Ho Chi Minh City Marathon’s Half Marathon 2025 Race Experience

Quick Summary

Here are 3 quick reasons why I enjoyed running the HCMC Marathon Half Marathon distance:

• The race starts early – at 3:30am- when the weather is cooler (at 21℃/69℉). So, you’ll finish before sunrise!

• Finisher swag such as the finisher’s medal and the food.

• The volunteers and cheer squads along the course.  

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Why Participate in the HCMC Marathon?

The 2025 race was a special year with the theme, “The People’s Victory.” An article published by the Daily World had this slogan, and it embodied the running experience of achieving victory during the training and race. 

This year also marked the 50th anniversary of the Liberation of the South and National Reunification when North and South Vietnam united as one country. 

Therefore, the race conveniently starts and ends in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City at the Independence Palace, an important attraction in the city. 

The mostly flat course went through the popular attractions in Downtown Ho Chi Minh City, such as the Opera House and Nguyen Hue Walking Street. 

The course closed the road to two bridges – Thu Thiem and Ba Son – so we ran on the bridges without any vehicles!

The race was a medium-sized event with 7,500+ participants in the 3 distances. It’s a good crowd size for beginner runners since the roads weren’t as congested. There were 1815 finishers for the full marathon, 2901 finishers for the half marathon, and 2800 finishers for the 10 km. 

The cut-off times for the race were generous. Full marathon had 6 hours 30 minutes to finish. Half marathon had 3 hours 30 minutes, and 10 km had 2 hours. There were cut-off points so runners had to finish by a certain time. Otherwise, they would not be able to continue the race. 

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Race Date

Sunday, January 12, 2025

*The 2026 date is still To Be Determined.

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How to Sign Up for the Race

Visit the HCMC Marathon website and click on the Registration button. It’ll take you to a third-party vendor for registration and payment processing. 

Note: The registration page asks for an ID Number, so we used our Passport number. So, bring your Passport to the Expo for bib pick up. 

The cost of the race varies depending on the time you sign up. Early bird pricing occurred in May 2024. Normal pricing was from the end of May to mid-November. Late pricing was from mid-November to mid-December (or until the race sells out). 

We decided to participate in the race about 1 month before the event, so we paid the late price. It cost us 1,595,000 VND ($63 USD) per person. There wasn’t any additional processing fee for using a credit card.

We paid for the race with our international credit card – Chase Sapphire Preferred (from the U.S.). We didn’t have any international transaction fees added to the charge. 

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The half marathon and 10 km race swag included a participant’s singlet (a loose and flowy tank top), finisher’s medal, bib with timing chip, free bag check, and post-race refreshments. 

Full marathon participants receive all the above plus a finisher’s t-shirt. 

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Shirt Registration

All registered participants received a unisex yellow singlet from the Nuuk Asia brand. 

During registration, everyone chose their desired size. The registration portal had a size chart to refer to. 

Justin and I chose an X-Small singlet. Justin usually wears an X-Small (in U.S. sizing), while I wear a Women’s Medium (in U.S. sizing). 

The singlet was the perfect size for me as it was not loose. Unfortunately, the sizing was too tight for Justin. 

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For the 2025 event, only full marathon finishers received a finisher’s shirt. Therefore, those who completed the half marathon and 10 km did not receive one. 

This caused quite a stir on the HCMC Marathon Facebook page as many half marathon participants from 2024 were upset that there wasn’t a finisher’s shirt in 2025. 

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Race Communication

The race committee kept everyone up-to-date on the social media platforms – Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

We received email communications such as registration confirmation, bib confirmation, Expo and Race Guide information, race photos, and a thank you message. 

The bib confirmation email was needed for bib pick up at the Expo as it had a QR code. There was no need to print the email as a digital copy was perfectly acceptable.  

We received an email with a link to our race photos about 12 hours after the start of the race. The photo package was reasonable at 99,000 VND ($3.90 USD) for all photos. 

I received 50 photos while Justin had 20 photos. Unfortunately, the photos didn’t turn out great due to the lighting and poor focus. 

HCMC Marathon Expo

The Expo occurred on Friday and Saturday, January 10-11 from 9:00am to 6:00pm. 

We decided to go on Friday around 10:30am to beat the crowds. We ran to the Expo as a pre-race shakeout. Also, the location was only 1.50 miles (2.40 km) away from our apartment. 

Note: Please bring your Passport or any ID used for registration. 

It was an outdoor Expo at the Hoa Lu Sports Center in District 1. It’s a few blocks from the Independence Palace (race start and finish). 

The layout was easy to navigate. The grassy field had two sides with vendors and the back side for bib pick up. 

Bib pick up was separated by the three distances, so we went to the Half Marathon distance. We brought up the Bib confirmation email and showed it to the volunteer. Then we went to our designated aisle and showed our email and Passport. 

We received a black tote bag with the HCMC Marathon logo, our singlet, bib, and a flavored milk carton. The safety pins for the bibs were already attached to the bag. The black tote bag was a light polyester material and had the HCMC logo. 

We appreciated how there weren’t any pamphlets from the sponsors as they went digital and were mentioned in the Race Guide. 

We also had our picture taken with our bib. I’m not sure why. Maybe verification for bib pick up. 

Afterward, we scanned our bibs as we exited the pick up area. This was to verify our name and our bib number. 

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Now on to the Expo! We took some time to take photos with the HCMC Marathon sign. 

We browsed through the vendors and sponsored kiosks. Most sold running gear and apparel for a discount. 

We didn’t buy anything since there wasn’t a fitting room to try the clothes. But we made a mental note of places with a physical store, such as Onways and Decathalon, so we could try the apparel later.

Candine, the company selling apples, gave us free apples to try. We ate them at home and they were crispy and sweet. The small size was also perfect. I would buy them!

The most exciting part was taking photos with mascots of the vendors. I met Lazzie from Lazada, an apple from Candine, and a white duck or bird (!?) wearing a blue sweatband, t-shirt, and green pants from Decathalon. 

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HCMC Marathon Half Marathon Experience

**Sorry, I do not have any photos during the race as I wanted to focus on the run.

Pre-Race

We slept for a few hours on Saturday night and then woke up at 2:15am to prepare (for the 3:30am start time). 

We decided to run to the start line, located at the April 30 Park (Công Viên 30 tháng 4) in front of the Independence Palace. It was 2 miles (3.2 km) away, so this was our warm-up before the race. 

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Weather

We loved the cool weather and temperatures may be considered “cold” to locals. It was 21℃/69℉ at 3:00am. The temperature was an anomaly since the evenings and early mornings are usually around 23 to 25℃ (73 to 77℉). 

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Race Experience

The marathon runners started at 3:00am, and the half marathons started at 3:30am. 

We met Justin’s friend, Eddie, and lined up in our corral (Pace 4). It was the last one. Since we registered late, we think we were automatically placed in the last corral. 

After the engaging announcement and fireworks, off we went! 

Justin and Eddie sped off within the first mile, so I ran my own pace and trotted along the course. 

We ran through the main areas of District 1, such as the Opera House, Nguyen Hue Walking Street, and passed by the Ho Chi Minh Statue. 

We traveled towards our neighborhood and crossed the Thu Thiem Bridge (Cầu Thủ Thiêm) to run through Thu Thiem’s Empire City and Sala area in District 2. 

I was a bit tired running on Thu Thiem Bridge as it was my first time using the Asics S4 (a carbon-plated shoe) for a long distance. I didn’t train with the shoes. Even though I’ve run marathons before, it was such a newbie mistake. My feet and arches hurt by the end of the race. Oops.

We passed by volunteers pouring water, electrolytes, and cutting bananas and watermelon. There were also a handful of cheering squads on the course. Considering that it was an early morning for the cheering squads and volunteers, we appreciated their support!

There were a few portable bathrooms along the course. Some were next to the water stations. 

During the long stretch along Bùi Thiện Ngộ in District 2, it was pitch black. A bit too eerie at 4 in the morning. I wish there were lights along this route since people could have tripped. Luckily, the water stations in this area had some lights for visibility. 

Volunteers shouted to do a U-Turn for the 21 km runners,  and we returned to District 1. 

We crossed the Ba Son Bridge (Cầu Ba Son) which has a slight incline and then returned to the start line near the Independence Palace. 

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Finish Line & Post Race

I saw the sign for 500 meters to the finish line, and then another one for 200 meters. 

I pushed as hard as I could and then finished! Woohoo! No PR (personal record) this time but still completed the race in 2 hours 9 minutes. I had a fun time. 

I received a finisher’s medal and picked up goodies – a Revive electrolyte drink, a water bottle, apples from Candine, and a banana. There were chips and bread but I didn’t have enough hands. 

We didn’t receive a bag to store the goodies and didn’t use the bag drop-off. It’s been a long time since I’ve done a race and forgot to put a bag in my running belt. 

TIP: Bring a bag for finish line goodies!

I met up with Justin and Eddie to take photos of our medals. We said our goodbyes to Eddie as Justin and I walked back home with our goodies. 

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The three of us met up for lunch and celebrated our finish with ramen at Ippudo Ramen and matcha dessert at Miyama Cafe. And yes, I brought my finisher’s medal with me to lunch. 

Am I the only one who loves to wear the race medal and race shirt after finishing the race?! It’s such an achievement!

After lunch, we checked our running stats on the HCMC Marathon website. We downloaded a copy of our e-certificate with our finisher’s time. 

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Some Opportunities for Improvements

The first 2-3 water stations at the beginning of the course ran out of water and electrolyte drinks. The volunteers did their best to pour as many drinks into the paper cups as possible. Hopefully, the race will have more volunteers at these prime spots in future races.

We saw on the Facebook page that people didn’t get their singlet at the Expo. So, runners received only the black tote bag and the flavored milk box. Whether it was a manufacturer or shipping delay, we hope the race committee plans better for the next race. 

More lights along Bùi Thiện Ngộ. Or, change the route to include more street lights.

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Where to Stay in Ho Chi Minh City

We recommend staying near Independence Palace or Ben Thanh Market in District 1. Any hotel or guesthouse will be close enough to walk to the start line. 

Click here to find accommodations on Booking.com. 

Find a place to stay in HCMC on Agoda here.

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Final Thoughts

For our first run in Ho Chi Minh City, we had a fantastic experience with the HCMC Marathon Half Marathon. We appreciated the constant communication from the race committee. The volunteers and cheering squads made the race so much more enjoyable and kept my spirits high. The race swag of the singlet, tote bag, and finisher’s medal was also incredible. 

If you’re looking for a running race in January, definitely check out this one in the future! 

Check out our other blog posts about Ho Chi Minh City: 

• One day itinerary in HCMC

• How to spend 3 days in HCMC

• What to do at night in HCMC

• Day trips from HCMC to experience

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