We will not oversell this: Honolulu is a hot, humid marathon that starts at 5 a.m. in the dark, with fireworks over Ala Moana. There is no entry cap and no time limit, so roughly 20,000 finishers fill the road past Diamond Head and Waikiki all morning. Heat climbs from 23 to 28 degrees with high humidity, which wrecks pacing for most. The US/Canada entry rises in tiers as December nears, and Japanese runners are much of the field.
Better info coming — we're still verifying 3 fields on this race.
Why we'd pick it
- The 195 m climbing estimate is useful for planning, not a verified pacing number.
- Open · Direct entry — no lottery to lose.
- A non-racing partner gets a real weekend here — 5/5.
- Race day usually sits 22.1–26°C, about 24% chance of rain.
The course
A 5 a.m. start in the dark with fireworks over Ala Moana, then west along the waterfront, back east through Waikiki, around Diamond Head, and out toward Hawaii Kai before doubling back to the finish at Kapiolani Park. Mostly flat, with the Diamond Head rollers the only real climbs. No entry cap and no time limit, so the road stays full all morning.
Difficulty and PR scores
Difficulty is the course and the conditions. The PR score is a separate read on a fast clock. Missing inputs are dropped and the other weights are rescaled. The method, with the weights.
- Difficulty
- 49 / 100
- PR / BQ friendliness
- 4 / 100
Weight used: 60%. Need 40% before we print a number.
Band: hard. Weight used: 50%. Need 45% before we print a number.
Weather median for 2011–2025, race date ±7 days, 225 days, at Start. Grid elevation 6 m.
BQ rate 0.8% on 2025 Honolulu Marathon (184 qualifiers). Source.
| Input | 0–100 | What went in |
|---|---|---|
| G Gain | — | No trusted gain per km. Uncertain stored gain is not used. |
| A Altitude | 0 | 6 m. 0 below 300 m, 100 at 2000 m. Source: open-meteo-grid. |
| H Heat | 95 | High 26°C, dew point 19.1°C. The hotter of the two bands is used. |
| W Wind | 40 | 4.97 m/s median. Bands: under 3 → 15, under 5 → 40, under 8 → 70, else 100. |
| S Surface | 15 | road. Road 15, mixed 45, gravel 70, trail 90. |
| T Cool temps | 5 | 100 minus heat (95). |
| B BQ evidence | 2.7 | 0.8% on 2025 Honolulu Marathon. 0% maps to 0 and 30% maps to 100. https://www.findmymarathon.com/bostonmarathonqualifiers-2027.php |
Stays around the race
These are area searches near the published start, finish, and course pins. TripRace may earn a commission if you book, at no extra cost to you. We are not naming a hotel.
- Near the start — Start / Ala Moana
- Along the course · Waikiki — Waikiki
- Near the finish — Finish
