If you’re running in a destination marathon, it should be for one of two reasons: 1) A kick-ass, top-notch course unlike any other; 2) A locale you’d want to visit no matter what. But with hundreds of marathons across the country, how do you choose?

We talked to Jeff Galloway—former Olympic runner, author of Marathon: You Can Do It and creator of the Galloway Marathon Training and AIDS Marathon programs—and polled members of the 50 Marathon States Club and 50&DC Marathon Group—groups that make it their mission to run a marathon in every state—to bring you 10 races worth traveling for.

Additional reporting by Rebecca Savransky.