You leave downtown in the dark and within a couple of miles you are climbing the MacArthur Causeway with cruise ships lit up beside you and warm salt air coming off Biscayne Bay. That bridge, the Venetian and the Rickenbacker are the only real hills all day; the rest is flat and fast on paper. The catch is the weather. Even at a 6 a.m. start, Miami in late January can be humid, and the back half through Brickell and Coconut Grove is where many runners fade. Ocean Drive in South Beach gives you Art Deco hotels and early-rising spectators. Fewer than two percent of finishers run Boston times, so race the conditions, not your training-log PR. Entries sell out in days each August; put the date in your calendar now and remember the 7-hour cutoff is measured from the last wave.
Flat, USATF-certified single loop; the only climbs are the MacArthur, Venetian and Rickenbacker causeway bridges, with long stretches beside Biscayne Bay and the ocean. Course map ↗
General marathon and half entries SOLD OUT as of 2026-10-13; waitlist ran Aug 6 - Sep 30, 2026 and waitlist selections began Oct 5, 2026 on a rolling basis. Early August (2027 general registration was open by Aug 6, 2026; 2026 edition opened Aug 1, 2025 and sold out by Aug 11). First-come registration; the waitlist is drawn by lottery as spots open. Capped at 18,000 participants. Life Time members get access one week before the public. Marathon $225 ($250 waitlist), half $190 ($225 waitlist). No refunds; transfers and deferrals allowed for a fee before the mid-January deadline. Register ↗
- The first Miami Marathon in its current form was run on February 2, 2003 with about 3,400 participants; Life Time produces the event. ↗
- The course crosses the MacArthur Causeway past the cruise ships, runs Ocean Drive in South Beach, returns over the Venetian Causeway, then sends marathoners through Brickell, Coconut Grove and out the Rickenbacker Causeway before finishing at Bayfront Park. ↗
- The event is capped at 18,000 participants and the marathon cutoff is 7 hours after the last wave (16-minute pace). ↗
- 2026 had 3,251 marathon finishers, up from 2,954 in 2025; 1.7% ran Boston-qualifying times. ↗
- Both the marathon and half finish at Bayfront Park on the downtown waterfront; general 2027 entries sold out and a waitlist lottery began October 5, 2026. ↗
Checked 2026-10-13. Always confirm on the official site before booking travel.