Edinburgh Marathon Festival - 23rd/24th May 2026

The Edinburgh Marathon Festival brings multiple distances and a lively finish-area festival to Edinburgh across the weekend of 23–24 May 2026. The festival is promoted as a fast, flat course for marathon runners and showcases many of Edinburgh’s most iconic landmarks, with several races starting or centred on Holyrood Park and the EMF Hub at Dynamic Earth. Distances range from a full marathon and half marathon through to 10K, 5K and a series of junior races, making the weekend suitable for a wide spectrum of ages and abilities.

The event highlights include scenic city and coastal sections, festival transport options such as EMF Event Buses and strong reliance on public transport, and a family-friendly programme of junior races on the Saturday. The organiser presents the weekend as a fixture that often sells out and positions the marathon as one of the faster, flatter city marathon routes in the UK, while maintaining a festival atmosphere for runners and spectators alike.