(Fremont Bridge, Portland, OR)

One of my main goals in becoming a runner was to be able to run through and explore different cities and places I visit on my travels. This post is designed to be dynamic and changing, representing my top three favorite runs around the world. If a new run usurps one of the current top three, I will edit this post and refresh the list as time goes on and I run and travel more.

(Broadway Bridge with my favorite running cat)

I never grow tired of running in my hometown. Portland has excellent running paths, especially along the Willamette River downtown. The course is largely flat with beautiful views of the city and the riverscape. This run can be configured in dozens of ways: there are seven bridges along this route (Broadway, Steel, Burnside, Morrison, Hawthorne, Tilikum, and Sellwood) that you can run across in either direction (some even have a top or bottom level to choose from!), allowing you to make this run many different durations!

My typical route starts just north of the Fremont Bridge (can't run over this one), heads south on the waterfront (and a small segment of Naito Parkway), to the Steel Bridge, where I like to cross to the east side. Once on the east side of the river, you continue to run south, down to Duckworth Dock where you are literally running right over the river. The dock ascends back up to the Eastbank Esplanade where you pass the aforementioned bridges in succession. At any time, if you want to make the run shorter, just cross one of the bridges back to the west side. Alternatively, you could zig zag the bridges and make the run much longer, crossing them back and forth.

(Duckworth Dock)

Portland embraces the seasons, and can often be overcast or rainy. I will continue to assert that the Pacific Northwest has the BEST summers in the world, and running on a summer morning in Portland is heavenly. Fall, however, brings beautiful colors, in spring the city looks like a garden, and it is kind of spooky fun to run Portland when its foggy and misty out.

Once, I even saw a sea lion swimming up the river, which made that day the best day ever.

(View from the Tower Bridge)

I fell in love in London. With running, that is. I went to London for the second time in September 2025 right when I had decided I'd learn to run. Lucky for me, running in the morning along the River Thames could probably charm anyone into the sport. Starting out around 7am from the Tower of London, you can explore the riverfront sans tourists. When I headed out later in the day for sightseeing and the like, the areas I had previously been running in were crammed with hundreds of people, and seeing those places hours earlier without anyone out was incredibly special.

At this point in my running journey I was just starting out, so running three to five miles was a feat! I think that fueled my passion--it felt so good getting the hang of the sport, surrounded by legendary architecture and world famous historical sites. I would start at the Tower of London, running along the waterfront west along the Thames. From there, you hit the London Bridge, the Southwark Bridge, and then the Millennium Bridge (hello dementor scene from Harry Potter). Similarly to running in Portland, you can cross these bridges in any order in any direction. Running over the Millennium Bridge was certainly my favorite. It is a pedestrian bridge, very lightweight, and it feels like you are flying over the water. Running back up east along the river, passing THE Globe Theatre, was surreal every time.

(The Tower Bridge at 7am, these empty sidewalks would be crawling with tourists just two hours later)

My plan to use running as an activity I could do to stay physically active and explore my surroundings while traveling was in place, and it was even more rewarding than I expected. It also gave me a feel for what it might be like to live in the city I was visiting; it made me feel more like a local. Running while traveling can also be a wonderful social experience. On this trip I met up with my friends from Germany, and we were able to share incredible memories of waking up before the rest of the hotel guests, tying on our running sneakers, and exploring the streets together.  One of the best feelings was upon finishing the run, entering a cafe together all hot and sweaty, and ordering our pastries among the other guests who had just woken up. Those hotel showers felt even better this way.

London was my first city I truly ran in, and after exploring more, I kept finding neighborhood after neighborhood where I longed to run (hello Buckingham Palace or Big Ben with my Nikes on and no crowds?!). These morning runs made all the food I tried even more delicious, and each Guinness, even more satisfying. 

Can I even describe what it feels like to be on a modern run, airpods connected wirelessly to your iPhone, soft, cushioning running shoes on your feet, running past ancient ruins and contrasting your activities and your "normal" with the "normal" of those people who built the ruins you're jogging past? It boggled my mind every time. Similar to my experience in London, running early in the morning allowed you to see Athens without the mob of tourists that typically crowd the streets. Instead, the air is cool, you're running past people on their way to work, delivery drivers, and what I felt was more of the "real" Athens. It felt pretty cool too, feeling all those old stones under your feet.

Small, winding streets zig zag through the city, making the running options infinite. My favorite runs included running up the hill to the Acropolis, into the National Garden (a nice shady reprieve), and looping the Olympic Stadium. To run around the original Olympic Stadium was something out of a dream. It was humbling to think of all the athleticism that had occurred in that stadium over hundreds of years, especially compared to my quaint morning jog.

(Olympic Stadium, Athens)

Running in a city teeming with ruins and historical sites allows you to see these areas in a different way than the typical tourist experience. If going in the morning, you're likely one of the first people there, and there isn't going to be hardly anyone around. A lot of people will also think you live there, which enriches the experience of being a foreigner in somewhere new.  Engaging in more "local" activities helps you learn and understand a place much better than joining a generic tour group. Plus, it makes that Greek beer and Halloumi wrap even more tasty when lunchtime rolls around.

These are currently my top three favorite runs around the world. I would love to do them all again, at any opportunity I have. But there are so many amazing running routes out there! So many routes even in just one city. I would love to know your favorite running routes (be specific!) in the comments below!

none yet listed...but running in Japan, Portugal, and the Cook Islands is coming soon...