Taking part in a marathon doesn’t have to just be about the exercise. If don’t mind the nipple chafing, toenail peeling and the gruelling hours of non-stop running, they can actually be an enjoyable way to see new places in half the time. There’s a marathon that takes you along the Great Wall of China, one that happens in a Kenyan wildlife conservancy, one set against the backdrop of Mont Blanc and another that traverses the romantic streets of Venice. Now, a study has revealed the 20 most beautiful marathons of them all, and one here in the UK was awarded third prize.
The most beautiful marathons in the world have been named, based on eye-tracking technology. The study by SportsShoes.com, involved presenting 300 people with images of some of the world’s most popular marathons and analysing their eye movements to see which caught their eyes the most. That’s one way to do it, we suppose.
Through that research, the Loch Ness Marathon in Scotland was named the third most ‘visually pleasing’ marathon in the world, after the Big Sur International Marathon in California (famous for its dramatic coastal views) and China’s Great Wall Marathon. It was given a total ‘eye-catching score’ of 88 out of 100. The race starts just above Fort Augustus and goes in a fairly straight line along the southern and eastern shores of Loch Ness before crossing the Ness Bridge over the River Ness and ending in the centre of Inverness.
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This year’s event happened at the end of September, with a record-breaking 10,700 people taking part. If you fancy it, entries for September 2026 are open right now. Two other races in the UK also made it into the study’s top 20 – Edinburgh Marathon ranked 12th and the London Marathon came in 16th place.
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