Porto Half Marathon 2026

Race registration for the Hyundai Porto Half Marathon opens the door each year to one of the fastest and most beautiful 21 km races in all of Portugal, holding the World Athletics Label and with a history dating back to 2007. Since its inception, the race has been won in every single edition by East African athletes, including Olympic champions of the caliber of Haile Gebrselassie and Samuel Wanjiru, and former 10,000m world champion Berhane Adere, who took the women's title in 2010. The men's course record belongs to Zersenay Tadese, at 59:30, set in 2011, while in the women's category Pamela Chepchumba — a two-time winner — set the mark at 1:10:24 in 2009. The 2026 edition — the 19th in its history — takes place on Sunday, September 13th, starting at 9:00 am from Avenida de Dom Carlos I, at Esplanada do Castelo, and brought together more than 12,500 runners in its most recent edition between the half marathon and the 5 km mini-marathon, also available for those who prefer to walk.Registration for the Hyundai Porto Half Marathon is handled online, with three pricing tiers: €30 until March 31st, €35 until August 31st, and €55 until September 8th, the final closing date or until spots run out. For those seeking a more exclusive experience, there's also a VIP option (€200), which includes a sub-elite bib, first-row start, reserved parking near the finish, access to a VIP Zone with its own gear-check and catering, and results notification by SMS. It's worth keeping in mind that, unlike other races, registrations here are strictly final: no refunds are issued for any reason, and bib transfer to another person or another edition is not permitted under any circumstance.The course is, without a doubt, one of the race's biggest draws: completely flat and laid out at sea level, it starts in the Passeio Alegre area and follows the mouth of the Douro River, heading into the city's historic heart along Rua do Ouro and the Cais das Pedras viaduct, before crossing the iconic Luís I Bridge — one of Europe's most photographed bridges — toward the south bank, where Vila Nova de Gaia lies. There, runners pass along Cais de Gaia and Cais Fontaínha, flanked by Porto's legendary wine cellars, before turning around near the Gaia Marina and heading back along the same route toward Avenida de Dom Carlos I, where the finish line is also located, closing an out-and-back circuit of extraordinary visual beauty. Along the way, runners pass by the historic Ribeira do Porto, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, with constant views of the Douro that make this one of the most photogenic races on the European half marathon calendar.Bib pickup takes place at the Runner's Expo, at Alameda Shopping, on September 11th and 12th, from 10:00 am to 11:00 pm — free entry, open to the public, not just to runners. The course offers bottled water aid stations every 5 km, both at the start and finish, plus sports drinks at refreshment points along the route. The time limit to complete the half marathon and be officially classified is 3 hours (runners must reach the finish before 12:00 pm). Timing is done via electronic microchip, handed out at the Expo, which must be correctly laced to the shoe; without it, your time won't be recorded even if you finish the course. There's a gear-check service in the start/finish area, exclusively for properly registered runners wearing the official event bib.Beyond the purely athletic side, the Hyundai Porto Half Marathon has established itself as a major sporting, cultural, social, and tourist event for the city, actively contributing to revitalizing its historic center every autumn. It's a date designed both for high-performance athletes looking to improve their personal best on a genuinely fast course, and for recreational runners who simply want to enjoy the festive atmosphere, the warmth of the Porto crowd, and the unique opportunity to run on foot through two cities — Porto and Vila Nova de Gaia — joined by one of Europe's most beautiful rivers.