Brisbane gets cold enough in June that it's genuinely good running weather (yes, really — Queenslanders aren't being dramatic when they say 18 degrees is chilly). The EVA Air Brisbane Marathon takes full advantage of those ideal conditions, staging a fast, flat, inner-city marathon that starts and finishes at the City Botanic Gardens and winds through some of Brisbane's most beloved urban precincts. It's a proper city marathon, and it's grown steadily into one of Queensland's premier running events.
The 2026 EVA Air Brisbane Marathon starts at the City Botanic Gardens on the edge of the CBD, just a few minutes' walk from the river. The flat, road-closed course takes runners across the Story Bridge, along the riverside, through New Farm and Newstead, past the Powerhouse, and back through South Bank before finishing at the Botanic Gardens. It's a tour of Brisbane's best riverside precincts and offers spectacular CBD skyline views throughout — the kind of course that makes you feel like you're running through a postcard.
Five distances are available on Sunday 7 June 2026: the Marathon (42.2km), Half Marathon (21.1km), 10km, 5km, and a 2km Kids Fun Run. The earlier distances can be used as a warm-up spectating session for family before heading back to the Botanic Gardens to cheer home the marathoners.
The Brisbane Marathon is flat and fast by design. The Botanic Gardens start is essentially at river level and the course rarely deviates from it, making this one of the most PB-friendly courses in Australia. Combined with cool June temperatures (typically 10–18°C at race start), it's an ideal setup for runners chasing a qualifier or personal best. Many runners report it as one of their fastest marathon courses.
The City Botanic Gardens is in the heart of the Brisbane CBD — supremely accessible via public transport from anywhere in the city. Brisbane Airport is 25 minutes away by train. Accommodation options across the CBD and South Bank are plentiful, and the post-race recovery food scene along South Bank is genuinely excellent.
