Naha Marathon（NAHAマラソン） — Naha, OkinawaNext edition — Dec 6, 2026 (CONFIRMED)Hotel check-in nights: Dec 5, 2026Crowd size — 23,859 starters · 39th race (7 December 2025)The Naha Marathon is a 42.195 km road race from Naha through southern Okinawa, held on the first Sunday of December; the 40th race is on 6 December 2026. Entry closed in July, so this trip is for registered runners and supporters. Book the Saturday night: bib pickup is that day, and the gun goes at 9:00.How the date is set — The first Sunday of December; only the 1st and 6th races fell on the second Sunday. The association confirms the date in May (7 May for the 2026 race) and opens entry in July.How often it runs — First run in 1985 to mark 25 years of Naha's sister-city ties with Honolulu. No race was held in 2020 or 2021; 2026 is the 40th.Getting a roomGoes first — Saturday 5 December 2026. Bib pickup runs that day from 10:00 to 20:00 in Onoyama Park, and race-morning pickup from 6:00 gets crowded.Act by — Now: the race is on 6 December 2026, and the Saturday night is the one runners need.Entry closed on 11 July 2026; bib vouchers go out in late November, by email for runners living overseas.NAHA Marathon Association — “Entry for the 40th race closed (11 July 2026)” — https://naha-marathon.jp/news/%f0%9f%86%95%e3%80%90%e7%ac%ac40%e5%9b%9e%e8%a8%98%e5%bf%b5naha%e3%83%9e%e3%83%a9%e3%82%bd%e3%83%b3%e7%94%b3%e8%be%bc%e5%8f%97%e4%bb%98%e7%b5%82%e4%ba%86%e3%80%91%e5%a4%9a%e6%95%b0%e3%81%ae%e3%81%8a/ (read 2026-11-03)A sold-out listing may reopen after a cancellation or an additional room release. 空きウォッチ Aki checks Rakuten Travel for new openings, so you can act when one appears.Watch the rooms — free, no accountA December run to the Peace Memorial ParkThe course leaves Onoyama Park, runs up Kokusai-dori in the opening kilometres and heads south through Haebaru and Yaese to the Peace Memorial Park, where the first cut-off waits at 21.3 km. The return passes Himeyuri Tower and Ryukyu Glass Village, then heads back north through Itoman to the stadium.The race began in 1985 to mark 25 years of Naha's sister-city ties with Honolulu, and it still runs through neighbourhoods. Private aid stations are allowed along the road, alcohol excepted, alongside the nine official water stations and seven sponge points planned for 2026.Saturday in Onoyama ParkEverything before the gun happens in one park. On Saturday the Budokan arena hands out bibs and T-shirts from 10:00 to 20:00, and the opening ceremony is at 13:30. On Sunday the start blocks close at 8:20 and the gun goes at 9:00, beside the stadium where you will finish.That makes the Saturday night the one that matters, and central Naha the easy base: Onoyama-koen and Tsubogawa monorail stations are a minute's walk away. A room in the southern towns works with a car, but in 2025 the roads closed in sections from 8:15, so leave early or use the organiser's car park and shuttle near the airport.What happens, and when

Saturday 5 December 2026 10:00–20:00 — Bib and T-shirt pickup, Okinawa Prefectural Budokan, Onoyama Park

Saturday 5 December 2026 13:30 — Opening ceremony, Budokan arena stage

Sunday 6 December 2026 06:00 — Race-day bib pickup opens at the Budokan

Sunday 6 December 2026 08:20 — Start blocks close; late runners start at the back

Sunday 6 December 2026 09:00 — Start, Onoyama Park

Sunday 6 December 2026 10:25 — First stop point, about this time: 7.2 km, Nakaima junction; roads behind it begin to reopen

Sunday 6 December 2026 12:15 — First cut-off: 21.3 km, Peace Memorial Park

Sunday 6 December 2026 14:10 — Second cut-off: 34.3 km, Naha Nursing School

Sunday 6 December 2026 15:15 — Finish closes, Onoyama athletics stadium

How to see itRunners of any nationality aged 16 or over can enter, but entry for the 40th race closed on 11 July 2026, ten days after it opened, and places cannot be transferred or run by someone else. The 2026 fee was ¥11,000, or ¥9,000 for runners aged 65 or over and for high-school-age runners, who also needed a parent's consent.NAHA Marathon Association — “Entry requirements, 40th race (entry closed)” — https://naha-marathon.jp/entry/ (read 2026-11-03)Watching for free — Watching from the roadside is free; supporters are asked not to step onto the course or use noisemakers. At the finish, the stadium's trackside viewing area opens at 7:00 on race day.Tickets

Race entry, 40th race (2026) — Price: ¥11,000; ¥9,000 for runners aged 65 or over and for high-school-age runners (16 to 18). — On sale: 1–11 July 2026, now closed. Entry opened at 9:00 on 1 July through Ryukyu Bank counters, the Sports Entry website and its phone line. — In English: There was an overseas entry window in 2026, and overseas entrants receive their bib voucher by email. Watch the official site for the next race's entry.

Where to stayHow hard it actually is — Central Naha is the practical base: the Yui Rail monorail reaches the start at Onoyama-koen or Tsubogawa station, and the organiser asks everyone to come by monorail or bus. The southern towns need a car and a plan around the road closures. 空きウォッチ Aki checks well-rated hotels listed on Rakuten Travel in Naha city and the southern Okinawa area for the Saturday night; Urasoe, Ginowan and the resort coast are outside the watch.What a night costs — Okinawa's new prefectural accommodation tax starts with stays from 1 February 2027, so it does not apply to the 2026 race night. From the 2027 race on, budget 2% of the room-only rate per person per night, up to ¥2,000.If the town is full

Central Naha on the Yui Rail — Yui Rail to Onoyama-koen or Tsubogawa station, each about a minute's walk from the start. No late-night problem: on the Sunday and holiday timetable the last train from Onoyama-koen towards central Naha leaves at 23:36. Saturday's bib pickup is in the same park. The organiser asks everyone to use the monorail or buses, and some bus routes and times change during the closures.

Naha's airport side (Akamine, Oroku) — Yui Rail, one or two stops to Onoyama-koen; Naha Airport station is one stop beyond Akamine. Trains towards the airport leave Onoyama-koen until 23:59 on the Sunday and holiday timetable. Handy for a Sunday-evening flight: roads to the airport are partly closed during the race, and the organiser publishes detour routes.

Southern Okinawa (Tomigusuku, Itoman, Yaese) — By car: drive to the organiser's temporary car park near Naha Airport and take the free shuttle bus to Onoyama; on race day the car park opens at 5:00. Collect the car by 18:00, when the car park closes; cars left behind are towed, with ¥40,000 charged for towing and storage. Rooms outside the city, but the course runs through these towns: in 2025 their roads were closed in sections from about 9:00, and the return leg into Naha stayed closed until about 15:15.

Know before you go

December can still be hot. At the 32nd race (2016) the temperature reached 28°C, more than 60 runners were taken to hospital, and 22 were admitted with heatstroke. Bad fit for: Runners coming from a northern winter without heat training.

The cut-offs are clock times from the 9:00 gun, so time spent reaching the start line counts: 21.3 km by 12:15, 34.3 km by 14:10 and the finish by 15:15. Five more stop points along the course close in turn, the first at 7.2 km at about 10:25, so that roads can reopen; anyone behind one must stop. In 2025, 70.45% of starters finished. Bad fit for: First-time marathoners planning a slow walk-run.

There is no way into the 2026 race now: entry has closed, and places cannot be transferred. Bad fit for: Travellers hoping for a late entry or someone else's bib.

What regulars do

Collect your bib on Saturday, 10:00–20:00 at the Okinawa Prefectural Budokan in Onoyama Park. Race-morning pickup opens at 6:00 but is crowded, and anyone not in their start block by 8:20 starts at the back. (How we know: Organiser FAQ, 40th race.)

Use the monorail on race morning and to reach the airport afterwards. In 2025 Route 58 at the start closed from 8:15, Kokusai-dori from 8:30 to about 10:45, and the last stretch to Onoyama until about 15:15; the organiser publishes airport detour routes. (How we know: Organiser traffic notice (2025 closures; 2026 times to follow).)

Supporters can claim a place in the finish stadium's trackside viewing area: the organiser plans to open it for place-claiming on Friday 4 December, 9:00–17:00, and from 7:00 on race day through Gate 4. (How we know: Organiser FAQ, 40th race.)

Expect private aid stations along the road; the organiser allows them, alcohol excepted. If you run as a JAAF-registered athlete, though, taking food or drink from them can get you disqualified. (How we know: Organiser FAQ and competition rules.)

Similar events

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Suzuka 8 Hours — Suzuka, Mie. Jul 2–4, 2027

6 Hours of Fuji (WEC) — Oyama, Shizuoka. Sep 24–25, 2027

Chichibu Night Festival — Chichibu, Saitama. Dec 2–3, 2026

Sources

Entry for the 40th race closed (11 July 2026) — NAHA Marathon Association (read 2026-11-03)

Entry requirements, 40th race (entry closed) — NAHA Marathon Association (read 2026-11-03)

39th race (2025): entrants, starters and finishers — NAHA Marathon Association (read 2026-11-03)

Okinawa accommodation tax: questions from guests — Okinawa Prefecture (read 2026-11-03)

Onoyama-koen station timetable (holiday timetable revised 6 September 2026) — Okinawa Urban Monorail (Yui Rail) (read 2026-11-03)

FAQ: bib pickup, supporters, parking and access — NAHA Marathon Association (read 2026-11-03)

Entry for the 40th race opens (1 July 2026) — NAHA Marathon Association (read 2026-11-03)

Course, cut-offs and traffic restrictions (2025 closures shown) — NAHA Marathon Association (read 2026-11-03)

Medical aid: heat illness and the 32nd race report — NAHA Marathon Association (read 2026-11-03)

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