The race was extremely well organized from registration through check-in to the race day pre and post race. Relief stations were well stocked and had more volunteers than I've ever seen at a race. The course was well marked and barricaded with ample police and military staff on hand. The meals were tasty. The people of Krakow were warm and inviting throughout our weekend visit. I highly recommend this race.

First off I came to this race with no prior knowledge of Krakow and the website didn't help me find anything like a map to the registration hall or anything like that. So I was horribly lost when I got to looking for it. Paying via a bank transfer and not a credit card is also a bit annoying because if you don't have a Polish bank the transfer fees are phenomenal (that being said you can pay the day of the race it just costs more- obviously).
The course was good but the spectators weren't as active as I've seen them in some places and running through the rynek was a bit dissapointing as no one was there.
If you were near the end of the race they ran out of water at some aid stations and it was HOT this year. I thought I was going to have to drop from dehydration and I've never felt that in a race before.

Very well organised run with very regular fruit/drink stands manned by eager volunteers. Good enthusiastic support along most of the way and the whole application process was remarkably hassle-free. Medal was nice, too, as were the welcome and finishing packs. Course very flat. Great first marathon to do in a great city. Plus, at a cost of 80zB (if you book in advance) it's incredibly cheap, especially since they provide all runners with free accommodation.

This is a nice marathon. The start and finish in the park were great (although the extra lap of the park at the end is brutal... you actually run right next to the the finish line and have to go in for another 3 or 4 kilometers).

It was a little boring in the middle, but the parts in the park, by the river and old town were great... and the free beer afterwards was the nicest pint I've ever had!!!

The Cracovia Marathon is based on perfect organization. They do a very good job there. I felt like I was in a familiar running community after the race when we got a typical Polish soup, bread and a beer in the big marathon tent. The course leads through the old city at the beginning and then goes along the river. You won't find so many people outside the city along the course who shout at you, but that didn't disturb me at all. There was plenty of water, three different iso-drinks and bananas. I had run the marathon in Vienna the week before - I was 9 minutes quicker in Krakow, so the course invites you to speed on. I love the wonderful, precious medal, so I'll come back next year.

This is a relatively small marathon, with about 2,500 participants, and a well organized water and food supply (it was very hot!!). They have a nice course through the old town, and along the river to a suburb (with plenty of shade). Then you run back along the river and do a killer extra lap around the park before the finish. The only negative thing for me was the inclusion of the roller-bladers, who occasionally forced me to make life-saving moves to avoid clashes. But, at least partly because of the weather, it was great! I will be back next year!

Well organized, low-key, small marathon. Easy to enter - no queues to pick up your number or at the tented pasta party. No true expo. Very well marshaled by police and volunteers. Rained heavily this year; that type of thing is in the lap of the gods, but it did keep spectators thin on ground. Free beer and soup after the run made for a very nice touch. Course could be so much better, though. Changed this year, and for the worse I think. The roads can be a bit rutted, so take care, but if only they used the historic part of city more and didn`t drag you out and back to boring eastern part of Cracow. The city is fantastic to visit with so many lovely churches and so much history - and it's still very cheap - so this run is on my recommended list.

The Cracovia Marathon is a perfectly executed race for runners, by runners and Olympic Gold Medal walker. The organizers, the volunteers, and the local communities all pour themselves into the event and it's moving and wonderful to be the beneficiary of their efforts.

Organization/spectators - The organizers had everything covered perfectly, making it as user-friendly a running experience as I can imagine. Pre-race was perfect; during a pouring rain you're in a warm tent with ample facilities and loads of incredibly caring, attentive volunteers, so you're made to feel special and your needs are met with no stresses. You saunter out to the start at the last minute and you're off. The organization remains great throughout - aid stations well placed and well done, highly visible volunteers on course controlling all intersections and marking turns, bike volunteers, EMTs, Special Forces (?) and med aid tents keeping an eye out for runners in trouble, and a fairly smooth finish area with reasonable food, first aid available, easy bag retrieval, available showers, and a nice area to mill about and exult and recover. (They could spread out the after-finish stuff more - there was a slight jam-up getting food and the chip removers weren't obvious; a friendly and very visible volunteer steered me to them.)

Also the course itself is great, though to my mind not perfect (I agree with some of my fellow runners that it needs serious modifications in future). However, I voted five stars because there is no perfection, and because it is very good both for beauty/interest and for quality of running it permits. It's an engaging mix of the old-town cobblestones, and charming little trails along Vistula River with good spectator views and a great support and overwhelming volunteer presence. There are cars on the opposite lane in a couple of stretches, which isn't ideal but seems unavoidable given the course to Nova Huta.

My bottom line: this is a truly great international marat(h)on, beautiful, runner-friendly event and you'll be happy if you do it.

This is the 4th marathon I have run and it's almost the worst. The course was changed this year, so rather than take in the lovely city (which we only ran through for about 4KM), we ran all the way to Nowa Huta, which is virtually a town filled with high-rise flats. The weather wasn't great. And the organized support said nothing; they just stood there, and that was particularly disappointing!!! We decided to do this marathon in the first place becasue the reports were that the support was brilliant and the course was interesting, we had no eveidence of this!!! Very disappointing...

Beuatiful, interesting and vibrant city to visit, can build a nice weekend away around your marathon (hard staying off the vodka whilst in Poland though, be careful:)!).
The course is flat and fast, very pleasant along riverside and into the old town, where the 1000s of tourists/spectators will give you plenty of encouragement just when you need it!
Well stocked drink stations every 5k, you had a choice of water, powerade, fruit and a sponge at each, brilliant!
Thoroughly reccomend it, thats all I can say!
My first marathon but am an expierienced 10k 1/2marathon runner so know what a good race should be like and this 1 has it all.