RacesIndependent race preparation guide

Kraków, Poland · 42.195 km road marathon

Cracovia Marathon 2027

Sunday 18 April 2027

A single city loop that starts and finishes on the Rynek Główny, Kraków's Main Market Square, with a 6-hour limit and a km 21 cut-off under the 2026 rules.

Cracovia Marathon at a glance

Start: 09:00 (2026 rules and the 2027 countdown), Rynek Główny; nobody set off after 09:30 in 2026
Finish: Rynek Główny (Main Market Square)
Course: One loop through nine districts, certified, every kilometre marked (2026 course)
Elevation: Between 198 and 222 m above sea level
Time limit: 6 hours from your own start crossing (2026 rules; the 2027 rules are not out yet)
Cut-offs: km 21 within 3 hours of your own start (2026 rules)
Entry: Not yet open for 2027; in 2026 capped at 9,000, from 190 zloty rising to 270, late entry 300 zloty
Bib pickup: Reyman stadium, ulica Reymonta 20: Friday, Saturday or race morning 07:00 to 08:00 (2026)
Aid stations: Food every 5 km from km 5, water every 5 km from km 7.5, no private drinks (2026)

Checked against the organizer's pages on 23 September 2026. Facts for the next edition can still change; the organizer's page is the final word.

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Cracovia Marathon course map and elevation

One loop through nine districts, certified, every kilometre marked (2026 course). Map, elevation profile and 3D flyover.

Loading topographic map…

running direction two lines: out and back on the same road race kilometresCourse: TrailSplits reconstruction; map data © OpenStreetMap contributors

Flat (<5%)

Route drawn by TrailSplits from published race information; approximate. For illustration, not navigation.

What to expect on the course

Past the Błonia meadow around km 3 to 5, then out along ulica Księcia Józefa to a turn at Przegorzały near km 10 (2026)
Over the Dębnicki bridge near km 14 and out to Rondo Matecznego in Podgórze at km 17 (2026)
Past the TAURON Arena and out along aleja Jana Pawła II to Plac Centralny in Nowa Huta at km 30 (2026)
Lowest on the Vistula boulevards around km 38 to 40, then a rise of about 15 m past Wawel to the square (2026)

The map follows the 2026 course matched to the streets; the 2027 route has not been published and may change.

Read the full course description

One city loop that starts and finishes on the Rynek Główny, on a course certified by the Polish athletics federation and World Athletics, with every kilometre marked. In 2026 it crossed nine districts: west past the Błonia meadow around km 3 to 5 and out along ulica Księcia Józefa to a turn at Przegorzały near km 10, a section new that year; back east beside the Vistula to cross the Dębnicki bridge near km 14 and out to Rondo Matecznego in Podgórze at km 17; east along the river, a short out-and-back on aleja Pokoju near km 24 and north past the TAURON Arena to aleja Jana Pawła II, which leads out to Plac Centralny in Nowa Huta at km 30; then back west to the Vistula boulevards and past Wawel to the square. The organizer changed short pieces near ulica Piastowska, the Dębnicki bridge and ulica Konopnickiej a month before the 2026 race. Its 2026 profile keeps the whole course between 199 and 220 m with 123 m of climb and descent in total; the lowest ground is on the boulevards around km 38 to 40 and the last two kilometres rise roughly 15 m to the square. Surfaces are not described. In 2026 food stations with water, isotonic drink, fruit and sweets came every 5 km from km 5 and water-only stations every 5 km from km 7.5, each with toilets and the food stations with medical points; private drinks were not accepted. The 2026 race was run in strong sun at up to 20°C.

Source, licence and file

TrailSplits reconstruction of the published route. Course: TrailSplits reconstruction; map data © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL · original source · Download reference GPX (42.9 km in the file). Approximate terrain-model heights added by TrailSplits, sampled and smoothed at roughly 100 m intervals. Buildings, bridges and small road gradients are not surveyed road elevations.Produced using Copernicus WorldDEM-30 © DLR e.V. 2010-2014 and © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH 2014-2018 provided under COPERNICUS by the European Union and ESA; all rights reserved.

Three decisions to make before race day

Reach km 21 within three hours of your own start

Under the 2026 rules you had to pass km 21 within 3 hours of crossing the start, about 8:30 per km, the same pace as the 6-hour limit, so plan an even pace. Be in your zone before 09:00: nobody could set off after 09:30.

More detail
The 2026 rules sent anyone off the course who had not passed km 21 within 3 hours of crossing the start line, which is the same average pace, about 8:30 per kilometre, as the 6-hour finish limit. A runner near the limit has no room for a slow first half or a plan that saves walking for early on and makes it up later; plan an even pace at worst. Be in your zone before the 09:00 gun as well: the start gate closes about 30 minutes later and nobody may set off after 09:30.
Collect your bib on Friday evening or Saturday

In 2026 the race office at the Reyman stadium opened Friday 16:00 to 20:00 and Saturday 07:00 to 20:00, but race morning only 07:00 to 08:00. A proxy had to be named in the entry form.

More detail
In 2026 the race office at the Reyman stadium on ulica Reymonta, under 2 km west of the Rynek, opened Friday 16:00 to 20:00 and Saturday 07:00 to 20:00, but on race morning only 07:00 to 08:00, an hour before the gun. If someone else is to collect for you, name them in your entry form when you register: the 2026 rules refused a proxy who was not listed there, even with your QR code.
Keep something for Nowa Huta and the climb back to the square

Nowa Huta, km 27 to 33, was the highest stretch in 2026, run in sun up to 20°C. After the low river boulevards the last 2 km climb about 15 m to the Rynek, so do not surge early on a quick course.

More detail
From about km 27 to km 33 the course runs out along aleja Jana Pawła II to Plac Centralny and back, the highest stretch of the 2026 profile, and the 2026 race was run in strong sun at up to 20°C with a station roughly every 2.5 km. After the lowest ground on the river boulevards around km 38 to 40, the last two kilometres climb roughly 15 m past Wawel to the Rynek. With only 123 m of climb in the whole race the course is quick, so the finish rise is where an early surge is paid for.

Your race-day sheet

Even elapsed splits for 42.195 km. All clocks are local to Kraków.

Target finish time, including stops

HoursMinutes

Total stopped minutes Your start time (local)

09:00 is the start in the 2026 rules and the time the organizer's home-page countdown runs to on 18 April 2027; the 2027 rules are not yet published, so recheck it when they appear. Europe/Warsaw.

Time limit: 6 hours from your own start crossing (2026 rules; the 2027 rules are not out yet)

How this sheet applies the limit

Under the 2026 rules each runner had 6 hours from their own crossing of the start line; the start gate closed about 30 minutes after the 09:00 gun, so nobody could set off after 09:30, and anyone who had not passed km 21 within 3 hours of crossing the start had to leave the course. The 2027 rules are not yet published. Because the limit runs from your own start rather than to a fixed clock, this sheet sets no closing time; enter the time you expect to cross the line. In 2026 runners lined up in 13 start zones by the finish time declared at entry, from under 2:50 to 5:00 to 6:00.

A timing comparison, not a fitness assessment. Intermediate cutoffs, queues, weather and terrain are not modelled. Stops are spread evenly in the illustration; actual checkpoint times will differ.

ESTIMATED FINISH

13:00:00

MOVING PACE BUDGET

5:34/ km

ELAPSED PACE

5:41/ km

120 min below the modelled finish limit

Distance markers, not aid stations or guaranteed arrival times.
Distance	Elapsed	Local clock
5 km	00:28:26	09:28:26
10 km	00:56:53	09:56:53
15 km	01:25:19	10:25:19
20 km	01:53:45	10:53:45
Halfway	02:00:00	11:00:00
25 km	02:22:12	11:22:12
30 km	02:50:38	11:50:38
35 km	03:19:05	12:19:05
40 km	03:47:31	12:47:31
Finish	04:00:00	13:00:00

Training plan for Cracovia Marathon 2027

A free week-by-week plan dated to this race. It starts from a stated default (weekly distance, longest recent run, days a week) that you can change; nothing is read from your watch or training history. It does not use the finish-time target above.

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Entry, bib pickup and rules

Entry:: Not yet open for 2027; in 2026 capped at 9,000, from 190 zloty rising to 270, late entry 300 zloty
Bib pickup:: Reyman stadium, ulica Reymonta 20: Friday, Saturday or race morning 07:00 to 08:00 (2026)

Read the full entry and pickup rules

Entry for 2027 has not opened yet. In 2026 it opened on 19 November 2025 on the organizer's Datasport registration platform, with a cap of 9,000 runners and no waiting list; the fee rose from 190 zloty to 10 January to 230 zloty to 28 February and 270 zloty to 10 April, with late entry at 300 zloty at the race office on the Friday and Saturday while places remained, and places did remain in race week. The 2026 discounts were 25 percent for runners over 60, 10 percent for Karta Krakowska holders, 50 percent for holders of the Kraków large-family card and 10 percent for prepaid groups of ten or more, and runners with disabilities entered free. Fees are never refunded or carried to a later edition, but in 2026 a place could be handed to another runner through the entry profile for 30 zloty until 16 April. Runners must be 18 by race day. In 2026 bibs were issued at the race office in the Henryk Reyman Municipal Stadium, ulica Reymonta 20, on Friday 16:00 to 20:00, Saturday 07:00 to 20:00 and race morning 07:00 to 08:00, when bibs were handed out but no entries taken; a proxy could collect only if named in the entry form, showing the runner's QR code and their own photo ID.

Sources

Checked 23 September 2026; next review due 2026-11-07. Event facts come from the organizer; the pacing sheet, decisions and plan are TrailSplits' own. Independently prepared by TrailSplits, not endorsed by the organizer.

What each source confirms

2027 date announcement: The 24th edition on Sunday 18 April 2027 and the start and finish on the Rynek Główny (published 4 May 2026).
Organizer home page: The countdown to 18 April 2027 at 09:00 and the 42.195 km distance. The About page still names the 2026 date.
2026 rules (regulamin), archived copy: The 09:00 start and 09:30 gate closure, the 6-hour limit from crossing the start line, the km 21 cut-off at 3 hours, the 13 start zones, aid-station spacing and contents, PZLA and World Athletics certification, the 9,000 cap without a waiting list, the fee bands, discounts and free entries, no refunds, the 30 zloty transfer to 16 April, the minimum age of 18, race-office place and hours, and the proxy rules. 2026 facts, not 2027 confirmations; the organizer has removed the page.
2026 entry panel (Datasport): The 19 November 2025 opening of 2026 entries and the price bands by date. 2026 facts.
2026 course article and map: The nine districts, the new Przegorzały section, the Vistula boulevards, the March 2026 changes near Piastowska, the Dębnicki bridge and Konopnickiej, and the linked 2026 map with kilometre marks and profile (199 to 220 m, 123 m up and down, https://cracoviamaraton.pl/cmsd/files/96923). 2026 facts.
2026 race-week preview and results report: The 09:00 start, the race office and expo at the Reyman stadium, late entry in race week, the wheelchair start five minutes earlier and 36 cheering points; the results report at /rekord-frekwencji-6669-zawodnikow-ukonczylo-tauron-23-cracovia-maraton gives the strong sun at up to 20°C and 6,669 finishers from 6,883 starters. 2026 facts.