h 30m
Alès, FranceRail16.0 kg5.5 °C6.5 h1.0 mm9h 24m
Nîmes, FranceRail17.1 kg6.9 °C7.0 h1.2 mm9h 54m
Olot, SpainRail21.9 kg6.5 °C7.7 h0.5 mm12h 12m
Santa Eulària des Riu, SpainAir277 kg12.7 °C8.5 h0.6 mm5h
Almería, SpainAir350 kg13.3 °C8.8 h0.2 mm5h 24m
Errachidia, MoroccoAir494 kg10.2 °C9.5 h0.1 mm6h 6m
Arona, SpainAir710 kg15.2 °C9.9 h0.3 mm7h 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 Errachidia (494 kg, 9.5 h) to Arona (710 kg, 9.9 h) buys 0.4 hours more sunshine for an extra 216 kg — 540 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

January answers differently depending on what you're after. The warmest destinations from Paris in January 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 Paris

January from elsewhere

Questions

Where is the sunniest place to go from Paris in January?

Arona, Spain, at 9.9 h. Reaching it emits 710 kg CO₂e return, travelling 7h 18m each way by air.

Can I get somewhere sunny from Paris in January without flying?

Yes. Olot reaches 7.7 h and is reachable by rail or ferry in 12h 12m, emitting 21.9 kg CO₂e return — though Arona is sunnier still, if you fly.

How much carbon does a return trip from Paris to Arona produce?

710 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.