Typical race-weekend conditions
Cool & dry- High / Low
- 11° / 2°
- Humidity
- 81%
- Rainy days
- 17%
Cold at the start. Bring throwaway layers for the corrals.
Averages from ~10 years of history around race day.
Know before you go
- Distance
- 10 km (6.2 miles)
- ✈️ From London
- ~2h10
- 🕐 Time
- +1h vs UK
- 💷 Money
- £1 ≈ €1.17
- 🗣 Language
- Spanish
- 🌫 Air quality
- Good
- 🏳️🌈 LGBTQ+
- Very welcoming
- 🛡 Safety
- Safe
Country-level indices: LGBTQ+ via Equaldex · safety via Global Peace Index 2025 . Air quality is recent PM2.5; money is indicative.
The route
The popular race starts on Calle Concha Espina by the Santiago Bernabéu and finishes on Calle Candilejas beside the Vallecas stadium. The first seven kilometres or so drop down Serrano, past Puerta de Alcalá, Cibeles and the Prado; then Avenida de la Albufera climbs for about a kilometre around km 8–9. Fast early, hard late, and run in a New Year's Eve carnival atmosphere.
Start time
Thursday 31 December 2026. Waves at 17:00 (proof of sub-50 minutes), 17:15 (proof of 50–60 minutes), then 17:35, 17:55 and 18:20 for everyone else; you choose your wave when you enter and cannot change it on the day. The time limit is 1 hour 20 minutes.
Entry fee
Indicative entry is £27 per runner. Confirm the current bib price on the official site; ballot, charity, and tour prices can differ. 2026 popular-race entry is €27 for the first 10,000 entries, €29 up to 20,000 and €31 up to 42,000, plus a €0.80 booking fee. Bag drop costs €1 at the finish or €5 for start-to-finish transport, chosen when you enter.
Registration
Entries are open on the official site until 23:00 on 23 December 2026, or until places run out. You pick your bib-collection slot (26–30 December) and bag drop when you enter; there is no collection on race day. The separate international race needs a qualifying time.
Where to stay
Stay on Metro Line 1 (Sol, Tirso de Molina or Antón Martín) for a direct ride back from Portazgo, next to the finish, and a short walk to Puerta del Sol for midnight. Salamanca and Chamberí are nearer the Concha Espina start but further from the finish.
Getting there
Barajas (MAD) links to the centre via Metro Line 8 or the Cercanias train in about 30-40 minutes; a taxi is roughly 25 minutes.
That weekend
Bib and T-shirt collection is 26–30 December at the Daoiz y Velarde sports centre (Avenida Ciudad de Barcelona 162), in the slot you booked. The official race T-shirt is your bib and must be fully visible, so plan any costume around it. In 2025 Puerta del Sol was cleared at 21:00 and reopened from 22:00 with a 15,000-person cap for the midnight grapes.
Sample 4-day trip
Arrive, explore, race, then head home. A proper weekend, not a rushed fly-by.
-
Day 1: Arrive
Fly into Madrid (MAD). Metro Line 8 or Cercanías reaches the centre in about 30–40 minutes. Public transport works well. Book a private transfer for late arrivals on NYE week.
Check into Sol or another Metro Line 1 stop . Line 1 runs straight back from Portazgo by the finish, and the Concha Espina start is one change away.
-
Day 2: Shakedown Run and Explore the City
Collect your bib and race T-shirt at the Daoiz y Velarde sports centre in the slot you booked when you entered ( official rules ); collection runs 26–30 December and never on race day. Jog an easy shakeout in Retiro Park.
Afternoon for Prado tickets or tapas in La Latina. Save your legs and your voice: 40,000 costumed runners fill the Castellana on NYE.
-
Day 3: Race Day
New Year's Eve race from Concha Espina to Vallecas. Take the Metro to Santiago Bernabéu or Concha Espina and arrive well before your wave. The first seven kilometres run mostly downhill; save something for the Avenida de la Albufera climb around km 8.
Afterwards, Metro Line 1 from Portazgo takes you straight to Sol for the grape countdown. Pace yourself: this is a carnival 10K, not a morning time trial.
-
Day 4: Final Day
Recovery brunch and a slow wander beat ambitious sightseeing after NYE. Metro or Cercanías back to MAD works, but leave margin.
Three nights turns San Silvestre into a Madrid NYE trip with a 10K in the middle.
