RacesIndependent race preparation guide

Pella to Thessaloniki, Greece · 42.195 km road marathon

Thessaloniki Marathon 2027

Sunday 4 April 2027

A point-to-point road marathon from the town of Pella east along the old Edessa highway to the Thessaloniki seafront, dropping gently from about 43 m to sea level, with six hours on gun time.

Thessaloniki Marathon at a glance

Start: 07:30, central square of Pella, in front of the Alexander the Great statue
Finish: Alexander the Great statue, Megalou Alexandrou Avenue, Thessaloniki seafront
Course: Point to point, almost due east on the old highway, flat after a gentle first-kilometre drop
Time limit: Six hours from the 07:30 gun, so the course closes at 13:30; results on gun time
Cut-offs: None published; timing mats at km 10, 21.1, 30 and 40
Entry: Open until 10 March 2027: 45 euro, or 35 euro for groups and students up to 30; bus to the start included
Bib pickup: Registration centre (venue to be announced), 1 to 3 April 2027, 10:00 to 19:00; no race-day pickup
Getting to the start: Organizer buses 05:15 to 05:45 from Kaftanzoglio Stadium or the courthouse; ticket at bib pickup
Aid stations: 15 stations every 2.5 km from km 5 to km 40

Checked against the organizer's pages on 24 September 2026. Facts for the next edition can still change; the organizer's page is the final word.

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Thessaloniki Marathon course map and elevation

Point to point, almost due east on the old highway, flat after a gentle first-kilometre drop. Map, elevation profile and 3D flyover.

Loading topographic map…

running direction two lines: out and back on the same road race kilometresCourse: TrailSplits reconstruction; map data © OpenStreetMap contributors

Flat (<5%)

Route drawn by TrailSplits from published race information; approximate. For illustration, not navigation.

What to expect on the course

Through Chalkidona at km 8, over the Axios river bridge at km 13 and the Gallikos bridge at km 28
Monastiriou Street into Kordelio at km 35, where the 10 km race joins at km 37: keep to the right lane
Right into Giannitson Street near km 38 and Dafnis Street at km 39, past the courthouse at km 40
The last 2 km on Nikis Avenue along the waterfront, past the White Tower to the Alexander the Great statue

The line follows the 2025 course on the roads named in the organizer's 2027 route description and the 2026 road-closure notice; no 2027 course file is published, so check the final route before race day. The line measures about 41.7 km, so the organizer's kilometre points fall up to a few hundred metres later than the markers on this map.

Read the full course description

A point-to-point road course that runs almost due east from the modern town of Pella, about 1 km from the archaeological site, to the Thessaloniki seafront. The start lies about 43 m above sea level and the first kilometre drops gently; after about 2 km the route joins the old Edessa to Thessaloniki highway and follows it through open country. Runners pass through Chalkidona at km 8, meet the Veroia road at km 9, cross the Axios on a road bridge at km 13 and pass Gefyra near km 15, Agios Athanasios at km 20 and Nea Anchialos at km 25. The Gallikos bridge comes at km 28 and Diavata at km 30, and Monastiriou Street leads into Kordelio at km 35. The 10 km race joins at km 37, and marathon runners must keep to the right lane near the end. The course turns right into Giannitson Street near km 38, right into Dafnis Street and left along the port road at km 39, passes the courthouse at km 40 and follows Nikis Avenue past the White Tower to the finish. There are no climbs of note. Fifteen aid stations sit every 2.5 km from km 5, with sports drink every 5 km from km 10 and gels at km 20 and 30; no pacers are published.

Source, licence and file

TrailSplits reconstruction of the published route. Course: TrailSplits reconstruction; map data © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL · original source · Download reference GPX (41.7 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

Take the organizer bus to Pella and be there by 06:30

Buses leave 05:15 to 05:45 from the Kaftanzoglio Stadium or the courthouse; pick your ticket at bib collection and be at the Pella start by 06:30.

More detail
The fee includes the organizer's buses from Thessaloniki to the start, leaving between 05:15 and 05:45 from the Kaftanzoglio Stadium (yellow ticket) or the Thessaloniki courthouse (blue ticket). Choose your ticket at the registration centre after your bib; boarding needs both, and runners must be at the start by 06:30. Hand your bag to the vans by the start arch and collect it near the Karamanlis statue after the finish.
Collect your bib and bus ticket by Saturday 3 April

Bibs and bus tickets come only from the registration centre on 1 to 3 April 2027, 10:00 to 19:00; no race-day pickup is published.

More detail
Bibs and bus tickets come only from the registration centre, whose venue is still to be announced, on Thursday 1 to Saturday 3 April 2027 from 10:00 to 19:00; no race-day pickup is published. Bring ID and the bib-number email. A friend can collect with your written authorisation and a copy of your ID, which helps if you land on Saturday evening.
Pace against six hours of gun time

Six hours on gun time closes the course at 13:30, about 8:32 per km from the 07:30 gun, whichever block you start in.

More detail
The limit is six hours from the start, and official results use gun time, so the course closes at 13:30 whichever block you start in. That is about 8:32 per km on the clock from the 07:30 gun. The course is flat after the first kilometre, so even pacing is realistic; the mats at km 10, 21.1, 30 and 40 must all record you.

Your race-day sheet

Even elapsed splits for 42.195 km. All clocks are local to Pella to Thessaloniki.

Target finish time, including stops

HoursMinutes

Total stopped minutes Your start time (local)

The initial value is the first published start, not your assigned wave. Europe/Athens.

Time limit: Six hours from the 07:30 gun, so the course closes at 13:30; results on gun time

How this sheet applies the limit

The 2027 rules allow six hours from the start of the race, and the official time runs from the starting gun, so the course closes at 13:30 after the 07:30 gun whichever block you start in; net time is printed for information only. The rules mention start blocks but publish no block times. No intermediate cut-offs are published, but timing mats sit at km 10, 21.1, 30 and 40, and a runner with no reading at one of them is removed from the results.

A timing comparison, not a fitness assessment. Intermediate cutoffs, queues, weather and terrain are not modelled. Stops are spread evenly in the illustration; actual checkpoint times will differ.

ESTIMATED FINISH

11:30:00

MOVING PACE BUDGET

5:34/ km

ELAPSED PACE

5:41/ km

120 min below the modelled finish limit

Distance markers, not aid stations or guaranteed arrival times.
Distance	Elapsed	Local clock
5 km	00:28:26	07:58:26
10 km	00:56:53	08:26:53
15 km	01:25:19	08:55:19
20 km	01:53:45	09:23:45
Halfway	02:00:00	09:30:00
25 km	02:22:12	09:52:12
30 km	02:50:38	10:20:38
35 km	03:19:05	10:49:05
40 km	03:47:31	11:17:31
Finish	04:00:00	11:30:00

Training plan for Thessaloniki 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.

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Entry, bib pickup and rules

Entry:: Open until 10 March 2027: 45 euro, or 35 euro for groups and students up to 30; bus to the start included
Bib pickup:: Registration centre (venue to be announced), 1 to 3 April 2027, 10:00 to 19:00; no race-day pickup

Read the full entry and pickup rules

Open. Entry for the 21st edition is online through the organizer site or in person at its office in the Kaftanzoglio Stadium, and closes on Wednesday 10 March 2027, or 5 March for groups of ten or more. The marathon costs 45 euro, or 35 euro for group members and for students up to 30 with a student card, and the fee includes the bus to the start. No field cap, ballot or waiting list is published. Written cancellations sent by 4 March 2027 are refunded less 2 euro, and a bib may not be passed to another runner. Runners must be over 18. Bibs are collected only at the registration centre, venue to be announced, from Thursday 1 to Saturday 3 April 2027, 10:00 to 19:00.

Sources

Checked 24 September 2026; next review due 2026-11-07. 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 proclamation (rules): Sunday 4 April 2027, 07:30 start in Pella central square, finish at the Alexander the Great statue, right-lane rule, kilometre landmarks, age over 18, fees and deadlines of 10 and 5 March 2027, cancellation by 4 March, bus from Kaftanzoglio Stadium or the courthouse 05:15 to 05:45, bag vans, 15 aid stations and feed table, six-hour limit, gun-time basis, timing mats, bib pickup 1 to 3 April 10:00 to 19:00, no bib transfer.
Proclamation page: Links the 21st-edition proclamation (English PDF, uploaded July 2026).
Marathon race page: 07:30 start, the start about 43 m above sea level and about 1 km from the archaeological site, the first kilometre downhill, the eastbound highway and the kilometre-by-kilometre route to Nikis Avenue.
Online registration: Registration for the 21st edition in progress, deadline 10 March 2027, 45 euro basic and 35 euro discount marathon fees, package contents.
Cancellation policy: Full refund on written request until 4 March 2027, less a bank fee.
2026 road-closure notice (Thessaloniki traffic police, linked by the organizer): The 2026 city streets in order: Karamanli Avenue in Ionia, Nea Monastiriou, Monastiriou to Giannitson, Giannitson to Dafnis, Dafnis, the new western entrance, Palaiou Stathmou to the courthouse junction, Kountouriotou and Nikis Avenue.