The sunbed is losing out to the start line. New data from sports travel insurance specialist SportsCover Direct shows bookings for endurance events abroad are surging, with specialist policy sales for challenge-based sporting trips up 55% year on year. The single biggest riser? Ultramarathon travel, up 77%, as amateur athletes increasingly go abroad to compete rather than watch.
The wider industry backs this up. TripAdvisor has flagged 'sweat jetting' among its top travel trends, noting that big-city marathons now move serious visitor numbers: the Chicago Marathon drives a 300% spike in visitors, with Boston up 228% and Berlin up 222%. Google searches for 'ultra race' have climbed 234% in a year, Strava reports 9% more members completing marathons and ultras (with 40% of users logging runs abroad), and entries to the TCS London Marathon ballot from 18-29 year-olds more than doubled, up 105%.
Interestingly, the half-distance is having a moment. Half marathons grew 34% against 21% for full marathons, and half ironmans outpaced full Ironmans (29% vs 19%) — a sign travellers want the overseas racing experience without months of full-distance training. Ski racing is the surprise runner-up, up 44%, with Sweden's Vasaloppet pulling in international entrants.
The trend comes to life through athletes like Izzy Weatherall, an ultramarathon swimmer who completed the 28-mile 20 Bridges circumnavigation of Manhattan — the final leg of open water swimming's 'Triple Crown' after the English Channel and Loch Ness. Her reasoning captures the appeal: if you're ticking off a bucket-list city anyway, why not tick off a bucket-list challenge there too?
Autumn's European calendar is packed with proof. The Amsterdam Marathon gets things going on 18 October, followed by Frankfurt on 25 October, with Valencia later in the season. IRONMAN Barcelona-Calella and the Spartan Race European Championship in Estérel Saint-Raphaël share an October weekend, and the UK-founded Ultra X Madeira multi-stage ultra runs 31 October to 1 November. Berlin remains the pick for runners chasing a fast, flat personal best.
One practical warning from SportsCover Direct's Chris Trotman: standard travel insurance often excludes race and competition cover, so check your policy covers your specific event, your kit, and build in buffer time either side of race day. A racecation is still a holiday — but it comes with a different risk profile than a beach week.
For travellers who want their trip to mean something more than a tan, this trend is an easy sell: pick a city you've always wanted to see, find an event at a distance you can actually train for, and let the race structure the whole escape.
