🇮🇹Venice, Italy
Venicemarathon
Oct 25, 2026
Race facts
Next edition · 2026
Oct 25, 2026
ScheduledStart
Villa Pisani, Stra — 9:40am; arrive by 8:30am, corrals open 8:55–9:20am
Course
40 melevation gain
- Distance · surface
- 42.2 km · Road
- Layout
- Point-to-point from Stra to Venice, flat
- Profile
- Flat throughout — the Riviera del Brenta villas, Mestre and San Giuliano park, then the long Ponte della Libertà causeway into Venice
Entry
Direct paid registration online (via ENDU); international entries welcome, no ballot
- Status · last recorded
- Open
- Registration
- Opens the previous autumn with four price steps; the 10,000 cap can sell out
Dates and entry details change. Confirm with the organiser before you book.
PB potential
Technical or hilly — come for the experience, not the time
Beginner friendly
Suitable for beginners with solid training
About this race
Venice is the only marathon on earth where you run through a UNESCO World Heritage city built on water — and cross a pontoon bridge over the Grand Canal in the final kilometre. The course starts on the mainland in Stra, running through the Villa Pisani estate and along the Riviera del Brenta — a processional road lined with Venetian villas. The final 10km enter Venice itself across the Freedom Bridge, through the Piazzale Roma, and along the Rialto sestieri. The 40m of elevation is negligible, but the cobblestone streets, bridges, and crowds packed into Venice's narrow calli slow runners considerably. This is a race of experience and spectacle. The finish — a floating bridge over the Grand Canal — is the most photographed marathon finish in the world.
Typical race-day weather
Temperature
12–18°C
Humidity
65–80%
Conditions
Adriatic autumn — can be misty, dramatically beautiful
Wind
10–20 km/h Adriatic breeze
Who this race suits
Runners who want a flat, well-run Italian race with an unforgettable last 10 km — across the lagoon causeway and over a pontoon bridge on the Grand Canal. Mid-sized field, capped at 10,000.
Genuinely flat (~40 m gain) and fast for 30 km along the Riviera del Brenta; the final kilometres add a wind-exposed causeway and a series of small bridges, so it is quick but not a record course.
Overview
- Field size
- Capped at 10,000 marathon entries
- Cut-off time
- 6 hours, with intermediate limits at halfway (2h45) and 30 km (3h50)
- Minimum age
- 20
- When
- Fourth Sunday of October; the 2026 edition is Sunday 25 October 2026
Course intelligence
- Highlights
- Villa Pisani start, the Brenta villas, the causeway over the lagoon, the pontoon bridge across the Grand Canal, finish on Riva dei Sette Martiri with San Marco in view
- Note
- The last kilometres cross a series of small bridges fitted with ramps — they still break your rhythm
Registration
- Entry cost
- €80 until 30 March, €90 to 30 June, €105 to 31 August, then €120 from 1 September, plus processing fees
- Medical certificate
- Italian rules apply: a valid medical certificate for competitive sport (or a FIDAL card / Runcard plus certificate) uploaded before the race
Race weekend
- Finish
- Riva dei Sette Martiri, Venice
- Expo
- Exposport Venicemarathon Village for bib collection; bring the confirmation letter emailed before the race
- Bag drop
- Official kit bag only; bags are moved from Stra to the finish in Venice
- Transport
- Pre-race buses to the start from Venezia-Tronchetto and Mestre railway station are included in the entry
Travel & logistics
- Best airport
- Venice Marco Polo (VCE); Treviso (TSF) for low-cost carriers
- Getting around
- The organiser's buses to Stra leave from Tronchetto and Mestre station on race morning
- Where to stay
- Mestre for value and easy start transport, or Venice itself to walk from the finish
Runner tips
- Use the organiser's bus to Stra — there is no easy public transport to the start on race morning.
- Save your legs for the causeway: it is long, straight and often windy.
- Sort the medical certificate early; without it you cannot collect your bib.
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