Edinburgh, United Kingdom · 42.195 km road marathon
Edinburgh Marathon 2027
Sunday 30 May 2027
A point-to-point course from the University of Edinburgh down to the sea and along the coast to Musselburgh, losing almost 90 m, nearly all of it in the first 11 km.
Edinburgh Marathon at a glance
- Start
- 10:00, Potterrow beside McEwan Hall, in pens by predicted finish time
- Finish
- Pinkie playing fields, Musselburgh
- Course
- Point to point; the second half is flat and largely out-and-back on the coast road
- Elevation
- Between 4 and 94 m above sea level
- Time limit
- 6 h 30 from when the back of the race crosses the start; gun time is official
- Cut-offs
- None published; a sweep bus follows at 6 h 30 pace and anyone it passes must board
- Entry
- Open, no ballot, until the field is full; standard entry from 84.50 pounds
- Bib pickup
- Posted to UK addresses; others at Dynamic Earth on Saturday, 07:30 to 18:00 (FAQ still shows 2026 dates)
- Aid stations
- Nine water stations, roughly every 5 km; gels at miles 9, 16.2, 21.75 and 24.25
Checked against the organizer's pages on 16 September 2026. Facts for the next edition can still change; the organizer's page is the final word.
Edinburgh Marathon course map and elevation
Point to point; the second half is flat and largely out-and-back on the coast road. Map, elevation profile and 3D flyover.
› running direction two lines: out and back on the same road race kilometresCourse: TrailSplits reconstruction; map data © OpenStreetMap contributors
Route drawn by TrailSplits from the organizer's published 2027 route map; approximate. For illustration, not navigation.
What to expect on the course
- Past Greyfriars and the Royal Mile, then down the Mound past Princes Street Gardens
- A turn inside Holyrood Park below Arthur's Seat at about km 3.6
- Portobello promenade near km 11 and into Musselburgh around km 15
- Through Prestonpans, Cockenzie, Port Seton and Longniddry to a turn at the Gosford House gates, about km 29
- Open to the Firth of Forth: wind that helps on the way out is a headwind on the return
The map follows the organizer's 2027 route map, which matches the 2026 course, with the finish on the Pinkie playing fields.
Read the full course description
A point-to-point road course from Potterrow beside McEwan Hall to the Pinkie playing fields in Musselburgh. The opening kilometres cross the Old Town at Greyfriars and the Royal Mile, drop down the Mound past Princes Street Gardens, climb back past the Scottish Parliament and turn inside Holyrood Park at about km 3.6 below Arthur's Seat, then run east to Portobello promenade near km 11 and into Musselburgh around km 15. From there the route follows the coast road through Prestonpans, Cockenzie, Port Seton and Longniddry to a turn at the Gosford House gates near mile 18, about km 29, and retraces the shoreline west to the finish. The organizer describes a descent of almost 90 m to near sea level, nearly all of it inside the first 11 km, so the second half is flat, largely out-and-back and open to the Firth of Forth, where any wind that helps on the way out is a headwind on the return. Nine water stations sit roughly every 5 km, with gels at miles 9, 16.2, 21.75 and 24.25; the course is measured by an AIMS certified measurer.
Source, licence and file
TrailSplits reconstruction of the published route. Course: TrailSplits reconstruction; map data © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL · original source · Download reference GPX (42.7 km in the file). Approximate terrain-model heights added by TrailSplits, sampled and smoothed at roughly 100 m intervals. Buildings, bridges and small road gradients are not surveyed road elevations.Produced using Copernicus WorldDEM-30 © DLR e.V. 2010-2014 and © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH 2014-2018 provided under COPERNICUS by the European Union and ESA; all rights reserved.
Three decisions to make before race day
Book the journey back from Musselburgh before race week
Trains back from Musselburgh and Wallyford are very limited and the finish is about 1 mile from the travel hub. Event bus tickets go through MyRunning, expected around December 2026, so settle bus, train or lift early.
More detail
The finish is on the Pinkie playing fields in Musselburgh, about 1 mile from the event travel hub, and the organizer warns that train capacity back to the city from Musselburgh and Wallyford is very limited. Event buses need a ticket bought through MyRunning with only limited on-the-day sales, and 2027 bus tickets are expected around December 2026. Decide now whether you will use the bus, a train seat or a lift, and factor in the walk from the finish.
Set your predicted time before the pen deadline and treat it as final
Pens come from the predicted time on your entry (editable until 26 April in 2026). On the day you can move back but not forward, and gun time is official, so a rear pen costs minutes on your result.
More detail
Pens are allocated from the predicted finish time on your entry, which was editable until 26 April in 2026, about a month before the race; the front pen requires proof of a qualifying time. On the day you may move back but not forward, and gun time is the official time, so a rear pen costs you the minutes it takes to reach the mats against both your result and the 6 h 30 closure counted from the last pen.
Overseas and late entrants: collect on Saturday at Dynamic Earth
Numbers are not posted abroad: overseas entrants collect at Dynamic Earth on Saturday (07:30 to 18:00, from an FAQ still showing 2026 dates). The race-morning station at Potterrow Dome, 06:30 to 10:00, wants you 70 minutes before your start: a fallback only.
More detail
Event numbers for the Sunday races are not posted abroad, so overseas entrants collect at the Event Number Station at Dynamic Earth on the Saturday between 07:30 and 18:00, the same station used for late entries and GBP 5 replacements. The reduced Sunday station at Potterrow Dome runs 06:30 to 10:00 and the organizer asks anyone using it to arrive at least 70 minutes before their start, so treat it as a fallback rather than the plan.
Your race-day sheet
Even elapsed splits for 42.195 km. All clocks are local to Edinburgh.
ESTIMATED FINISH
14:00:00
MOVING PACE BUDGET
5:34/ km
ELAPSED PACE
5:41/ km
150 min below the modelled finish limit
| Distance | Elapsed | Local clock |
|---|---|---|
| 5 km | 00:28:26 | 10:28:26 |
| 10 km | 00:56:53 | 10:56:53 |
| 15 km | 01:25:19 | 11:25:19 |
| 20 km | 01:53:45 | 11:53:45 |
| Halfway | 02:00:00 | 12:00:00 |
| 25 km | 02:22:12 | 12:22:12 |
| 30 km | 02:50:38 | 12:50:38 |
| 35 km | 03:19:05 | 13:19:05 |
| 40 km | 03:47:31 | 13:47:31 |
| Finish | 04:00:00 | 14:00:00 |
Training plan for Edinburgh Marathon 2027
A free week-by-week plan dated to this race. It starts from a stated default (weekly distance, longest recent run, days a week) that you can change; nothing is read from your watch or training history. It does not use the finish-time target above.
View my training planNo account required. Keep a fixed copy, download the calendar or get a subscription URL for Google or Apple Calendar.
Entry, bib pickup and rules
- Entry:
- Open, no ballot, until the field is full; standard entry from 84.50 pounds
- Bib pickup:
- Posted to UK addresses; others at Dynamic Earth on Saturday, 07:30 to 18:00 (FAQ still shows 2026 dates)
Read the full entry and pickup rules
Entry for 2027 opened on 20 April 2026 and is open by direct online entry through a MyRunning account with no ballot; Standard Entry is priced from GBP 84.50 and charity places from GBP 0, and the organizer closes entries when the field is full. Runners must be 18 on event day, transfers to another runner go through the website within the transfer window for a GBP 20 fee, and entries cannot be deferred. Event numbers with the timing chip built in are posted in May to UK addresses to arrive by the Friday before the race; overseas Sunday entrants, late entrants and anyone needing a replacement use the Event Number Station at Dynamic Earth on the Saturday 07:30 to 18:00 or a reduced station at Potterrow Dome on race morning 06:30 to 10:00, with a GBP 5 charge for a replacement. The FAQ still prints the 2026 station dates.
Sources
Checked 16 September 2026; next review due 2026-11-14. Event facts come from the organizer; the pacing sheet, decisions and plan are TrailSplits' own. Independently prepared by TrailSplits, not endorsed by the organizer.
What each source confirms
- 2027 marathon page: The Sunday 30 May 2027 date, the 10:00 start, the Potterrow start and Musselburgh finish, the festival programme and the open Enter Now entry.
- Marathon FAQ: The 6 h 30 limit from the back of the race, the sweep bus, gun time as official time, the pen colours and rules, the 18+ age rule, the GBP 20 transfer and no deferral, posted numbers and the Event Number Station hours, the GBP 5 replacement, water and gel points, and the finish at Pinkie Playing Fields. The station days and the predicted-time deadline on this page still show 2026 dates.
- 2027 route map and transport pages: The organizer route narrative from Potterrow through Holyrood Park to Portobello, Musselburgh and the Gosford House turn, the descent of almost 90 m, and the embedded 2027 course map used for the matched line; the transport page at /marathon/transport-info supports the limited trains, event bus tickets and the December 2026 ticket release, and its road-closure section is still 2026 text. Prices and the sold-out history are on /marathon/event-information.