Getting In · Pilgrimage race
Two Oceans Marathon
Around the Cape Peninsula with the Atlantic on one side and False Bay on the other, over Chapman's Peak with the ocean 500 feet below the road. Two Oceans has been calling itself the world's most beautiful marathon since 1970 and it has a very strong case.
- Distance
- 56 km~35 miles
- Field
- ~11,000 ultra
- Cutoff
- 7 hours
- First run
- 1970
- Big climbs
- Chapman's Peak, Constantia Nek
- Date
- Easter Saturday
The 56 km ultra starts in Newlands in the dark, runs out through Muizenberg and along the False Bay coast, turns at Cape Point's northern approaches, and then delivers the two features everyone talks about. Chapman's Peak Drive is a cliff-cut road above the Atlantic that is genuinely one of the great stretches of tarmac in the world. Constantia Nek arrives at 42 km, is long and steep, and is where the race is decided.
Because it runs at Easter and Comrades runs in June, the two together make a natural South African ultra season, and many international runners build a single long trip around both.
How to get in
- Time qualifierThe qualifying standard
The ultra requires a certified marathon inside a qualifying time (recently around 5:00) run in the qualifying window. The half marathon on the same weekend has its own easier entry.
- LotteryThe entry draw
Demand exceeds the field, so entries are allocated through a draw or a fast-filling open window depending on the year. Check the current process; it has changed more than once.
- Tour operatorTour operators
Bundled entries with accommodation are widely available and are the simplest option for overseas runners, especially if you're pairing it with Comrades.
Questions runners actually ask
How does Two Oceans compare to Comrades?
Shorter, prettier, and slightly less brutal. 56 km versus 89 km, seven hours versus twelve. Most runners describe Two Oceans as the more scenic race and Comrades as the more profound one.
When is it?
Easter Saturday every year in Cape Town, which makes it a natural pairing with a Comrades trip in June, or with the Cape Town Marathon.
Go to the source
Entry rules, dates, standards, fees, and odds change every single year, and the interesting races change them the most. Use this guide to build the plan; use the official site to confirm the details before you book anything.
If this is your kind of thing
Need the races in between? The hard part of a bucket list year is everything else on the calendar: the qualifier, the tune-up, the long run with a bib on.