Why overseas running holidays are really hitting their stride

Or did you think that question meant something else?

Perhaps it's a hangover from the pandemic era. Perhaps it's because of the rising cost of living. Perhaps it's just a fad. Whatever the reason, it appears that running has really hit its stride and is booming in popularity at the moment. While many people just lace up and go around the park, the growing trend means there's also a new interest in combining running with a trip overseas.

For the serious, there are the big international marathons. While you could just book a flight and do it yourself, Australian travel agency Travelling Fit specialises in this kind of holiday, particularly for the logistics of more obscure events. For example, its standard package for the Great Wall Marathon in China next year includes things like guaranteed race entry and a guided inspection of the course. The exclusive packages also include group meals to meet other racers, an on-site representative for assistance, and transport to take your supporters to the sideline to cheer you on.

Even if you think the idea of running 42 kilometres is the antithesis of a fun time, perhaps you can at least see the tourism appeal of some of these international events. The Thunder Dragon Marathon takes you through the dramatic mountain landscapes of Bhutan, the Big Five Marathon has giraffes and zebras watching on from the savannahs of South Africa, and the Petra Desert Marathon goes along the sandy streets of Jordan's ancient city.

The participants in these events - literal globetrotters - are clearly not just on a holiday where they're also doing a run. These are trips where the focus is the race. But you don't need to be this committed to combine travel with some exercise. If I was keeping a running tally of how many times I'd travelled to do a race, I would have a cute pun but an empty list. I do, however, enjoy going for a jog when I'm in a new city.

Here's a tip for you - head out for a run before breakfast when most other tourists are just lining up for the omelette station. I fondly remember jogging around Florence one time about 7am and almost having the streets to myself, crossing the Ponte Vecchio as the sun rose and looping around the Duomo through areas that would soon be a mad crush of sightseers. As well as putting me in a great mood for the day, it was such a beautiful way to see the city.

The fitness-tracking app Strava has looked at its 2023 data and found there has indeed been an increase in the percentage of people who are running when they're away from home. Aside from the users logging official races (the Berlin Marathon was apparently the most popular for foreigners), the place that is run the most by travellers is along the Seine River in Paris, specifically the stretch that goes past the Notre Dame site up to the Louvre. What a glorious way to start or end the day!

If you're not sure where to run or don't want to do it alone, there are now also options to go with a guide in many places. On a website called Running Tours, locals from all around the world can offer predetermined routes that they'll jog with you, explaining what you're seeing, chatting about the city and their culture. There's an 8-kilometre run in Bangkok that goes past lots of street art and finishes at a local food market, an 11-kilometre route in Atlanta that incorporates the major sites associated with Black history in the US city, or for more serious runners, you can join some elite Kenyan athletes in Nairobi for an easy (for them) 15-kilometre workout.

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With a moderate amount of fitness, this is the perfect way to explore a new city. You'll be going at just the right pace to see more than walking and in more detail than driving, you'll have that rewarding opportunity to talk one-on-one with a local and ask all the questions you like (pro tip - get them to do all the talking so you don't get too puffed!), and you'll get some exercise into a holiday that might otherwise involve a fair bit of eating and drinking.

Of course, you don't need to spend a fortune or travel to the other side of the world to incorporate some running into a change of scenery. I'm currently "training" for the City2Surf, the world's largest fun run, which has epic views of Sydney Harbour and ends up at Bondi Beach. (I put "training" in quotation marks because it really just involves going for a run once a week.) And there are plenty of other events in Australia to choose from.

In NSW, the Rumble in the Jungle race goes through the lush Bindarri National Park near Coffs Harbour and The Whitsunday Trail Fest in Queensland starts at the beach before heading up into the gorgeous hinterland. The Mornington Running Festival in Victoria has a scenic course along the peninsula's coast (5km, 10km, 21km). Or you could really push yourself for the Run Larapinta in the NT, which is in the stunning rock country of the MacDonnell Ranges and consists of four stages over four days, for a total of either 128km or 84km.

Now, if all of this sounds like too much effort and you prefer to put your feet up on holiday, fair enough. But it's also never too late to start, especially if you're in it for the long run.