0xCarbon
Zurich · February · sunshine

Sunniest places to go from Zurich in February

In February, the sunniest well-known place within 15 hours of Zurich is Maspalomas, Spain, 10.4 h of sun a day and 18.8 °C, about 7h 30m each way by air. Without flying, it is Huesca, Spain, 8.6 h of sun a day, about 14h 30m each way by train, for about 28× less carbon (27.0 kg CO₂e return against 760 kg).

The 10 sunniest places within 15 hours of Zurich

Ranked on sunshine in February 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. Maspalomas, Spain10.4 h · 18.8 °C · mostly dry · sea 20.4 °Cair ≈ 7h 30m · 760 kg CO₂e return
  2. Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain10.3 h · 17.6 °C · mostly dry · sea 20.5 °Cair ≈ 7h 30m · 755 kg CO₂e return
  3. Aswan, Egypt10.3 h · 17.7 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 8h · 847 kg CO₂e return
  4. Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain10.1 h · 18.0 °C · 1.5 mm rain a day · sea 20.3 °Cair ≈ 7h 30m · 750 kg CO₂e return
  5. Luxor, Egypt10.1 h · 17.2 °C · mostly dryair ≈ 7h 48m · 806 kg CO₂e return
  6. Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt10.0 h · 18.6 °C · mostly dry · sea 23.0 °Cair ≈ 7h 36m · 782 kg CO₂e return
  7. Aqaba, Jordan9.8 h · 16.4 °C · mostly dry · sea 22.1 °Cair ≈ 7h 30m · 758 kg CO₂e return
  8. Funchal, Portugal9.5 h · 14.6 °C · 2.2 mm rain a day · sea 19.6 °Cair ≈ 7h 6m · 678 kg CO₂e return
  9. Fethiye, Turkey9.5 h · 10.7 °C · 1.6 mm rain a day · sea 18.2 °Cair ≈ 6h 18m · 520 kg CO₂e return
  10. Rhodes, Greece9.5 h · 13.4 °C · mostly dry · sea 18.0 °Cair ≈ 6h 12m · 509 kg CO₂e return

Without flying

The sunniest places the train reaches within 15 hours. Huesca is 8.6 h for 27.0 kg — about 28× less carbon than flying to Maspalomas.

  1. Huesca, Spain8.6 h · 6.9 °C · 1.9 mm rain a dayrail ≈ 14h 30m · 27.0 kg CO₂e return
  2. Barcelona, Spain8.6 h · 10.2 °C · 1.3 mm rain a day · sea 13.5 °Crail ≈ 13h 18m · 24.7 kg CO₂e return
  3. Andorra la Vella, Andorra8.5 h · 5.4 °C · 1.9 mm rain a dayrail ≈ 13h 12m · 22.8 kg CO₂e return
  4. Taranto, Italy8.5 h · 10.9 °C · 1.4 mm rain a day · sea 14.4 °Crail ≈ 14h 24m · 30.5 kg CO₂e return
  5. Catanzaro, Italy8.4 h · 10.1 °C · 3.2 mm rain a day · sea 14.8 °Crail ≈ 15h · 33.8 kg CO₂e return
  6. Lleida, Spain8.4 h · 7.4 °C · mostly dryrail ≈ 14h 54m · 26.4 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 Zurich in February within 15 hours is Icod de los Vinos, 10.7 h, costing 764 kg CO₂e return. The lowest-carbon option is Lugano at 4.5 kg — 170× less carbon, for 3.5 hours less sunshine.

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

LuganoIcod de los Vinos
Where they are. Solid lines are rail or ferry, dashed are flights, from Zurich. Pick one to compare.
Carbon against sunshine, February, departing Zurich. Journeys of up to 15 hours each way.7 destinations. Lowest carbon Lugano at 4.5 kilograms and 7.2 h; best for sunshine Icod de los Vinos at 764 kilograms and 10.7 h. Lugano · 4.5 kgGap · 10.8 kgTirana · 281 kgIcod de los Vinos · 764 kg

By rail or ferry By air

Carbon against sunshine, February, departing Zurich. Journeys of up to 15 hours each way.

What the 15-hour limit costs: at this budget Tirana can only be reached by air — 281 kg CO₂e, in 5h. Allow up to 24 hours and the train does the same journey for 33.0 kg in 20h 54m — 9× less carbon for 15h 54m more travelling.

February from Zurich — 7 destinations on the frontier, 3 without flying.
DestinationHowCO₂e returnTempSun/dayRain/dayJourney
Lugano, SwitzerlandRail4.5 kg7.5 °C7.2 h3.9 mm3h 30m
Sion, SwitzerlandRail4.6 kg6.4 °C7.8 h1.7 mm3h 48m
Gap, FranceRail10.8 kg5.4 °C8.5 h2.0 mm7h 18m
Tirana, AlbaniaAir281 kg8.5 °C9.0 h1.6 mm5h
Errachidia, MoroccoAir513 kg10.6 °C9.7 h0.6 mm6h 12m
Santa Cruz de Tenerife, SpainAir755 kg17.6 °C10.3 h0.9 mm7h 30m
Icod de los Vinos, SpainAir764 kg17.3 °C10.7 h0.4 mm7h 30m

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 Gap (10.8 kg, 8.5 h) to Tirana (281 kg, 9.0 h) buys 0.5 hours more sunshine for an extra 270 kg — 541 kg of CO₂e per hour. That single step is the most expensive sunshine on the whole curve.

The pick of them

Lugano, SwitzerlandLuganoSwitzerland4.5 kg CO₂e return7.5 °C · 7.2 h sun · 3h 30m by railcold but brightGap, FranceGapFrance10.8 kg CO₂e return5.4 °C · 8.5 h sun · 7h 18m by railcold but brightIcod de los VinosSpain764 kg CO₂e return17.3 °C · 10.7 h sun · 7h 30m by airwarm, bright and dry

The same month, asked differently

February 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 Icod de los Vinos

Places to stay in Icod de los Vinos, Spain, on a live map. Prices and availability come from Stay22 and its booking partners.

Search places to stay in Icod de los Vinos →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 Zurich

February from elsewhere

Photo credits

Questions

Where is the sunniest place to go from Zurich in February?

Icod de los Vinos, Spain, at 10.7 h. Reaching it emits 764 kg CO₂e return, travelling 7h 30m each way by air (modelled).

Can I get somewhere sunny from Zurich in February without flying?

Yes. Gap reaches 8.5 h and is reachable by rail or ferry in 7h 18m (modelled), emitting 10.8 kg CO₂e return — though Icod de los Vinos is sunnier still, if you fly.

How much carbon does a return trip from Zurich to Icod de los Vinos produce?

764 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.