Guatemala Impact Marathon
From Impact Marathon Series
- Date Mon 24th February 2025 - Sun 2nd March 2025
- Time 00:00
- Location Antigua Guatemala, Sacatepéquez
- Price £1,395.00 - £1,645.00
- Races 2 races
- Distances 10km, Half Marathon, Marathon
Limited spaces
Less than 6 spaces left
Event summary
The highlight of the week is a thrilling trail race that winds through the iconic landscapes of Pacaya Volcano, where you'll run alongside hundreds of locals and experience the mesmerizing moonlike lava fields. With a focus on community involvement, the event will also include various activities that connect runners with local youth and charity partners like SERES, promoting education and sustainable development. Whether you’re conquering the marathon distance or simply enjoying the camaraderie of fellow runners, this week promises to be an inspiring journey filled with connection, adventure, and a celebration of the vibrant Guatemalan culture. Don’t miss the chance to create lifelong memories and friendships in a setting that is truly one-of-a-kind!
Guatemala Impact Marathon
Mon 24th February 2025 - Sun 2nd March 2025
Organiser's Description
We will be staying in the UNESCO World Heritage town of Antigua - with its colonial buildings, cobbled streets, and volcanoes looming large above our heads, it is a truly remarkable place to experience. Through the week, alongside our immense charity partners, SERES, we will be catalysing change through the power of youth. Proving them with knowledge, skills, attitudes, values and the support they need to thrive as adults, enjoy good health, succeed economically and make meaningful contributions to their communities.
The climax of the week is a night camping in the shadow of the active Pacaya Volcano, before a trail race like no other. Joined by hundreds of Guatemaltecos, we run the live volcano! The highlights of the route include the 8km of running across the moonlike landscape of the lava fields that surround the lower slopes, before a long climb to the ancient craters (with some good rumbles coming from the currently active crater a little higher above you), this is an unmissable running experience. More importantly, we set achievable cut-offs that encourage you to stop of that photo, to pause and breathe in your surroundings, and to truly experience the magic of running in Guatemala. Your time doesn't matter (we don't even publish results), the important thing is that you get to treasure every step on your way to our iconic finish line, and receive your hand carved medal...
If you want to meet the most amazing humans, create life-long friends, truly connect with the positive impact you can have in the world, and see Guatemala from a viewpoint few others ever have...then this is the week for you. Oh, and somewhere along the way, you'll realise you ran a marathon!
The Itinerary | 24 Feb – 2 March 2025
Day 1 - ¡Bienvenidos!
Welcome to Guatemala Impact Marathon! After your flight arrives in Guatemala City, you’ll be whisked to our Athletes' Village, a short drive from the UNESCO World Heritage town of Antigua. Here you’ll get to know your fellow travellers while enjoying an evening of amazing Guatemalan food, and you'll begin to learn more about what you'll be experiencing this week. We like to keep much of the week’s activities a surprise, so we’ll be revealing lots more over a glass of beer this evening.
Day 2 - To Ulew we go...
We are heading off early in the morning to Ulew Fuego, the land owned by SERES, which is open for community leaders, youth, and professionals to learn and teach sustainable techniques to others. This initiative helps generate jobs and income for the surrounding communities. You’ll spend the core of the day understanding and working with SERES on this land, so you can experience firsthand where your fundraising efforts are going.
Day 3 - Hola Artistas de el Astillero
We will be visiting a tiny community outside of the amazing and tourist Antigua Guatemala - Artistas del Astillero - an organisation that provides art lessons and hands on experiences for children in the community. You'll have the opportunity to learn more about the challenges the community faces and how Aura, the founder, is tackling education, health, finance with children from 4 - 12 years old.
Day 4 - Coffee, Culture, & Context
Now, our final story is one that perhaps Guatemala is most famous for: COFFEE! We will be visiting a plantation, learning about the process of growing, harvesting, and roasting the beans as well as the socio-economic and environmental challenges faced by growers. This day brings together trade, coffee, and history, weaving them into the narrative we’ve been building over the past few days. Through this experience, we will gain a deeper appreciation for the intricate balance between tradition and innovation, and the way these play out when faced with the headwinds of geopolitics, and climate change.It’s a fitting conclusion to our Impact Week, encapsulating the essence of Guatemala's rich cultural heritage and its ongoing journey towards sustainable development.
Day 5 - Camping under the stars
Today is our rest day so, after a gentle morning, we will be heading across the country to the start line of our race route! We'll arrive to Finca El Amate through the afternoon. You'll have time to walk the lava fields, get a feel of what is it like to run on them. You'll have time to explore, take photos that aren't you being a sweaty mess. You'll have time to do some yoga under the shadow of a volcano that is actively pumping gas and lava above your heads... and then we get to camp! There's nothing like opening that tent on race day morning, seeing the volcano ahead of you and knowing that in a very rare moment, that you are literally 50 meters from the start line and you can get the time to get ready. This is a majestic climax to the week a treat and we know you are going to love it!
Day 6 - Run the live volcano
The moment has come. Start line, time to run together, as a community in one of the world’s most outstanding locations. The magic of race day: Get ready for a remarkable finish line moment as you take the final steps of the hardest race of your life. And at that finish line, we’ll have a huge welcome home for you. Party into the night, you deserve it...
Day 7 - Homecoming
The race is over and you’ll have the usual aches and pains to remind you. To take your mind off it we have organised some incredible experiences that show you the very best that Guatemala has to offer.
Alternatively, and reluctantly, we will let you return home! We will be hosting an afterparty for all the team, volunteers, Guatemalteco runners and, of course, you are most welcome up to Earthlodge to join us as a beautiful finale to an amazing week.
Races
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Summit - Guatemala Impact Marathon
Package Option: Our Most Popular Package - Shared Luxurious Twin/Double Room With a Friend, or Your New Best Friend!
Mon 24th February 2025 (00:00)
£1,395.00
Booking for more than 1? -
Quetzal - Guatemala Impact Marathon
Package Option: This Is Our Single Supplement, Your Own Room!
Mon 24th February 2025 (00:00)
£1,645.00
Booking for more than 1?
Course Details
42km - The Beast of Pacaya
Beast by name and nature, the full marathon distance is truly a spectacular and challenging route. You will dig deep within yourself to reach the finish line, but the rewards are even more profound. With our generous cut-offs, the route may be tough, but it is possible to pace yourself well to the finish line. The highlight, after a long climb, is the ridgeline around an ancient crater near the summit of Pacaya Volcano. Just above your head is the active McKinney crater—you'll hear the rumbles, maybe see some lava rocks tumbling out, and before you know it, you're heading down back towards the finish line. This route is to be treasured and will be the highlight of your running life, a race unlike any other found across the globe.
21km - I 'Lava' This Race
An iconic race route that takes in the entire southern lava field—it's like running on the moon! You'll have a fast first few kilometers as you head down through the Los Pocitos community towards the lava field. You'll follow the trail right across the hardened lava and up 'The Wall'. This long hill winds upward on black sand through fincas, communities, and forest trails. Each time you look up, you'll see gases emitting, and you might even hear the rumble of the crater that sits above your head. This route is tough, but with our generous cut-offs, it's entirely achievable.
10km - I 'Finca' That's Enough
A truly spectacular route that offers a little bit of everything. Starting inside Finca El Amate, you'll cross the lava fields, run through the beautiful pineapple fields, and enter the Los Pocitos community. Here, you'll experience a bit of road running as you make your way down to the vast lava field that covers the southern side of Pacaya Volcano. Since it's an out-and-back route, make sure to high-five and share a sweaty hug with those you pass along the way.
Guatemala Impact Marathon