PACERTRIP CITY EDITIONCA / RACE GUIDE

Royal Victoria Marathon

Name: 2024 Royal Victoria Marathon Highlights
Uploaded: 2024-11-15
Description: The Royal Victoria Marathon is held every October over Thanksgiving weekend in Victoria, on Canada's Vancouver Island. The lineup includes the marathon, half marathon, 8K, 5K, and Kids Run, with about

The city you want to run becomes your next trip.

Victoria
CA

Gord Webster · CC BY-SA 2.0DXR, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia CommonsMichal Klajban, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia CommonsMarathon · CC BY-SA 2.0

Race date in 6 days: Oct 11, 2026 Sun
City · Distance: Victoria · 42.195km · 21.1km · 8km +1 more events
Entry fee: CA$40From the 2025 edition
Status: ClosedSee how to enter ↗

2027Date Oct 10, 2027

2026Date Oct 11, 2026 · Closed

Official website ↗

Instagram

D-day as of Oct 5, 2026

About the race Runner stories How to enter Course Race Prep Travel

Why you dream of this race

THE DREAM

ABOUT THE RACE

A day you'll remember,
long past the finish line.

The Royal Victoria Marathon is held every October over Thanksgiving weekend in Victoria, on Canada's Vancouver Island.

The lineup includes the marathon, half marathon, 8K, 5K, and Kids Run, with about 10,000 runners across all events each year.

The marathon, half marathon, and 8K start and finish on the plaza in front of the British Columbia Parliament Buildings,

while the 5K and Kids Run are held separately at Willows Beach Park in Oak Bay.

The full marathon is a Boston Marathon qualifier, an Abbott World Marathon Majors ranking event, and the British Columbia marathon championships.

The race began in 1980 with about 700 runners and has grown steadily, with a record of more than 15,000 registrations in 2025.

The road to your own record

Picture the course in advance
and find the pace that fits you.

When the city cheers

Streets lined with cheers, runners all around.
You'll be part of that scene.

The trip that follows the run

Take it slow with the finish still in you,
and meet the city all over again.

Stories from those who ran it first.

From the joy of finishing to the tough moments — read what runners wrote themselves.

Race reports: 5

RedditRan in 2025 · Finish time 3:44

“Overall, the RVM was a really good race.”

Training was difficult because of a foot injury and summer heat, but the runner set a conservative pace and finished with a personal-best time despite the rain and cold.

Read the original on Reddit

Tim Thompson-EssexRan in 2025 · Finish time 2:56:16

“Finishing under three hours wasn't about one great race day; it was the cumulative effect of steady work over time.”

Tim Thompson-Essex completed the 2025 Royal Victoria Marathon in 2:56:16 and recorded that he overcame the difficulty of the 35 km mark through consistent training.

Read the original on LinkedIn

ともやRan in 2025 · Finish time 3:13

“The result was 3 hours 13 minutes (chip time).”

ともや ran the Royal Victoria Marathon as his first full marathon. Rain, climbs, and pain after 30K kept him from his 3:10:00 goal, but he finished in 3:13:00, and said the crowd calling his name and the warm atmosphere gave him a huge lift.

Quoted from the original · translated

Original quote

結果は3時間13分（チップタイム）

Read the original on TD Running Club（note）

James LamersRan in 2023 · Finish time 2:30:16

“I glanced at the clock as I came through—2:30:16—I had trouble understanding what those numbers meant and if I was supposed to be happy about them, but people around me were cheering and a volunteer handed me a medal and I certainly felt happy.”

The runner finished second at the 2023 Royal Victoria Marathon in 2 hours 30 minutes 16 seconds. Despite the rolling course along the coastline and the fatigue in the second half, the runner received support from schoolchildren and local residents. The runner said that their training and the strength of the fellow runners alongside them helped them finish.

Read the original on James Lamers

Hal JespersenRan in 2009 · Finish time 5:20:19

“My time of 5:20:19 was a PR (personal record).”

Hal Jespersen regarded the 2009 Royal Victoria Marathon as his best marathon, finishing in 5:20:19.

Read the original on Hal Jespersen’s Running Page

We translated a short line from each public race report and summarized the experience. Finish times are as stated by the author, and past editions may differ from this year's weather and operations.

See it on video,
feel it through their stories.

Preview the course and read what runners who went before you wrote.

2024 Highlights

Royal Victoria Marathon · Highlights

View on YouTube

This may be from a past edition. Check the organizer for this year's course and operations.

The way in that fits you

YOUR ENTRY

How to reach the start line —
start with what fits you.

Here are the ways to enter and what each requires.
Check the organizer's page for whether entries are open.

From the 2025 edition

Next edition entry

Entry dates for the next edition haven't been announced yet

First come, first served

Entry cost CA$185

The marathon is sold out, and only a waiting list is available.

The price for the tier with fewer than 90 places remaining;

it increases when the field limit is reached

Organizer's page

Green bib

Entry cost TBD

An option to forgo the official commemorative jacket or shirt while receiving the same bib and finisher finisher medal;

you can choose the charity to support when registering.

Organizer's page

Official race website Entry options

From the start line to the finish

RACE WEEK

The 42.195km I'll run

Know the course and time limit, and race day comes into focus.

From the 2025 edition

Runners start · local timeFrom 08:15

Time limit6 hours and 30 minutes

Event	Start	Time limit	Entry fee
Marathon42.2km	08:15	—	CA$185
Outway Half Marathon21.1km	08:15	3 hr 30 min	—
Island Savings 5K5km	09:00	60 minutes	CA$35
Thrifty Foods Kids Run	10:30	—	CA$25
Westland Insurance 8K8km	07:15	90 minutes	CA$60

Full marathon standard, increase when blocks are exhausted

START · FINISH

Inner Harbour, Victoria, BC

near the British Columbia Parliament Buildings

Start · Google Maps

Cut-off
13km 10:30

Original course map · static1.squarespace.com

Course is a gentle, flat course with a high point of 25 m, a low point of 3 m and only 770 feet of total elevation gain.

Starting at start line in front of the Parliament Buildings, runners loop behind the government buildings, follow Government Street past the Fairmont Empress,

continue along the Inner Harbour waterfront on Wharf Street, and enter Beacon Hill Park via Johnson Street and Cook Street.

Full marathon runners cross the park and head east towards Oak Bay along Dallas Road, with spectacular views across the strait towards the Olympic Mountains.

The course then passes through Oak Bay's quiet residential streets before returning to the coast and following Beach Avenue past the Victoria Golf Club and into the Uplands area.

AIMS Certified: Member race of the AIMS (Association of International Marathons and Distance Races)
Typical race-season temperature: around 11°C (52°F): Short sleeves or light long sleeves + arm warmers

Participant benefits

Timing chip

Pacers

Marathon · Half

Medical support

Restrooms

Water stations

Aid stations

Finisher medal

Event T-shirt

Bag drop

Race expo

To the start line,
step by step.

Pick up your bib, check your wave.
So on race morning, you can just run.

From the 2025 edition

Pick up your bib at the expo

Packet Pickup is not available on race day
Friday and Saturday before the competition (check the official page for exact times)

Crystal Garden, 713 Douglas Street, Victoria, BC

Google Maps Directions

Stations & transport near the venue

Tap a contactless debit or credit card or a phone wallet directly on the reader when you board the bus—BC Transit’s tap-to-pay system covers all Victoria buses, and your fare automatically caps at the day-pass rate.

Getting to the start

The marathon, half marathon and 8K start at Victoria's Inner Harbour in the city centre (Sunday).

The 5K and Kids Run start at Willows Beach Park in Oak Bay (Saturday)

Getting to the finish

Urban road closures — course occupied from 7 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. on Sunday, followed by phased reopening

More details

public BC Transit buses and a free secure bike valet ('The Locker', by Capital Bikes) on the Legislature lawn are the documented options.

NO PARKING allowed anywhere on the race routes;

vehicles left on course towed starting 12:01am Sunday.

IC card

Umo card

Umo reloadable cards and the Umo app are available via umo.net / the BC Transit website;

not required if using a personal contactless bank card

Works directly at the gates

Alternative: Umo DayPASS (fare cap) $5 CAD — You don't need to buy this separately —

if you tap the same contactless card twice in one day, BC Transit automatically caps you at the $5 day-pass rate for the rest of the day.

More details

Province-wide tap-to-pay (Interac, Visa, Mastercard, Amex, Apple/Google/Samsung Pay) launched on Victoria buses by May 19, 2026.

Each rider must tap their own card.

Concession/discount fares still require the Umo app, a physical Umo card, or cash rather than a personal bank card.

Source · checked Aug 18, 2026 Source · checked Aug 17, 2026

READY TO RUN

From race morning to after the finish.

Your start time, fuel and bag drop.
Know them ahead and the run feels easier.

The race takes place in October during Canada’s Thanksgiving holiday weekend, reflecting Victoria’s conditions at that time of year.

Victoria has an oceanic west-coast climate and is considered one of Canada’s mildest regions.

October’s average high is 13.9°C, the average low is 8.2°C, and rainfall is approximately 85mm.

Course itself is a relatively easy, flat course with little elevation change,

but runners should be prepared for sea winds along exposed sections such as Dallas Road.

Victoria is on Vancouver Island and can be reached by BC Ferries Connector bus from Vancouver International Airport or by flying into Victoria International Airport (YYJ).

Times are local to Victoria. Check the latest official information before the race.

A trip built around the race

STAY A LITTLE

MAKE IT A RUNTRIP

The race is one day,
the trip can be longer.

From a hotel that makes race morning easy,
to the meals and views you'll enjoy with the medal on.

Hotels that make race morning easy

6 places

Distances are straight-line from the start/finish area.
Check real travel times and booking terms with each hotel.

The start and finish are in the same place
We picked stays around that one spot.

Coast Victoria Hotel & Marina By Apa

Hotel · 845m

8.9/10(417)

View on Booking.com

Best Western Plus Carlton Plaza Hotel

Hotel · 995m

8.5/10(933)

View on Booking.com

Days Inn By Wyndham Victoria Uptown

Hotel · 2.8km

7.5/10(1632)

View on Booking.com

Fairmont Empress Hotel

Accommodation · 324m

8.9/10(1205)

View on Booking.com

Accent Inns Victoria

Accommodation · 3.5km

8.5/10(316)

View on Booking.com

Ocean Island Inn Backpackers Suites - Hostel

Hostel · 1.1km

7.3/10(1843)

View on Booking.com

Swipe sideways to see more hotels.

View on map →

Time for you, before and after the finish

38 experiences

Rest a little, wander a little.
Pick what suits you and whoever you're with.

SIT-DOWN TOURS7CARB LOADING3LOCAL TRANSIT5FAMILY PASS7TRAIL & OUTDOOR7CITY TOURS7EASY WALKING2

Victoria, Gulf Islands Cruise & Butchart Gardens Tour

CA$267

View on Klook

New: 75-Minute Victoria Harbour Boat Tour with Live Tour Guide

CA$48

Royal Victoria Marathon

About Royal Victoria Marathon — what makes it special

A day you'll remember,long past the finish line.

The road to your own record

When the city cheers

The trip that follows the run