Loch Ness Marathon 2027

Sunday, 26 September 2027 · Inverness, United Kingdom

In the RunningChecked 4 October 2026Read the sources

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Getting to Inverness

Plan to reach Inverness in time to collect your race pack at Bught Park by 18:00 on Saturday 25 September 2027. Include the trip to collection when setting your arrival time.

The main start buses leave from Inverness Ice Centre on Bught Drive, IV3 5SR. The organiser gives a 10-minute walk there from the Event Village. That walk is only the last part of your trip from your room.

There is no parking at Bught Park or in the surrounding residential streets. The organiser names five public car parks in Inverness. They are Highland Council HQ on Glenurquhart Road, Cathedral on Ness Walk, Torvean, Old Town Rose Street at Farraline Park and Eastgate Centre. Walk from your chosen car park and check the weekend's bridge closures.

Where to stay in Inverness

A room near Bught Park makes Saturday collection and the finish straightforward. Check the walk to the Ice Centre as well, because that is where you catch the Sunday coach.

The organiser also lists coach pickups around Loch Ness. Those must be booked in advance, and return transport to the pickup points is not provided after the race. A stay beside the loch therefore needs its own plan for getting back from Inverness.

Collecting your number 2027 details

Collect your pack on Saturday 25 September 2027, from 10:00 to 18:00, at the Event Village in Bught Park, IV3 5SQ. Bring photo ID. The organiser says every marathon runner must attend pre-race registration.

The expo is at the same Event Village. It opens from 10:00 to 18:00 on Saturday and again on Sunday. Opening on Sunday does not give a later marathon collection window.

Race morning (2027 coach times awaiting confirmation)

The organiser's page gives the race date as 2027, but its coach timetable does not state an edition. Treat the following coach times as awaiting 2027 confirmation.

The published coach instructions ask runners to reach Inverness Ice Centre between 7:00 and 7:30. Coaches leave between 7:30 and 7:50, and the ride takes about an hour. The Inverness coach does not need a separate booking. Check those times in the 2027 participant guide before travelling.

Pack a warm layer for the moorland start. You arrive well before the 10:00 gun, then hand in your kitbag at the start. The organiser takes the bag to the finish in Inverness.

The seven-hour limit ends at 17:00. Roads on the last three miles through Inverness start reopening from 16:30. Runners expecting to take more than 6 hours 30 minutes are asked to use the pavement there.

The sweep bus can take runners who cannot continue back to the Event Village. After the 17:00 cut-off, runners still on the course continue at their own risk.

The course (edition not stated)

The organiser's course description does not state an edition, although the same page lists the 2027 event. Check the 2027 participant guide before using these station details.

The first six miles run from the moorland start towards Foyers, where you reach views of Loch Ness. From about mile 6 to mile 17, the route follows the loch's south-eastern shore.

Around mile 17 you leave the loch and climb through open countryside for about two miles. Keep that hill in mind during the earlier descent. From mile 19 the route levels off towards Inverness.

You follow the River Ness into the city centre, cross Ness Bridge and finish at Bught Park. The organiser describes the route as having a net descent, but gives no total climb figure in its written course description.

There are seven water stations and four HIGH5 gel stations. Water comes in 330 ml bottles with sports caps. Check the participant guide for the station distances before deciding which gels to carry.

Weather in Loch Ness in autumn

These are the last five completed race days at the start between Whitebridge and Fort Augustus, at 10:00 and at 13:00. They are model estimates for the start area, not readings from a weather station.

Afterwards 2027 details

Your bag is brought to the finish at Bught Park. Choose a meeting point there before setting off for the start. Supporters can use the final four miles through Inverness to watch, and the Event Village is free to enter.

The organiser's spectator notice closes Infirmary Bridge to pedestrians and cyclists from 8:30 to 17:00. Check the route back to your room against that closure, especially if you are staying across the River Ness.

Other race weekends

Close by, and with guides of their own, are Edinburgh Marathon and AJ Bell Great North Run.

The next races with a guide

Warsaw Marathon26 September 2027 · Warsaw, Poland Cardiff Half Marathon3 October 2027 · Cardiff, United Kingdom SPAR Budapest MarathonWeekend of 9 and 10 October 2027 · Budapest, Hungary

All race weekend guides

Sources

Written from the organiser's published information and the app's own race data, checked on 4 October 2026.

If something here is wrong or out of date, tell us.