Zurich Maratón Donostia San Sebastián 2026
Sunday, 22 November 2026 · San Sebastián, Spain
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The weekend at a glance
- Date
- Sunday 22 November 2026
- Start
- 9:00, Calle Hernani, by the town hall. The 10K starts at 8:15
- Finish
- The Boulevard, San Sebastián
- Distance
- 42.195 km, certified by the Spanish athletics federation
- Your number
- Expo Sports at the Kursaal, Avenida de la Zurriola 1. Friday 20 November 16:00 to 20:00, Saturday 21 November until 20:00. No collection on race day
- Bag drop
- At the Kursaal, 7:00 to 8:15 on race morning, back from 8:45 to 14:30
- Time limit
- 5 hours, with checkpoints from 35 minutes at 5 km to 4 hours 40 at 40 km
- Drinks
- A station at least every 5 km, from 5 km, and at the finish
- Weather
- The last five completed race mornings ran from 6.4 °C to 11.3 °C at 9:00
- Entering
- Sold out on 13 October 2026. Bibs change hands only through the organiser's marketplace
The San Sebastián Marathon is on Sunday 22 November 2026, its 47th edition. It starts at 9:00 on Calle Hernani in the city centre, beside the town hall and the Alderdi Eder gardens, and finishes on the Boulevard at the edge of the old town. A 10K is run the same morning.
The marathon is sold out, with all 7,000 places taken. The organiser runs a marketplace on its website where runners can buy and sell bibs.
Planning the trip? See how In the Running helps make it easier.
Collecting your number 2026 details
Numbers are collected at Expo Sports in the Kursaal conference centre, at Avenida de la Zurriola 1. Collection opens on Friday 20 November from 16:00 to 20:00. On Saturday 21 November it closes at 20:00, but the two organiser pages disagree on when it opens. The collection page says 9:00 and the rules say 10:00, so plan on 10:00 to be safe. There is no collection on race day.
Bring your ID card or passport and the email with your bib number. Someone else can collect for you with a photocopy or photo of your ID and that email. You collect your chip bib, runner's bag and shirt at the same time.
Race morning 2026 details
The start is on Calle Hernani, in the centre by the town hall. Runners start in waves set by the pace you gave when you entered, and 35 pacers cover eight finish times, from 2 hours 45 to 5 hours.
The bag drop is at the Kursaal, open from 7:00 to 8:15 on race morning for marathon runners. Arrive with your bib pinned on and your backpack labelled with its claim ticket. You can also leave a bag there on the Friday or Saturday during collection hours.
The course 2026 details
The course has been in use since 2022, when the start and finish moved into the centre. The organiser describes it as central, fast and flat, through the Centro, Antiguo, Amara and Gros districts. It passes the Paseo de la Concha, the Victoria Eugenia theatre, the Anoeta stadium, the Buen Pastor cathedral, the Kursaal and Plaza Gipuzkoa. The last kilometre is entirely flat, on the run in to the Boulevard.
The time limit is 5 hours, measured from when the first runner of each start crosses the line. The rules set these checkpoints on the clock.
| Distance | Checkpoint closes |
|---|---|
| 5 km | 35 minutes |
| 10 km | 1 hour 10 |
| 20 km | 2 hours 20 |
| 25 km | 2 hours 55 |
| 30 km | 3 hours 30 |
| 35 km | 4 hours 5 |
| 40 km | 4 hours 40 |
| Finish | 5 hours |
That is a steady 7 minutes a kilometre. A runner who misses a checkpoint is out of the race, though they may carry on at their own risk. There is a drinks station at least every 5 km from 5 km, and another at the finish.
Getting to San Sebastián 2026 details
San Sebastián's own airport is 20 km from the centre, and Ekialdebus line E21 runs from it all year. Biarritz airport in France is about 45 km away, with a shuttle bus to San Sebastián. Bilbao airport is about 105 km away, and PESA runs a shuttle bus from there.
By train, Renfe's San Sebastián station has long-distance services from Madrid and Barcelona. Euskotren's narrow-gauge line runs along the coast from Bilbao and on to Hendaye on the French border, where SNCF trains leave for Paris. The main bus station, Donostia Geltokia, is beside the Renfe station.
Where to stay in San Sebastián
The start, the finish and the Kursaal are all in the centre, so a room in the centre or in Gros, across the river from the old town, keeps race morning and collection on foot. The bag drop is at the Kursaal, not at the start, so leave time to drop your bag and walk to Calle Hernani before 9:00.
Weather in San Sebastián in late November
The race is held on the last Sunday in November, or close to it. No race was held in 2020, and the 2024 race was cancelled the day before because of a forecast of very strong winds. These are the last five completed race days, at the start on Calle Hernani, at 9:00 and at 13:00. The hour is the one the marathon starts in. They are model estimates for the start area, not readings from a weather station.
| Race day | 9:00 | 13:00 | Wind at 9:00 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24 November 2019 | 10.2 °C | 11.5 °C | 22 km/h |
| 28 November 2021 | 6.7 °C | 6.8 °C | 26 km/h |
| 27 November 2022 | 10.5 °C | 14.6 °C | 20 km/h |
| 26 November 2023 | 6.4 °C | 11.2 °C | 7 km/h |
| 23 November 2025 | 11.3 °C | 13.6 °C | 19 km/h |
Wind matters here, on a coastal course in late autumn, so check the forecast in race week. The organiser cancelled the 2024 race for it.
Afterwards 2026 details
You finish on the Boulevard, at the edge of the old town. Bags are handed back at the Kursaal from 8:45 to 14:30, so plan to collect yours there before 14:30.
Other race weekends
Close by, and with guides of their own, are Toulouse Marathon.
The next races with a guide
Sources
| 2026 date, sold out, 7,000 places, the bib marketplace and the 10K | Zurich Maratón Donostia San Sebastián, organiser, 2026, checked 13 October 2026 |
| Start and finish, distance, neighbourhoods, landmarks, flat profile, waves and pacers | Recorrido, organiser, 2026, checked 13 October 2026 |
| Collection venue, days, hours, documents and collecting for someone else | Recogida de dorsal, organiser, 2026, checked 13 October 2026 |
| Organisers, start times, time limit, checkpoints, collection hours, no race-day collection, drinks, transfers and prices | Reglamento, organiser, 2026, checked 13 October 2026 |
| Bag drop and collection days and hours | Guardarropa, organiser, 2026, checked 13 October 2026; the page's own text gives Friday as the 21st, its table gives 20 November 2026 |
| Airports, trains and the bus station | How to get here, San Sebastián Turismoa, checked 13 October 2026 |
| 2019 race date, Sunday 24 November 2019 | Collins Cheboi vince maratona di Zurigo di San Sebastian, ANSA, checked 13 October 2026 |
| 2021 race date, Sunday 28 November 2021 | Maratón San Sebastián 2021, resultados, Carreras de Montaña, checked 13 October 2026 |
| 2022 race date, Sunday 27 November 2022, and the new course | Maratón San Sebastián 2022, Carreras de Montaña, checked 13 October 2026 |
| 2023 race date, Sunday 26 November 2023 | Maratón San Sebastián 2023, resultados, Carreras de Montaña, checked 13 October 2026 |
| 2024 race cancelled for wind | Zurich Maratón San Sebastián cancelled due to extreme wind, Athletics Illustrated, checked 13 October 2026 |
| 2025 race date, Sunday 23 November 2025 | Maratón San Sebastián 2025, última hora, Carreras de Montaña, checked 13 October 2026 |
| Race-day weather | Open-Meteo historical weather, at the start on Calle Hernani, ERA5-Land temperatures on about a 9 km grid; ERA5 wind on about a 25 km grid |
Written from the organiser's published information and the app's own race data, checked on 13 October 2026.
If something here is wrong or out of date, tell us.