The Boston-based running travel operator’s new event adds a Peloponnese race to its destination marathon portfolio, positioning Costa Navarino as a stopover for runners doing the Athens Marathon the week before.
Marathon Tours & Travel has announced the launch of the Greek Odyssey Running Festival, a new event that will take place in Costa Navarino, Greece on Nov. 14, 2026. Hosted the weekend after the Athens Marathon, Greek Odyssey includes a half-marathon and 10K distance.
Costa Navarino, a tourist destination on the south-west coast of the Peloponnese, sits amid landscapes steeped in ancient legend, including nearby Methoni Castle and Voidokilia Beach, that have captured global imagination again this year following the release of Christopher Nolan’s movie The Odyssey. Runners will go through lanscapes rich in thousands of years of history and associated with tales of bravery and adventure. Those wanting to make the most of their trip to Greece can team up their Greek Odyssey race with the Athens Marathon the weekend before.
Jeff Adams, President of Marathon Tours & Travel, commented: “The Greek Odyssey is a brilliant addition to our growing range of destination events. It reflects exactly what we’re building towards – giving runners more ways to combine world-class races with genuinely unforgettable travel experiences, in destinations with real depth and meaning behind them.”
Marathon Tours & Travel, founded by runner and travel visionary Thom Gilligan in 1979, has offices in Boston (US), Manchester (UK) and Adelaide. The company is an approved International Tour Operator to many marathons and other running events, including the Abbott World Marathon Majors, which consists of the Boston Marathon, TCS London Marathon, TCS New York City Marathon, Berlin Marathon, Chicago Marathon, Tokyo Marathon, TCS Sydney Marathon, Sanlam Cape Town Marathon and candidate race, Shanghai Marathon. Marathon Tours & Travel also owns the Patagonia Running Festival Marathon, Madagascar Marathon, Antarctica Marathon, Arctic Marathon, Amazon Marathon, and Kangaroo Island Marathon.
