Europe

Dublin, Ireland

A comprehensive guide to the best places to run in Dublin and nearby Malahide and Howth

Dublin, Ireland is a wonderful city to visit, with its historic sites, a literary bent, and wonderful pubs and restaurants. The scene for running in Dublin is terrific, with a wonderful variety of river and canal paths, large parks, and seaside running nearby.

A great way to get oriented in Dublin is our two ‘runseeing‘ tours, including one focused on the city’s street art. In the center there’s nice running along the River Liffey and on canal towpaths. Another favorite place to run in Dublin is along the Clontarf Promenade toward Howth. For parks, Phoenix Park is iconic. We’ve also got routes in several parks in southern Dublin: Corkagh Park, Griffeen Valley Park, Tymon Park, Dodder Valley Park, Bushy Park, & Marlay Park. For seaside running, head to Howth or Malahide. South of Dublin, within 1/2 hour by train or car, are lovely waterside runs in Dún Laoghaire and a fabulous path from Bray to Greystones. If you’d like to have an in-person guided running experience in Dublin, we highly recommend our friends at Go! Running Tours.

Also, see the Fitness Challenges in Ireland blog for some great running and fitness events across the country.

Dublin does not have a subway, but it has a fairly extensive bus and tram system, and some rail lines toward the suburbs. The DART is a nice train along Dublin Bay, heading both north and south, providing easy access to some great running spots.

Editor's Picks

Some of our favorite runs in Dublin, Ireland

Phoenix Park

At 1, 750 acres, Phoenix Park is one of the largest walled parks in Europe. The signature... more...

See All Routes
  • All Routes
  • Iconic Routes
  • Weather & Climate
  • Where To Stay
  • Stores & Group Runs
  • Events

Corkagh Park

Dublin, Ireland

A 120-hectare park in the southwestern outskirts of Dublin, with lovely trails around woods, landscaped gardens, and some small lakes. A loop of the perimeter is 2.6 miles, with another ~1 mile of paths. Site of weekly parkrun.
Explore

As for weather…it’s not Ireland’s main attraction. It is often overcast and cool, with lots of rain and frequent storms in the winter. The good news: snow is rare, the sky makes for great atmospherics, you’ll learn about how to run into a headwind, and appreciate the sun! Bring your wet and windy weather running gear.

Summers are cool to mild and changeable, with long days due to its northern latitude.dublin-weather

As Dublin is a heavily visited city, there are many hotels that are centrally located. There’s a large cluster of hotels and inns, at various price points, right around the city center, on both the north and south sides of the river, with Temple Bar as a point of reference. If you stay in one of these hotels, you’ll be close enough to the river and some of the main roads for running, as well as ~2 miles from Phoenix Park. Other options are to stay closer to Phoenix Park, which offers the best of both worlds: good running location and near popular spots. Further east toward the Docklands provides easier access for running toward Clontarf, St. Anne’s Park, and Howth.

There’s not much running of note near the airport (10 miles from city center), but if you have a car, it’s only 10km to Malahide and 16km to Howth.

Ireland has a vibrant running scene. Within Dublin, there are several running specialty stores. See out overview map.

Central Dublin

RunLogic. Temple Bar. GR daily at 7am.

RunHub.

Nessi Sportswear.

Great Calendar: RuninIreland.

There are many parkrun events in & around Dublin. Saturdays, 9:30am. FULL LIST

Also, see the Fitness Challenges in Ireland blog for some great running and fitness events across the country.

Dublin Marathon. October. One of the world’s more notable marathons.

Great Ireland RunApril. Weekend full of running events, including signature 10K that attracts runners from all over the world. In Phoenix Park.

Roheny 5-miler. Dublin’s premier 5k race.

Flora Womens Mini MarathonJune. The biggest running event for women in the world, with over 40,000 women joining in each year. 10k,women only.

Dublin Half Marathon. September.