The Race
A headlamp is compulsory at the Nocny Maraton Kanału Bydgoskiego. The park has lamps, but the organiser says it is not responsible if they fail. The ground is gravel and asphalt with loose stones and pine cones, and the race lasts until 03:00, so the lamp is useful for the whole of the last laps.
| Next Race Date | Saturday 12 June 2027 |
|---|---|
| Course type | Loop: eight laps of about 5.3 km from and to the KS Gwiazda stadium |
| Registration | Open online entry; no ballot |
| Ballot opens | Not applicable |
| Start | KS Gwiazda stadium, ul. Nakielska 84, 21:00 |
| Finish | KS Gwiazda stadium |
| Total finishers | Not published |
| Average race day temperature | Not confirmed |
| Cutoff time | 6 hours (timing ends 03:00) |
| Free race-day transport | None confirmed |
| Course certification | Not confirmed |
History
The Nocny Maraton Kanału Bydgoskiego began in 2007, when two daylight editions were held: one in February as part of the 100th Dominik Drygalski Marathon and a second in July. The organiser and the city call it the oldest continuously run night marathon in Poland. Several organisers staged it until 2012, and Andrzej Derfert has run it since 2013 from Klub Sportowy Gwiazda, a Bydgoszcz club founded in 1920.
Attendance across all distances averaged about 230 between 2013 and 2019. The 2020 edition was held remotely, with 158 participants and medals and shirts sent by post. An in-person edition followed in 2021, and numbers reached 336 in 2024, the record, then 306 in 2025 and 317 in 2026.
The format has changed several times. In 2022 the organiser offered ten distances, from a tenth of a marathon to the full distance, and later called that a mistake. From 2023 the event returned to the half marathon and longer, with six classified distances. In 2026 the number of laps fell from ten to eight, the start and finish moved to the club stadium, and a main street was closed so runners could reach the old park route along the Old Bydgoszcz Canal.
The canal gives the race its setting. It was built in 1774 to link the Vistula and Oder basins, and the course passes its 18th-century locks. Course records stand at 2:42:00 for men and 3:16:32 for women in the day category, and 2:44:41 and 3:14:00 in the night category.
The course
The marathon is eight laps of about 5.3 km, starting and finishing at the KS Gwiazda stadium on ul. Nakielska. The first lap runs a little long, at about 5.4 km, because it begins at the stadium and joins the lap at its western turn; the later laps run about 5.2 km.
Each lap leaves the stadium along Nabrzeże Mieczysława Dutkowskiego, runs east on Bulwar Sebastiana Malinowskiego through Okole, and turns at Bulwar Leonarda Pietraszaka in Wilczak, about 2.2 km in a straight line from the stadium and 3.3 km into the lap. The return uses a different line, back through Okole and Flisy, with a short stretch on Nakielska itself before the stadium. The organiser describes mixed gravel and asphalt, uneven ground with loose stones and pine cones, and park lamps that are not guaranteed to work. One section runs beside a roadway, where runners follow marshals and temporary signs.
The terrain is flat. The profile spans 9 m, from 53 m at km 1.4 to 44 m at km 3.1, and the same low-and-high pattern repeats every lap: a fall of about 7 m to the Wilczak turn and a climb of about 5 m back. The organiser gives a total gain of about 8 m. The elevation tile is coarse at this scale, so the exact figures are indicative.
The organiser publishes the final route and distances by 9 June in the race year, so the lap count and layout for 2027 are not final until then.
Kilometre by kilometre
Lap km 0 to 1: the western end. The stadium sits on Nabrzeże Mieczysława Dutkowskiego in Miedzyń, and the lap heads east from the start line on flat ground at 50 to 51 m. The opening is a gentle run with the whole field on a narrow park surface, so settle early.
Lap km 1 to 3.3: out through Okole. The outbound leg follows Bulwar Sebastiana Malinowskiego through Okole and falls about 7 m to the low of the lap, 44 m at km 3.1. The turn is at Bulwar Leonarda Pietraszaka in Wilczak. This is the longest leg and the farthest from the stadium, 2.2 km in a straight line.
Lap km 3.3 to 5.3: the return. The route comes back on a different line through Okole and Flisy, climbing about 5 m to 50 m, and passes along Nakielska before the stadium. The roadside section, where marshals direct runners, is on the lap somewhere; follow the temporary signs.
Eight laps. Lap ends fall at about 5.4, 10.6, 15.8, 21.1, 26.3, 31.5 and 36.8 km, and the finish is at 42.195 km. The half-way point comes just after lap four. The rules require a runner to stop if they finish a lap after the six-hour limit or start a lap with no chance of finishing in time.
Timing and bibs. Timing is by chip on a personalised bib, worn on the front of the shirt or the front of the right leg of the shorts. Covering the bib is grounds for disqualification, and an early start is recorded as DNS. Pacers are banned.
The longest lap. Learn where the loose stones are and keep the pace honest on a surface that is softer than road.
The same 5.2 km three times. The half-way point falls just after lap four.
The same turns with a thinner field. The headlamp matters from here on, because the park lamps are not guaranteed.
The final circuit ends at the stadium where it began, between about 01:00 and 03:00.
Course Map
Eight laps of the same loop from the stadium, as laid out in 2026. Tap a marker for details, and scrub the slider or press play to move the orange marker along the course with the elevation profile beneath it.
A headlamp is compulsory, and it is not optional kit. The organiser says the park has lamps but accepts no responsibility for lamp failures, so carry it from the start. The ground has loose stones and pine cones, which the organiser flags.
The start is at 21:00 and the limit is six hours, so the last runners are on the course until 03:00. A warm layer for the hours after midnight can wait at the stadium bag drop, which hands items back only against the bib. The organiser is not liable for unclaimed items. No temperature, humidity or wind figure for a mid-June night in Bydgoszcz has been published, so check the forecast the week before.
Changing rooms, sinks, toilets and showers are at the stadium. A runner who plans to sleep at the club building afterwards should bring a mat and a sleeping bag. Accident insurance is not included in the entry; each runner buys their own.
Entry
Entry is open to anyone born before 12 June 2009. Registration is online and payment is taken at the time of registering through Przelewy24. Unpaid entries are cancelled.
Fees rise in three steps: PLN 120 until 30 November 2026 (about £24), PLN 150 until 28 February 2027 (about £30), and PLN 180 until 21 May 2027 (about £36). Online registration closes on 21 May at 23:59, and the organiser may close it earlier.
Race-day entry is possible, in cash only. A bib alone costs PLN 100 (about £20) and is sold from 16:00 to 20:15. A full packet from returned stock, with a shirt in an unguaranteed size, a bib that may carry another runner's name and a medal, costs PLN 250 (about £50) and is sold from 20:20 to 20:40 in limited quantity.
Fees are not refundable. They can be transferred to another runner until 21 May 2027. Registered and paid entrants are guaranteed a commemorative bib and a finisher medal, and extras such as a shirt depend on the organiser's budget. The medal is the same for every distance. Athletes representing Russia or Belarus are excluded.
The rules print a bib-collection date of 12 June 2026, which is almost certainly a typing error for 2027; confirm the date before planning around it. There is no ballot, qualifying standard or charity place on record, and no field cap has been published.
Fast runner standards
The Nocny Maraton Kanału Bydgoskiego has no qualifying times or guaranteed-entry standard.
See the organiser's site →Race Weekend
Race office and bib collection
There is no expo. Bibs are collected at the KS Gwiazda stadium on race day from 16:00 to 20:15, with photo identification and a QR code, on a phone or printed. The QR code is sent by email and SMS 48 hours before the race office opens. Collection is in person only, and proxy collection is not accepted.
The stadium has two entrances, from ul. Nakielska 84 and from Nabrzeże Mieczysława Dutkowskiego. Vehicles may enter only from ul. Nakielska 84, and parking is at the stadium. The race-day packet sold for PLN 250 goes on sale from 20:20 to 20:40 and runs out.
Getting to the start
There is no morning: the start is at 21:00 on a Saturday, so race day is an afternoon and a night. The race office opens at 16:00, bib-only sales close at 20:15, and the race-day packet is sold from 20:20 to 20:40. The marathon and the shorter distances start together at 21:00 at the stadium. Timing and medical cover end at 03:00 on Sunday.
The course has one nutrition point. A paramedic ambulance stands at the stadium and a mobile medic monitors the course. The emergency number is printed on each bib; give the exact location when calling. Changing rooms, sinks, toilets and showers are at the stadium, and a bag drop operates against the bib.
Hotel Wodnik stands at ul. Nakielska 86, next door to the stadium at number 84, so the day can be spent within a few minutes' walk of the start. The club building at ul. Bronikowskiego 45 offers floor space until 12:00 on Sunday for runners who bring a mat and a sleeping bag. Late-evening public transport to the stadium and taxi cover after 03:00 have not been published, so arrange the return before race day.
Nutrition on course
The organiser provides a single nutrition point with drinks and food and allows runners to leave their own nutrition products there. The course is eight laps, so the point is passed eight times, and a runner who wants gels, a particular drink or salt tablets can leave them and collect them each lap.
The items, the position on the lap and the cup type have not been published, and the rules do not describe a labelling system. Mark bottles clearly and ask the organiser how items are arranged. The late start moves the usual race-day meal later: eat the main meal well before the race office stops bib-only sales at 20:15.
Spectating
The stadium is the place to watch. The lap passes the stadium area every 5.3 km, so a supporter there sees each runner eight times. For a four-hour finish, lap ends fall at about 21:32, 22:02, 22:32, 23:01, 23:31, 00:00 and 00:30, with the finish near 01:00. Add a few minutes for a slower start.
The course is lit by park lamps, and the organiser says they may fail, so a supporter should bring a torch and warm clothing. The last runners are on the course until 03:00. Shelter, hot drinks and seating near the stadium have not been published.
- Stay at the KS Gwiazda stadium on ul. Nakielska for the start, each lap end and the finish.
- No transport is needed, and Hotel Wodnik is next door.
- Walk east along Bulwar Sebastiana Malinowskiego, which the lap uses on the way out at about lap km 2 and back at about lap km 4.
- See runners twice a lap and return to the stadium on foot.
Post-race food
The rules mention drinks and food at the nutrition point but name no post-race meal, and the race finishes between about 01:00 and 03:00. No late-night restaurant near the stadium has been published.
Daytime food is easier. The Old Market Square has cafés and restaurants, and the Rother Mills on Mill Island have the Nowe Miejsce café on the ground floor. Neither is a finish-line option.
Where to Stay
The race finishes between about 01:00 and 03:00, so the question is how far you want to travel at that hour. Stay beside the stadium and the night ends in a few minutes.
Miedzyń, beside the stadium
Hotel Wodnik is at ul. Nakielska 86, next door to the stadium, and the club building at ul. Bronikowskiego 45 is about 400 m away with floor space until 12:00 on race Sunday. This is the lowest-effort area for both ends of the night. Ask Hotel Wodnik about a late check-out.
The centre and Mill Island
The Mercure Sepia, Hotel Pod Orłem and the Focus Hotel Premium are all in the centre, about 3.5 to 4 km in a straight line from the stadium. They suit a runner who wants the city around them and has arranged a taxi for the return after 03:00.
The Brda waterfront
Hotel Słoneczny Młyn is on the Brda embankment, about 5.8 km from the stadium. It is the longest transfer here, so book a taxi in advance.
No survey of June rates, noise or night-time transport has been published. Confirm entry first, then the room terms and the late check-out.
Recommended hotels
Next door to the stadium, with free parking and a wellness centre. Ask about a late check-out for a race that ends between 01:00 and 03:00.
A central base near the Opera Nova. Plan a taxi back to the stadium for the start and arrange the return after the finish.
A central hotel on ul. Gdańska. Ask about a late check-out.
In the centre by the old port. Expect a taxi to the stadium.
On the Brda waterfront with free parking. The longest transfer of the five.
Booking timeline
Entry sets the timeline. Fees rise on 30 November, 28 February and 21 May, and online registration closes on 21 May. No hotel occupancy or rate figure for Bydgoszcz in mid-June has been published, so book a cancellable room once entry is confirmed.
The race finishes between about 01:00 and 03:00 on Sunday, so a normal check-in with a late check-out is the pattern that works. The club-building floor needs no booking, only a mat and a sleeping bag.
Rail is the practical way in. From Toruń the journey takes about 42 to 53 minutes; from Gdańsk about 1 hour 27 minutes to nearly 3 hours depending on the train; from Poznań about 1 hour 24 minutes to nearly 3 hours. Domestic tickets go on sale up to 30 days before travel.
See & Do
Distances are from the KS Gwiazda stadium, in a straight line, kilometres first.
Wyspa Młyńska (Mill Island)
About 6 hectares between the Brda and the Młynówka, free to walk around all year. The Rother Mills have interactive exhibitions and a viewing terrace (paid), and the European Money Centre, part of the District Museum, holds the Bydgoszcz Hoard of 486 gold coins and valuables found under the cathedral floor in 2018.
Spichrze and the Brda
Three timber-framed granaries on ul. Grodzka from around 1800, now part of the Leon Wyczółkowski District Museum. The Rybi Rynek is the departure point for boat tours of 60 to 100 minutes.
Kanał Bydgoski
The canal built in 1774, with historic locks and stone embankments. The Old Canal path suits an easy walk or ride, and the race course follows it.
Wieża Ciśnień
A 45 m neo-Gothic water tower on ul. Filarecka, with a 360 degree viewpoint and a Water Museum. Entry is paid and hours change by season.
After the Race
The race ends before 03:00 on a Sunday, so day trips fall on Sunday afternoon or Monday. Toruń is under an hour by train, Poznań and Gdańsk take longer. Timetables are not checked for 2027, so confirm train times when the date is bookable.
A UNESCO-listed Old Town, the Leaning Tower, Copernicus's house and Toruń gingerbread. Fares start at PLN 20 (regional) or PLN 24 (EC).
The Renaissance town hall with its goats, Ostrów Tumski and Lake Malta. Fares start at PLN 54.
Długi Targ, St Mary's Basilica and the Motława embankment. Fares start at PLN 46.