Kobe Marathon 2026

Packet pickup is at the Kobe International Exhibition Hall, Building 1, 1st floor: Friday, November 13, 1pm to 8pm (last entry), and Saturday, November 14, 10am to 7pm (last entry). There is no race-day pickup. Bring your original passport for identity verification; proxy pickup is not allowed.

• Two waves on Sunday, November 15, 2026: first wave 9:00, second wave 9:15. 7-hour limit from the first gun with checkpoint cutoffs; the course closes at 4:00pm.
• Start is in front of Kobe City Hall on Flower Road in Sannomiya; the course turns around near Okura Coast in Akashi and finishes at Kobe Harborland. Checked baggage is transported from start to finish.
• JAAF and World Athletics/AIMS certified, officially flat with under 10m of elevation difference - the 2025 redesign removed the late-race Kobe Bridge climb.
• Mid-November Kobe is cool and dry: average high around 17-18C, race-morning temps near 10-12C - layer for a chilly start.
• The 20,000-runner field is sold out (entry closed August 31); the race is part of the MGC Series 2026-27.

Sources: global.kobe-marathon.net, kobe-marathon.net, kobe-marathon.net

The race starts in front of Kobe City Hall, heads west through Suma and Tarumi, turns near Okura Coast in Akashi City, and finishes at Kobe Harborland on Kobe Gas Lamp Street. The course is almost entirely flat, with about 10 m of total elevation change along the coast.