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Southampton · September · sunshine

Sunniest places to go from Southampton in September

In September, the sunniest well-known place within 15 hours of Southampton is Alexandria, Egypt, 11.9 h of sun a day and 27.4 °C, about 8h each way by air. Without flying, it is Marseille, France, 10.7 h of sun a day, about 11h 36m each way by train, for about 22× less carbon (38.5 kg CO₂e return against 849 kg).

The 10 sunniest places within 15 hours of Southampton

Ranked on sunshine in September 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. Alexandria, Egypt11.9 h · 27.4 °C · mostly dry · sea 28.7 °Cair ≈ 8h · 849 kg CO₂e return
  2. Marmaris, Turkey11.8 h · 26.5 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 7h 18m · 708 kg CO₂e return
  3. Fethiye, Turkey11.8 h · 26.0 °C · 1.6 mm rain a day · sea 27.7 °Cair ≈ 7h 24m · 726 kg CO₂e return
  4. Bodrum, Turkey11.8 h · 26.2 °C · mostly dry · sea 26.0 °Cair ≈ 7h 12m · 691 kg CO₂e return
  5. Rhodes, Greece11.8 h · 27.0 °C · mostly dry · sea 27.4 °Cair ≈ 7h 18m · 716 kg CO₂e return
  6. Damietta, Egypt11.7 h · 27.2 °C · mostly dry · sea 28.8 °Cair ≈ 8h 6m · 874 kg CO₂e return
  7. Al Fayyum, Egypt11.7 h · 30.3 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 8h 18m · 904 kg CO₂e return
  8. Limassol, Cyprus11.6 h · 26.6 °C · mostly dry · sea 27.4 °Cair ≈ 7h 54m · 829 kg CO₂e return
  9. Amman, Jordan11.6 h · 24.9 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 8h 24m · 931 kg CO₂e return
  10. Heraklion, Greece11.6 h · 24.0 °C · mostly dry · sea 25.9 °Cair ≈ 7h 12m · 689 kg CO₂e return

Without flying

The sunniest places the train reaches within 15 hours. Marseille is 10.7 h for 38.5 kg — about 22× less carbon than flying to Alexandria.

  1. Marseille, France10.7 h · 20.6 °C · 2.2 mm rain a day · sea 22.9 °Crail ≈ 11h 36m · 38.5 kg CO₂e return
  2. Toulon, France10.6 h · 21.3 °C · 2.1 mm rain a day · sea 23.3 °Crail ≈ 12h 24m · 39.6 kg CO₂e return
  3. Montpellier, France10.3 h · 20.1 °C · 3.4 mm rain a dayrail ≈ 11h 54m · 36.3 kg CO₂e return
  4. Avignon, France10.3 h · 20.1 °C · 3.1 mm rain a dayrail ≈ 11h 12m · 36.0 kg CO₂e return
  5. Hamburg, Germany10.1 h · 16.8 °C · 2.0 mm rain a dayrail ≈ 14h 48m · 30.2 kg CO₂e return
  6. Eisenach, Germany10.1 h · 16.7 °C · 2.1 mm rain a dayrail ≈ 13h 42m · 30.5 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 Southampton in September within 15 hours is Izmir, 11.6 h, costing 660 kg CO₂e return. The lowest-carbon option is Exeter at 12.1 kg — 55× less carbon, for 3.9 hours less sunshine.

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

ExeterIzmir
Where they are. Solid lines are rail or ferry, dashed are flights, from Southampton. Pick one to compare.
Carbon against sunshine, September, departing Southampton. Journeys of up to 15 hours each way.8 destinations. Lowest carbon Exeter at 12.1 kilograms and 7.7 h; best for sunshine Izmir at 660 kilograms and 11.6 h. Exeter · 12.1 kgTomelloso · 330 kgIzmir · 660 kg

By rail or ferry By air

Carbon against sunshine, September, departing Southampton. Journeys of up to 15 hours each way.
September from Southampton — 8 destinations on the frontier, 6 without flying.
DestinationHowCO₂e returnTempSun/dayRain/dayJourney
Exeter, United KingdomRail12.1 kg15.4 °C7.7 h4.6 mm3h 42m
Chelmsford, United KingdomRail12.8 kg16.4 °C8.5 h2.7 mm3h 48m
Dunkirk, FranceRail14.3 kg17.3 °C8.8 h3.0 mm7h 42m
Goes, The NetherlandsRail17.2 kg17.5 °C9.3 h3.1 mm8h 54m
Düsseldorf, GermanyRail23.1 kg17.5 °C9.9 h2.7 mm10h 30m
Avignon, FranceRail36.0 kg20.1 °C10.3 h3.1 mm11h 12m
Tomelloso, SpainAir330 kg21.3 °C11.1 h1.4 mm5h 12m
Izmir, TurkeyAir660 kg24.9 °C11.6 h1.0 mm7h

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 Tomelloso (330 kg, 11.1 h) to Izmir (660 kg, 11.6 h) buys 0.5 hours more sunshine for an extra 330 kg — 661 kg of CO₂e per hour. That single step is the most expensive sunshine on the whole curve.

The pick of them

Exeter, United KingdomExeterUnited Kingdom12.1 kg CO₂e return15.4 °C · 7.7 h sun · 3h 42m by railwarm but wetAvignon, FranceAvignonFrance36.0 kg CO₂e return20.1 °C · 10.3 h sun · 11h 12m by railwarm but wetIzmir, TurkeyIzmirTurkey660 kg CO₂e return24.9 °C · 11.6 h sun · 7h by airwarm, bright and dry

The same month, asked differently

September 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 Izmir

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

Search places to stay in Izmir →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 Southampton

September from elsewhere

Photo credits

Questions

Where is the sunniest place to go from Southampton in September?

Izmir, Turkey, at 11.6 h. Reaching it emits 660 kg CO₂e return, travelling 7h each way by air (modelled).

Can I get somewhere sunny from Southampton in September without flying?

Yes. Avignon reaches 10.3 h and is reachable by rail or ferry in 11h 12m (modelled), emitting 36.0 kg CO₂e return — though Izmir is sunnier still, if you fly.

How much carbon does a return trip from Southampton to Izmir produce?

660 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.