Where does Richmond Runfest Half Marathon take place?

Richmond Runfest Half Marathon takes place in Richmond, UK.

What distances does Richmond Runfest Half Marathon offer?

Entry options include: Family Mile, Half Marathon.

How is Richmond Runfest Half Marathon rated by runners?

Richmond Runfest Half Marathon has an average rating of 4.38 out of 5 from 26 verified participant reviews on Racecheck.

What is Richmond Runfest Half Marathon like?

Based on participant reviews, runners describe it as: Ideal for beginners (67% of reviews), Small & Intimate (67% of reviews), Urban & Nature Mix (100% of reviews), Flat & Fast (50% of reviews).

Richmond Runfest Half Marathon reviews

Name: Richmond Runfest Half Marathon
Start: 2026-09-13
End: 2026-09-13
Location: Richmond, UK
Rating: 4.38

Jill B.

3.9

· 2026 Marathon ·

This was my 1st marathon which I chose as a flat course, which it was. However, there are vast sections of the course, particularly on the latter stages (miles 20 onwards), which are very lonely if you are towards the back of the pack. These are the places where you could do wi...

This was my 1st marathon which I chose as a flat course, which it was. However, there are vast sections of the course, particularly on the latter stages (miles 20 onwards), which are very lonely if you are towards the back of the pack. These are the places where you could do with some encouragement and there's absolutley no-one around! If you're looking for a marathon with wall to wall support, this is not it. Kew Gardens at the start was great but ,when you get out along the towpath, you are running against a tide of people out for their Sunday stroll. There should have been female only toilets at the start, men have urinals why can't the women have seperate facilities as well? A very small percentage of the marshalls were busy looking at phones & didn't even look up, so you have to look for the signage directing you around shopping areas/residential streets. Water station volunteers were all fab!

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Katherine A.

3.4

· 2025 Half Marathon ·

I wouldn't recommend this race for a few reasons: - firstly, there seemed to be a shortage of toilets for the number of runners. The queues were ridiculous not long before the start. - secondly, I couldn't help but feel short-changed by the way this race was marketed, as a fami...

I wouldn't recommend this race for a few reasons: - firstly, there seemed to be a shortage of toilets for the number of runners. The queues were ridiculous not long before the start. - secondly, I couldn't help but feel short-changed by the way this race was marketed, as a family friendly event with free entry to Kew Gardens. What the organisers failed to mention is that while spectators can get in to Kew Gardens before 9am, they then have to wait until 11am for the greenhouses to open. A friend of mine brought her children along, only for them to find that they had to wait quite a long time inside Kew Gardens to be able to see anything (and they can't leave/re-enter after 9). The festival area at the finish was also pretty sub-par to be honest - with barely any seating, and hardly enough bins for the large numbers of people attending (so I have rated the event poorly for it's "eco-friendliness - there was a pile of rubbish on the floor that people were adding to when I left, I doubt the organisers would take responsibility for clearing that and it was probably left for the Council) and there was apoor choice of food/drink vans. - the course is also not great. While I appreciate that it's not possible to organise a closed road course in London for the price I paid for this race, much of the narrow route was shared with pedestrians and cyclists, and there were parts along the pavement by a busy road.

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Dasen P.

4.6

· 2021 Half Marathon ·

This was a race that I deferred from 2020 and this was my first time running the Richmond Runfest. The organisation was outstanding throughout the event as well as the prerace communications. The event includes multiple races - a 10k race within Kew Gardens and the half and ...

This was a race that I deferred from 2020 and this was my first time running the Richmond Runfest. The organisation was outstanding throughout the event as well as the prerace communications. The event includes multiple races - a 10k race within Kew Gardens and the half and full marathons on Sunday.

The start and first ~9-10k of the HM was within Kew Gardens, the course followed the river towpath towards then back via Ham to the Old Deer Park in Richmond. The course was well signed and and the water stations were well placed and efficient.

The finish area and baggage collection were also efficient. There was a family festival in the Old Deer Park with plenty of food stalls to choose from.

Although the course was not a fast one due to the towpath being uneven this is a good event to attend.

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Tom Q.

3.9

· 2019 Marathon ·

Beautiful run with amazing scenery! Not enough marshalling or signage around the river and you need to weave in and out of people out for their Sunday stroll along a very popular part of the river/ tow path after running twenty miles. Also avoiding boats coming out of the river. ...

Beautiful run with amazing scenery! Not enough marshalling or signage around the river and you need to weave in and out of people out for their Sunday stroll along a very popular part of the river/ tow path after running twenty miles. Also avoiding boats coming out of the river. Also took far too long at the end to get my friend medical attention when he was seriously struggling after the marathon. Care once he was in the medical tent and was excellent but far too long to get there. Worth doing once but will look for another next year purely to not have to contend with loads of other people at the back end of a marathon crowding the route with little marshal or public support for a good few miles!

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Chris 🐺.

4.6

· 2019 Marathon ·

Amazing location/scenery- kee gardens, Richmond, the river, Hampton court: beautiful. Marshalls were great and numerous, but we're missing on one or two key points including where the marathon and half marathon courses merged- I wasn't the only marathon runner unsure...

Amazing location/scenery- kee gardens, Richmond, the river, Hampton court: beautiful.
Marshalls were great and numerous, but we're missing on one or two key points including where the marathon and half marathon courses merged- I wasn't the only marathon runner unsure if I'd taken a wrong turn
Timing could be improved: 8am start for the marathon was great but couldn't the half have started at 8.30 instead of 9? The timing and layout meant many of the faster marathon runners had to dodge a lot of half marathon runners
Overall fab and I'd do it again- but please sort out the timing to avoid the clash!

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Jamie L.

4.1

· 2018 Half Marathon ·

This event is spread over the weekend with the 5k and 10k being on the Saturday and the half and full on the Sunday.. Very local event for me so I chose to pick up my registration pack in Richmond high street from a camper van during race week. First 3-4 miles were around the g...

This event is spread over the weekend with the 5k and 10k being on the Saturday and the half and full on the Sunday.. Very local event for me so I chose to pick up my registration pack in Richmond high street from a camper van during race week. First 3-4 miles were around the grounds of Kew Gardens which was very nice before heading up the Thames tow path which can be dodgy in places due to uneven ground and then you get to Teddington lock, take a left, through the grounds of Ham house and then back towards old deer park where the finish is. The event village was pretty good and had a few family activities going on as well a family race that afternoon. Excellent medal and Nike t-shirt plus a free beer voucher at the end as well 😀 As I'm local to the event I wasn't effected but I think there a train strike on that weekend so that would've made getting the event a pain for some but nothing the organisers can do about that.

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Thanks for your feedback Jamie. The towpath section to Teddy Lock is being repaired as we speak so the course should be great in 2019! Race Director, Tom.

Gareth H.

4.4

· 2018 Half Marathon ·

First time racing at the Richmond Runfest , decided to give the half marathon distance a try , information via email is good in the run up to the race day , race numbers arrived in plenty of time,. The race starts on grass near Elizabeth gate in Kew Gardens, plenty of toilets e...

First time racing at the Richmond Runfest , decided to give the half marathon distance a try , information via email is good in the run up to the race day , race numbers arrived in plenty of time,. The race starts on grass near Elizabeth gate in Kew Gardens, plenty of toilets etc available prior to the race starting , course is on mixed surfaces , concrete , gravel/towpaths . Luckily the weather was good on this occasion , can imagine if it was raining it would be quite messy , scenery along the route is superb, the support is really good up until you get beyond the slug and lettuce in Richmond then it gets a little quiet until you return. The course is quite challlenging, the course profile looks like an ECG chart on my garmin, which explains why my quads were aching so much. Post race village is great, plenty of entertainment , food and drink. The medals are absolutely superb as is the T-shirt and goody bag . I would definitely enter again.

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Thanks for your feedback Gareth. The towpath section from Petersham meadows to Teddy Lock is being repaired as we speak so the course should be great in 2019! We also have a great theme for this year that we look forward to sharing with you. Hope to see you again. Race Director, Tom.

Lin E.

4.2

· 2018 Half Marathon ·

This is a nice route starting inside Kew Gardens and then heading out onto the tow path down to Richmond and out past Ham House, returning back to finish in Richmond Park. It’s a lovely flat route, although the tow path especially is very narrow and take care as the surface is un...

This is a nice route starting inside Kew Gardens and then heading out onto the tow path down to Richmond and out past Ham House, returning back to finish in Richmond Park. It’s a lovely flat route, although the tow path especially is very narrow and take care as the surface is uneven. There were plenty of liquids available on route with a mix of bottled and cups of water and a lucozade station. The finish festival is a great place to catch up with fellow runners afterwards with food and drink available (beer voucher in the goody bag, big yay) and logistically it was very smooth. No queues for bag drop or collection, had no issues with toilets either at start or finish. The cheeky race tees is fab too. A nice bonus (and well played by the organisers) is that if you make a weekend of it and do a race both on the Saturday (10k) and Sunday (half or full marathon) you also get bonus bling, the Laureus medal. Who can resist a bit of extra bling!

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Thanks for your feedback Lin! The towpath section to Teddy Lock is being repaired as we speak so the course should be great in 2019! Race Director, Tom.

Sarah M.

4.9

· 2018 Half Marathon ·

Really enjoyed this race. Was well organised and a beautiful flat route through Kew Gardens and along the Thames. The start waves were well judged and it felt like it wasn't too crowded and that I was running with similar runners. Probably could have done with a few more toilets...

Really enjoyed this race. Was well organised and a beautiful flat route through Kew Gardens and along the Thames. The start waves were well judged and it felt like it wasn't too crowded and that I was running with similar runners. Probably could have done with a few more toilets based on the queues. The medal was lovely. Goody bag was good. I think I would do this again.

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Thanks for your feedback Sarah. Making a couple of changes with the toilets to reduce queues for 2019 but no-one missed the race in 2018 so only small changes. Glad you enjoyed the event and look forward to seeing you in the future. Race Director, Tom.

Caroline G.

3.1

· 2018 Marathon ·

If you want a low key marathon in London this is for you. It's part of the whole runfest but i'll be honest and chatting to a few other runners after, you can feel pretty isolated and don't be fooled into thinking with the marathon you get all the bells and whistles advertised......

If you want a low key marathon in London this is for you. It's part of the whole runfest but i'll be honest and chatting to a few other runners after, you can feel pretty isolated and don't be fooled into thinking with the marathon you get all the bells and whistles advertised... The route is out back, swings backs, up on roads tight corners back to thames path then off you go again and on a couple of these no marshals so you just hope the sign you are following is pointing the right way. And that's kind of my gripe, despite the beauty and uniqueness of Kew Gardens for the first 4 or so miles, you are then on the thames path for the majority of the rest. Running through crowds of people getting on with their everyday life which is fair enough for this part of London but you are dodging people, dog walkers and cyclists ringing their bells as they tailgate you on the thinner parts of the path... I get it, and i've done a number of races along the thames path but my point is, it's not quite what you may have been led to think you getting here with this one. Spectators are poorly catered for - word the organisers - if you are going to issue a route map for the love of god make it legible, the 'pirate theme' was a mistake, made it totally useless. My supporters found it as useful as a chocolate teapot and they were not alone as they found other supports for runners in similar situation. Would I run it again? No. Would I recommend it? depends what you are looking for, flat it might be but it's awkward. Volunteers and marshals cannot fault, especially the 3 kids at the Ham house turn around - top marks for the randomness of your encouragement guys, brilliant. Medal for sure is a corker, but not having enough t-shirt in the sizes people want the end, there were 1000 marathon runners, and you ran out of mediums? On the whole the Richmond runfest I see is a great thing, and fair play it's lot to organise, but the marathon runners, well it felt we were an after thought.

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Hi Caroline, thanks for your detail ed feedback. Will take a lot of these onboard for 2019. Will definitely work on that spectators map. Sorry about the medium tees but we are the only race in london and of our size that create male and female cut tees. This means some tee sizes will run out but we should have had a medium size left in the unisex. Thanks again for your feedback. Race Director, Tom

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Richmond Runfest Half Marathon