Trail race «Vietnam Trail Marathon 2027»

   The race is set for the exact window when the plum and peach orchards of Mộc Châu come into blossom, and that is what makes this course unlike any other on the calendar. You run through fields of white flowers, bright green tea terraces, fruit gardens and ethnic minority villages tucked deep in hills that no car can reach.

   The ninth edition opens five distances, with a sharp step in terrain between them:

• — 5 km, 160 m of climb, starting from the Nà Ka plum valley, from 6 years old
• — 11.1 km, 320 m of climb, starting from the Phiêng Cành village ground, from 16 years old
• — 21.6 km, 1,000 m of climb, from 18 years old
• — 50.2 km, 2,000 m of climb, new for 2027, from 18 years old
• — 67.2 km, 2,800 m of climb, from 18 years old

   The two ultra distances carry qualifying conditions you need to plan for: the 50 km requires a completed chip-timed trail race of 20 km or longer, the 70 km requires one of 40 km or longer with significant elevation. Loop events and virtual runs do not count, and a link to your official result must be submitted no later than 30 days before race day. The 70 km has a 96 percent finish rate, a figure that says the course is hard but built to be completed.

   Standard fees by distance: 1,000,000 ₫ for a 5 km kid place, for under-16s registered together with a guardian, 1,700,000 ₫ for the 5 km, 1,900,000 ₫ for the 10 km, 3,300,000 ₫ for the 21 km, 4,100,000 ₫ for the 50 km ultra and 4,400,000 ₫ for the 70 km ultra. Groups of ten get 5 percent off, groups of fifty get 10 percent. The fee covers the competitor shirt, chip bib, finisher medal, a charity donation on distances from 21 km up, shuttles to the start and back from the finish to the hotel, aid station nutrition and the finisher buffet; ultra finishers also get a finisher shirt.

   The organiser is Topas, the outfit behind Vietnam Mountain Marathon in Sa Pa and Vietnam Jungle Marathon in Pù Luông. All five distances finish at the Heart Tea Hill, in the middle of thousands of rows of tea.

   If you have ever wanted to run through blossom season in the northwest, this is the rare occasion where both the course and the timing are right.