WHEN WILL REGISTRATION OPEN FOR THE 2026 RACE?
We will open registration for the 2026 26.2-Mile Big Sur Marathon on August 13, 2025. Please see the registration page as well as the pages for each individual distance for more information, deadlines, and entry fees.
WHAT ARE THE DIFFERENT WAYS I CAN ENTER THE MARATHON?
There are five different ways to enter the marathon:
- The random drawing: this is the least expensive option to enter the marathon. Registration for the drawing will begin at 9 a.m. Pacific Daylight Time on Wednesday, August 13th, 2025, and continue until 11:59 p.m. (Midnight) on August 27th. See additional information on the random drawing below.
- VIP: This is a first-come, first-served category limited to the first 400 entrants. See more information below about the entry fees and extra benefits of the VIP entry program.
- Charity Partners: You can elect to raise funds for one of our official charity partners. Those that raise the minimum amount are guaranteed a race entry. We will announce our charity partners on our before August 13 and links to their individual fundraising pages (which will include minimum fundraising amounts) will be available on each charity’s page.
- Marathon Tours & Travel. Our official travel agency, Marathon Tours, does have a limited number of marathon entries available with combined hotel packages. The cost for their tours varies depending on location and other options. A link to the Big Sur Marathon page at Marathon Tours will be live on August 13th.
- Boston 2 Big Sur: Registration for the always-popular Boston 2 Big Sur (B2B) category will open on October 1, 2025, following the 2025 Boston Marathon timed qualifier entry period. See the B2B page for more details.
HOW DOES THE RANDOM DRAWING WORK?
To try to enter the 26.2-mile Big Sur Marathon through the random drawing, you will complete a race entry through Haku, our registration partner. As part of this process, you will either create or use an existing Haku account. Registration in the drawing will require your full credit card information. There is no charge to enter the drawing and you will only be charged the complete entry fee (and processing fee) if you are selected in the drawing. If you are selected, your credit card will automatically be charged and you will be officially entered in the race. If you don’t want to run the full marathon, please don’t enter the random drawing. If you enter the drawing but change your mind before we select the winning applicants, you may be able to withdraw your application before August 27, 2025, by contacting our athlete services manager at registration@bsim.org. Once we select the winning applicants in the drawing, entry fees are not refunded.
HOW MANY ENTRIES WILL YOU ACCEPT IN 2026?
We anticipate accepting full fields for all race distances in 2026. Capacities range from about 550 for the 5K to close to 5,000 for the 26.2-mile marathon. We expect all race distances to fill quickly.
WILL THERE BE AN OFFICIAL TRANSFER PROGRAM IF I GET INJURED OR ARE UNABLE TO USE MY ENTRY?
The Big Sur International Marathon no longer offers a transfer program.
WILL YOU OFFER REGISTRATION PROTECT IN THE ENTRY PROCESS?
Yes, “Registration Protect” will be available in the registration path for an additional fee. This third-party program can refund up to 100% of your entry fee for a covered reason when all requested information (doctor’s note, etc.) are provided in the correct format during the requested time window. There will be more information available on Registration Protect when we open the random drawing on August 13, 2025.
WHERE DO THE ENTRY FEES GO?
The Big Sur Marathon Foundation is a non-profit organization. Our mission is to create beautiful running events that benefit our community. Race entry fees help cover the cost of race production and help our organization provide grants to more than 90 area non-profit organizations throughout the year as well as our free year-round youth fitness programs and a newly built, best-in-class Palo Corona cross-country course to support cross country running in high schools and colleges.
WHAT ABOUT NON-MARATHON RACE DISTANCES?
Registration opens for our non-marathon distances (21-Miler, 11-Miler, 12K, 5K, and four-person Marathon Relay) on September 9, 2025. Visit the registration page for complete details.
HOW DO I RECEIVE ANY UPDATES ON FUTURE RACES?
The best way to stay updated about the status of our future events is to add your email address to our mailing list, available at the bottom of the home page at www.bigsurmarathon.org or www.montereybayhalfmarathon,org. Also, follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram–see the bottom of the home page for links to our social media pages.
