Nothing beats bagging some gloriously sunny weather on that city break that you’ve been planning for months, but there are obviously destinations where it’s more likely to be a reality than others.
To help maximise our chances of soaking up some vitamin D while we’re soaking up the sights, travel platform Omio has handily compiled a list of the sunniest capitals in Europe based on the hours of sunshine they’re blessed with each year.
Recommended: The best city breaks in Europe for 2025.
Given it’s one of the only places that remains balmy even in the winter months, it’s not so surprising that Nicosia, the capital of Cyprus, tops this list. The city is graced with a whopping 3,388 hours of sunshine per year, which is around 140 days.
In second place was Valletta, the Maltese capital, which basks in 3,030 hours of sunshine per year (helping its case as one of the most glorious cities to visit in springtime), and in third place it’s Lisbon, the lovely Portuguese capital, which gets around 2,828 hours.
These are European capital cities that get the most sun
- Nicosia, Cyprus
- Valletta, Malta
- Lisbon, Portugal
- Athens, Greece
- Madrid, Spain
Need more springtime travel ideas? Check out our roundups of the best places in the world to travel in April, May and June.
Did you see that Lisbon’s most beautiful gardens will open to visitors free of charge this spring?
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