How to Pick Hotels Close to Marine Corps Marathon

With approximately half the field of participants from outside the national capital area and the other half knowing all too well the challenges of area traffic, picking the most convenient hotel for Marine Corps Marathon Weekend can make a big difference in the experience. Finding a convenient location is essential and to do that means multiple considerations must be addressed. Just running or also sightseeing? Taking public transportation? Preference for convenience before or after the marathon? Sometimes even area residents choose to stay in a hotel to better reduce the risk of interference from traffic on event morning. Here are four tips to help pick a hotel close to the Marine Corps Marathon.

The best option for runners is to book a room through the MCM Online Hotel Desk with discounted rates at dozens of hotels. The MCM hotel desk, managed by proud MCM hotel provider, OnPeak, makes booking a room easy and even lists the distance from each property to the event start. Even better, these partner hotels are aware of the early morning needs of their guests and often provide additional support on the day of the MCM.

1-Headquarters Hotel. The MCM hosts multiple weekend events at the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center at the National Harbor, most notably the Health & Fitness Expo. Runners and guests can book a room in the waterfront resort that rests alongside the Potomac River. Here runners can enjoy the ease of staying in the same location as many MCM events and take advantage of the proximity to shops, restaurants and attractions of the nearby National Harbor entertainment district. Runners can access the Gaylord by car or take Metro to the Eisenhower station where MCM shuttles will run continuously on Friday and Saturday. On MCM morning, shuttles will deliver runners directly to Runners Village until 6 a.m. when the route adjusts for Metro’s opening. Shuttles will then run between Eisenhower Metro and the Gaylord taking runners in the morning and delivering proud finishers in the afternoon.

2-Close to Start. Staying in Arlington County will limit the distance required to travel on event morning. Specifically, the many hotels in Crystal City are convenient to the MCM start line shuttles that run on event morning from 23^rd and Crystal Drive to Runners Village. Return shuttles from the Finish Festival deliver runners back to this location after the MCM. Crystal City features great restaurants, unique specialty stores and the Family Festival on event day. The ideal location for families with youngsters to watch and cheer for their favorite marathoner at mile 22-23 of the course.

3-Close to Finish. The MCM finishes at the Marine Corps War Memorial in Rosslyn. After exiting the finish grounds, runners and spectators revel in the excitement of mission accomplished in the Finish Festival that consumes the streets of the Rosslyn community. Runners may choose a hotel on this side of Arlington within walking distance of the finish or within a stop or two along the Metro’s orange line from Rosslyn. To get to the start, runners may take Metro to the Pentagon station.

4-Close to Metro. The MCM will open Metro at 6 a.m. on event morning giving participants ample time to arrive at Runners Village and get ready to run. Metro’s Trip Planner serves as a calculator to determine time required to travel from an area hotel to the Pentagon station, just a short walk from Runners Village. Here’s where sightseeing ambitions may play a greater role in choosing a hotel than proximity to the MCM start or finish. Runners may opt to stay near Georgetown, in Downtown DC by the museums and memorials, or in an Arlington neighborhood.

Thanks for visiting this archived blog. The content and details are specific only for the event year highlighted in this article. For current information, please visit the event page within the MCM website.