Marathon Details - Niagara Falls International Marathon

North America Marathons > Canada > ON > Niagara Falls > Niagara Falls International Marathon

Niagara Falls International Marathon & Half Marathon, 10K, 5K

Niagara Falls, ON Canada

October 27, 2024

http://www.niagarafallsmarathon.com

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Address:	Niagara Falls International Marathon 5300 Willmott Street Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada L2E 2A7
Phone Number:	905-356-9460
Fax Number:	905-356-7156
Email:	Email the organizers



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Reviews

Course 4.2

Organization 3.7

Spectators 3.2

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Number of comments: 172 [displaying comments 1 to 11]

More Comments: [ < 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 .. 18 > ]

P. L. from New York (10/23/2019) "Beautiful fast course." (about: 2019) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 Absolutely beautiful course, very scenic. Good support for a small marathon with less than a thousand runners. They also run a half marathon and a 10k and 5k with a relay at the same time. I would suggest a separate finish line for marathon runners. Decent expo not crowded at all. Great finishers medal. Really awesome and unique crossing International boundaries from USA into Canada. A bit of a timing delay in the beginning was annoying. The timer had problems with something causing an almost 20 minute delay of the Marathon. But once we got going it was well worth it. I would definitely recommend this race if you are looking for a fast course it's very flat.
David Villarreal from Temple Texas (9/4/2019) "Enjoyed it" (about: 2018) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 5 We came up from Texas. I competed in the half marathon on my handcycle. We truly enjoyed our trip. Everyone was super friendly. Package pick up was a little weird but all in all I had fun.
R. T. from Toronto (10/15/2018) "Disappointing - Not sure I'm coming back" (about: 2018) 11-50 previous marathons \| 6+ Niagara Falls International Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 Not sure what to say here. The course is nice and the weather cooperated this year. Spectators were sparse but those there were vocal. Now the rest - the expo was an utter disaster. The venue was too small for the number of participants, line-ups too long and the expo itself virtually non-existent. Food at the end of the race was blah and really get a better drink on route. My worst experience after 25 years of running Niagara.
Kathy Sadler from Ottawa, Canada (10/22/2017) "Very disappointing! Do not do it!" (about: 2017) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 Omg I hated everything about this marathon! I have done many different marathons in the past 17 years and loved most of them; a couple were a little disappointing and most were incredible but Niagara was the worst! I will tell people not to do Niagara. Okay the course was boring and nothing exciting along the way, not even music or spectators to encourage you on this challenging run. I was alone on my run as I went on my own and there was no pace bunny past 5 hours, which was a huge disappointment, as when you are with your pace group you get to connect with others. The bus driver taking us from the Crowne Hotel to the start line in Buffalo did not have a clue where to go and got lost! It just went on and on with one disappointment after another.
B. B. from Buffalo (10/18/2017) "Needs to get Better" (about: 2017) 6-10 previous marathons \| 4-5 Niagara Falls International Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 I ran the half marathon this year after running the full the last 5 years. The expo was so-so at best; not many giveaways and exhibitors were sparse. Start line corrals might be a good idea for the future. The course itself is great, loved that was moved up 2 weeks from previous years. Always windy but can't control the weather. The nuun on course was awful - tip to race director: go back to Gatorade! Post-race - a disappointment - a bagel, banana, chocolate milk, water (one only as I was told!) and $7 beers if so inclined. This race has the potential to become a great fall race but needs to improve or it will remain a mediocre event.
P. P. from New York, NY (10/16/2017) "Meh - disappointing" (about: 2017) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 Parts of this race were great. The start in Buffalo at the museum, the enthusiasm of the few residents who turned out along the course, the volunteers, the crossover the bridge to Canada. But most of it was disappointing. There were few runners along the course, which was itself largely monotonous, so for most of it runners were alone. The weather for 2017 was awful - hot, sunny, and WINDY - 35-50 MPH headwind or side-wind the entire way. Knocked my footing out several times. High DNF rate. Nuun electrolyte drink served at aid stations was super diluted, so yucky and didn't do the job. Post-race food sparse and the chocolate milk can't be consumed by those who can't drink cow's milk. A real struggle all in all, and disappointing.
S. B. from Windsor, ON (1/3/2017) "Fantastic view and volunteers; odd start time" (about: 2016) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I found that the start time was odd for both the half and full, of 10am. Wasn't bad for me doing the half as it simply meant being done on time for lunch, but for my friends who are full runners - they had to run straight through a meal. Why it doesn't start at 8am we couldn't figure out. This would get everyone in nice and early. Even 9am would be better. Also made check-out expensive, as those marathoners wrapping up in 4hrs or more now had to pay an extra $50 to the race hotel for going beyond the allowed late checkout time. Again, something an earlier start time would address. Most pace bunnies didn't show up, so you had to find one near your desired time and make last minute changes. Our bunny opted to try to run to accommodate what would normally have been two different times, so that made it challenging. Not sure if it was the windy rainy weather that caused them not to show? Poor planning? No one seemed to know at the start line what was going on. The expo was disorganized - free samples were set out all at once as 'help yourself' so that when others arrived many items were completely gone. While you would hope that people would be ethical, you have to plan for them not to be. Someone passing 'one' to everyone would have been better. Shirts are a garish colour - yellow would be ok if reflective, but they aren't. The volunteers were wonderful - so much credit to them! The view was unbelievable. Was still nice to do for the amazing view, but it's not one that I'm likely to do again.
S. M. from Ottawa, ON (11/3/2016) "90th marathon! Above average race" (about: 2016) 50+ previous marathons \| 2 Niagara Falls International Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 This was my 90th marathon! The course starts off at an art gallery. Lots of cool sculptures in the gallery and outside. The photo exhibit of Fran Drexler was good as well. The runners were limited in leaning against walls in the lobby and using the indoor toilets. The portion of the course in the US was nice but they were missing mile markers. When you cross to Canada the course gets a bit dull. Beautiful houses but very few spectators. The cold wind and rain made it a tough race for many runners but there are more aid stations on the Cdn side.. The few spectators were really nice with one lady handing out gloves! Food was okay but I would prefer a disposable jacket like in previous years. I would also like an earlier start time since my first meal of the day is at 5 pm by the time I am all washed up, etc. Expo was okay as well. Not on my list of best races to do but it is okay. It was great meeting runners from all over the US as well.
J. H. from Canada (11/2/2016) "Overall disappointing" (about: 2016) 11-50 previous marathons \| 6+ Niagara Falls International Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 To start can't beat the course. To run over the Peace Bridge into Canada is amazing. Course is flat; was windy and rainy but can't do anything about that! Ran with a group of 20 who came for the run; all of us disappointed with the organization - why no year on the shirts? I see that from prior years posts people have commented on that. Race kit pick-up disorganized, expo was pathetic and post-run food etc was almost non-existent when we crossed (4 hours). This event needs to get a lot better from an organization standpoint to compete with other events in this time frame. Not certain we will be returning.
C. T. from Indiana, USA (11/1/2016) "Half Marathon Experience - Highly Recommended!" (about: 2016) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Ran the half this year. This is one of the most organized races I have ran. This was my #17. The expo was small, but that didn't bother us, we have seen the big marathon expos and the small ones, they all just try to sell you things. We stayed at the host hotel where the bus shuttles picks up, so getting on the bus was a breeze, no wait. There were warming tents, hydration stations at the start. No assigned corral, but given the size of the race (under 2,000), there was no traffic jam at the start. The course is scenic, beautiful, flat and went by fast despite the strong wind and sprinkle, but that's the weather, you sign up for races knowing that weather is the variable. Hydration stations were adequate. Donut bites, banana, bagel, water and Cliff bar at the finish. The only complain is that the photographer was no where to be found for the pictures with our medals. No big deal. We just came back for pictures afterwards. We were given a rain gear to keep warm and dry. Certainly a nice touch. Shuttle for runners were there waiting and so within 10 minutes of my finish, we were back in our hotel room. Highly recommended!

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P. L. from New York (10/23/2019) "Beautiful fast course." (about: 2019) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 Absolutely beautiful course, very scenic. Good support for a small marathon with less than a thousand runners. They also run a half marathon and a 10k and 5k with a relay at the same time. I would suggest a separate finish line for marathon runners. Decent expo not crowded at all. Great finishers medal. Really awesome and unique crossing International boundaries from USA into Canada. A bit of a timing delay in the beginning was annoying. The timer had problems with something causing an almost 20 minute delay of the Marathon. But once we got going it was well worth it. I would definitely recommend this race if you are looking for a fast course it's very flat.
David Villarreal from Temple Texas (9/4/2019) "Enjoyed it" (about: 2018) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 5 We came up from Texas. I competed in the half marathon on my handcycle. We truly enjoyed our trip. Everyone was super friendly. Package pick up was a little weird but all in all I had fun.
R. T. from Toronto (10/15/2018) "Disappointing - Not sure I'm coming back" (about: 2018) 11-50 previous marathons \| 6+ Niagara Falls International Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 3 Not sure what to say here. The course is nice and the weather cooperated this year. Spectators were sparse but those there were vocal. Now the rest - the expo was an utter disaster. The venue was too small for the number of participants, line-ups too long and the expo itself virtually non-existent. Food at the end of the race was blah and really get a better drink on route. My worst experience after 25 years of running Niagara.
Kathy Sadler from Ottawa, Canada (10/22/2017) "Very disappointing! Do not do it!" (about: 2017) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 1 ORGANIZATION: 1 FANS: 1 Omg I hated everything about this marathon! I have done many different marathons in the past 17 years and loved most of them; a couple were a little disappointing and most were incredible but Niagara was the worst! I will tell people not to do Niagara. Okay the course was boring and nothing exciting along the way, not even music or spectators to encourage you on this challenging run. I was alone on my run as I went on my own and there was no pace bunny past 5 hours, which was a huge disappointment, as when you are with your pace group you get to connect with others. The bus driver taking us from the Crowne Hotel to the start line in Buffalo did not have a clue where to go and got lost! It just went on and on with one disappointment after another.
B. B. from Buffalo (10/18/2017) "Needs to get Better" (about: 2017) 6-10 previous marathons \| 4-5 Niagara Falls International Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 2 I ran the half marathon this year after running the full the last 5 years. The expo was so-so at best; not many giveaways and exhibitors were sparse. Start line corrals might be a good idea for the future. The course itself is great, loved that was moved up 2 weeks from previous years. Always windy but can't control the weather. The nuun on course was awful - tip to race director: go back to Gatorade! Post-race - a disappointment - a bagel, banana, chocolate milk, water (one only as I was told!) and $7 beers if so inclined. This race has the potential to become a great fall race but needs to improve or it will remain a mediocre event.
P. P. from New York, NY (10/16/2017) "Meh - disappointing" (about: 2017) 2 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 3 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 Parts of this race were great. The start in Buffalo at the museum, the enthusiasm of the few residents who turned out along the course, the volunteers, the crossover the bridge to Canada. But most of it was disappointing. There were few runners along the course, which was itself largely monotonous, so for most of it runners were alone. The weather for 2017 was awful - hot, sunny, and WINDY - 35-50 MPH headwind or side-wind the entire way. Knocked my footing out several times. High DNF rate. Nuun electrolyte drink served at aid stations was super diluted, so yucky and didn't do the job. Post-race food sparse and the chocolate milk can't be consumed by those who can't drink cow's milk. A real struggle all in all, and disappointing.
S. B. from Windsor, ON (1/3/2017) "Fantastic view and volunteers; odd start time" (about: 2016) 4-5 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 3 FANS: 3 I found that the start time was odd for both the half and full, of 10am. Wasn't bad for me doing the half as it simply meant being done on time for lunch, but for my friends who are full runners - they had to run straight through a meal. Why it doesn't start at 8am we couldn't figure out. This would get everyone in nice and early. Even 9am would be better. Also made check-out expensive, as those marathoners wrapping up in 4hrs or more now had to pay an extra $50 to the race hotel for going beyond the allowed late checkout time. Again, something an earlier start time would address. Most pace bunnies didn't show up, so you had to find one near your desired time and make last minute changes. Our bunny opted to try to run to accommodate what would normally have been two different times, so that made it challenging. Not sure if it was the windy rainy weather that caused them not to show? Poor planning? No one seemed to know at the start line what was going on. The expo was disorganized - free samples were set out all at once as 'help yourself' so that when others arrived many items were completely gone. While you would hope that people would be ethical, you have to plan for them not to be. Someone passing 'one' to everyone would have been better. Shirts are a garish colour - yellow would be ok if reflective, but they aren't. The volunteers were wonderful - so much credit to them! The view was unbelievable. Was still nice to do for the amazing view, but it's not one that I'm likely to do again.
S. M. from Ottawa, ON (11/3/2016) "90th marathon! Above average race" (about: 2016) 50+ previous marathons \| 2 Niagara Falls International Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 4 FANS: 2 This was my 90th marathon! The course starts off at an art gallery. Lots of cool sculptures in the gallery and outside. The photo exhibit of Fran Drexler was good as well. The runners were limited in leaning against walls in the lobby and using the indoor toilets. The portion of the course in the US was nice but they were missing mile markers. When you cross to Canada the course gets a bit dull. Beautiful houses but very few spectators. The cold wind and rain made it a tough race for many runners but there are more aid stations on the Cdn side.. The few spectators were really nice with one lady handing out gloves! Food was okay but I would prefer a disposable jacket like in previous years. I would also like an earlier start time since my first meal of the day is at 5 pm by the time I am all washed up, etc. Expo was okay as well. Not on my list of best races to do but it is okay. It was great meeting runners from all over the US as well.
J. H. from Canada (11/2/2016) "Overall disappointing" (about: 2016) 11-50 previous marathons \| 6+ Niagara Falls International Marathons COURSE: 4 ORGANIZATION: 2 FANS: 3 To start can't beat the course. To run over the Peace Bridge into Canada is amazing. Course is flat; was windy and rainy but can't do anything about that! Ran with a group of 20 who came for the run; all of us disappointed with the organization - why no year on the shirts? I see that from prior years posts people have commented on that. Race kit pick-up disorganized, expo was pathetic and post-run food etc was almost non-existent when we crossed (4 hours). This event needs to get a lot better from an organization standpoint to compete with other events in this time frame. Not certain we will be returning.
C. T. from Indiana, USA (11/1/2016) "Half Marathon Experience - Highly Recommended!" (about: 2016) 11-50 previous marathons \| 1 Niagara Falls International Marathon COURSE: 5 ORGANIZATION: 5 FANS: 3 Ran the half this year. This is one of the most organized races I have ran. This was my #17. The expo was small, but that didn't bother us, we have seen the big marathon expos and the small ones, they all just try to sell you things. We stayed at the host hotel where the bus shuttles picks up, so getting on the bus was a breeze, no wait. There were warming tents, hydration stations at the start. No assigned corral, but given the size of the race (under 2,000), there was no traffic jam at the start. The course is scenic, beautiful, flat and went by fast despite the strong wind and sprinkle, but that's the weather, you sign up for races knowing that weather is the variable. Hydration stations were adequate. Donut bites, banana, bagel, water and Cliff bar at the finish. The only complain is that the photographer was no where to be found for the pictures with our medals. No big deal. We just came back for pictures afterwards. We were given a rain gear to keep warm and dry. Certainly a nice touch. Shuttle for runners were there waiting and so within 10 minutes of my finish, we were back in our hotel room. Highly recommended!

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Marathon Details - Niagara Falls International Marathon