Best Major Convention Cities for Running

Schlepping to a city for a convention is a rite of business travel. But from a running perspective, this can be an unpredictable proposition. In some cities, the major convention center is centrally located, near lots of hotels, restaurants, and good running routes. In other cities, the location can be a business center/highway/chain hotel wasteland. But don’t fear, Great Runs is here to help!

For the top 50 most visited convention cities in the world, we’ve looked at the location of their major convention center from the standpoint of proximity to running routes and other infrastructure. We assume that travelers stay in a hotel near the convention center. Here are our tips and resources:

• Route Overview Map. On the city’s home page, we’ve marked the convention center location on the Route Overview map.
• Convention Center Category. On the GR Home Page, mouse over ‘Category’ and click on ‘Near Convention Center’ to see all our tagged running routes near a major convention center (Top 50 destinations only).  In alphabetical order, by region.
• Best Major Convention Cities For Running. Our list of the best ones. What qualifies? A central/attractive location of the city’s major convention center, with scenic running routes nearby.
  • What are the Top 10? These are the cities that hit the trifecta of attractive convention center location, good infrastructure (hotels, transport, restaurants), and attractive running routes all in proximity (alphabetical, not ranked): Chicago, Hong Kong, Lisbon, Miami, Melbourne, New York City, San Diego, Vancouver, Vienna, Washington, D.C.

Convention Cities Running Guide
This table indicates the major CC in each city, best runs nearby, and our rating (A is best, C is worst). Click on city column to sort alphabetically.