A Quick Run Through the Best Marathon Routes in France This Autumn

The marathon calendar in France creates its own map of the country, and any one of those routes can make a great way to see the sights. Maybe you’re a veteran runner chasing a personal best through the streets of Paris or Nice. Or you might be a more casual newbie looking to combine a family holiday with a race over beautiful farmlands, mountains or coastal highways. But whatever your goal and experience level, there’s bound to be an ideal course for you among this list of favourites, which includes some shorter races and team events alongside the more traditional full-length marathons. French weather is not always predictable, alas, but running in autumn gives you a very good chance of cool temperatures, easy breezes and clear, inspiring views to help you keep the pace. And with Novotel, there’s a comfortable hotel to relax or warm up in near every start line.

Known locally as the 20 kilomètres de Paris, the distance makes this landmark race just shy of a half-marathon, but the route provides the unmissable chance to start a race at the foot of the Eiffel Tower! With the Novotel Paris Centre Tour Eiffel a short walk away, family and friends can easily cheer you on from neighbouring quayside vantage points along the River Seine. Besides the tower itself, many of the most essential things to see in Paris are laid out along the route:

• The Trocadéro, with its ornamental gardens and the hilltop Palais de Chaillot
• Grand parklands and promenades within the Bois de Boulogne
• Napoleon’s most famous monument to his military victories, the Arc de Triomphe
• Musée d’Orsay, that gorgeous Parisian treasure house of impressionist masterpieces
• The breathtaking glass dome of the Grand Palais

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Beginning and ending in Dijon, historic capital of the Burgundy wine region, this is not just a sporting fixture but a celebration of local culture and cuisine. For participants, the fun is spread across half- and full marathons, 10km and 5km runs, and even a rollerblading event. The main circuit passes through idyllic villages and vineyards on mostly flat roads before looping back to Dijon, where runners can join friends and family to enjoy the city’s famous gourmet recipes. Hotel Novotel Dijon Sud is perfectly positioned on the wine route for resting before the race and relaxing after, while a former old town hospital is now home to the International City of Gastronomy and Wine – a whole complex of food and drink-related screenings, tastings and exhibitions.

• Cité Internationale de la Gastronomie et du Vin, 12 parvis de l’Unesco, 21000 Dijon
• Open daily 9:30 am to midnight
• Free entry except for exhibitions and special events

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The road from Nice to Cannes makes a beautiful marathon along the southeast corner of France. It’s a real crowd-pleaser for spectators, with dramatic views on both sides, between the Alpes-Maritimes mountains and the shimmering blue Mediterranean. For runners, the surface profile remains flat enough to make this race relatively gentle on the legs. Overlooking Nice’s old town and harbour, Novotel Nice Centre Vieux Nice is perfect for a restful night near the start point on the Promenade des Anglais, while Novotel Suites Cannes Centre awaits you a short walk from the finish line on Cannes’s emblematic Promenade de la Croisette.

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Marathons in France rarely cut such an elegant path through an ancient city, but the Run In Lyon traces the banks of the Rhône and Saône rivers with true route-mapping panache. Passing along those waterways, you’ll also cross the cobblestoned Old Town (or Vieux Lyon), climb the hills of the silkmaking district Croix-Rousse and skim the placid lakeshore in Parc de la Tête d’Or. For competitors the half- or full marathon courses can be tough in parts and easy-going in others, while spectators have their pick of historic quays and bridges to watch from. Novotel Lyon Gerland Musée des Confluences directly overlooks the route, with a bar influenced by street art in a trendy location near the Halle Tony Garnier concert hall. After the race, reward yourself with Lyonnaise delicacies...

• Pink pralines: the city’s signature sweet, made from caramelised almonds shaped into edible roses
• Quenelles lyonnaises: rich and dense poached dumplings filled with meat and fish
• Cervelle de canut: a deliciously creamy white cheese spread or dip, made a local favourite by silk workers

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Early September is a great time for marathons in France, but also for trail running, and this event lets you combine a driving holiday with a high-altitude challenge in the Jura Mountains. Just off the A6 or A40 motorways, stop for the night at Novotel Mâcon Nord - Porte de Bourgogne, to enjoy the outdoor pool and bar terrace in a 10-acre garden. From there it’s a scenic drive of an hour or so to the alpine splendour of the Plateau d’Hauteville, home to the annual Trail de La Gi J’y Monte. There’s a choice of runs (the longest route is 30km, the shortest a quick 1km) passing over and around a magnificent terrain of rocky peaks, grassy slopes and mirror lakes. Apart from the human spectators, you might even spot a chamois watching from a ridge high above. 

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Nestled into a wooded garden just outside the city known as the “Florence of Provence”, Novotel Aix-en-Provence Pont-de-l’Arc Fenouillères enjoys one of the loveliest locations in a region renowned for food, wine and pastoral beauty (you can try some of that cuisine at the hotel’s Gourmet Bar). It’s also a mere half-hour drive from Salon-de-Provence, and the start line of this charming marathon in the south of France, where proceedings begin with aviation-themed festivities around the 701 Air Base. Runners then have the choice of a full marathon or shorter courses through meadows and fragrant lavender fields, passing close enough to the Côte d’Azur to feel salted breezes and sunbeams coming in from the Mediterranean. Back in Aix, you can’t miss Paul Cézanne’s studio, now a museum dedicated to the great impressionist painter and local hero.

• Atelier des Lauves, 13 Avenue Paul Cézanne, 13100 Aix-en-Provence
• Guided tours from €7.50
• Open daily 9am to 7pm

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Many other famous marathons in France are hosted all across the regions, and throughout the year. If you’re looking further ahead to winter, spring and summer, other great long-distance fixtures on the calendar include:

• The Bordeaux half-marathon in early December.
• The Mont Saint-Michel Marathon in late May.
• The UTMB, or Ultra Trail de Mont Blanc, in late August.