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Puerto Vallarta across the bay, with palms in front and green mountains rising behind the city
Ondrej Bocek / Unsplash

Puerto Vallarta by UTMB course maps and aid stations

Five races from the Malecón into the jungle and the Sierra Madre behind the bay, from a 5K up to the 81K Hikuri that starts at midnight.

March 4 to 6, 2027 Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco

Puerto Vallarta México by UTMB is a UTMB World Series race in Puerto Vallarta, on Mexico's Pacific coast. Four of its five courses start on the Malecón, the seafront promenade in the middle of town, and all five finish there beside Los Arcos. The longer ones climb into the Sierra Madre Occidental behind the city. The 20K starts inland at Canopy River Park.

The 2027 edition runs 4 to 6 March. The 2026 race, the fourth, had been set for March and was pushed back to April because of violence in the region. The map shows the courses and aid stations on the 2027 race pages. The cutoffs there are dated to the 2026 race.

The Hikuri sets off at midnight, and much of it is singletrack through forest and jungle. The regulations tell you to turn back if you stop seeing way markers. Download the course map before you go: GPS shows you where you are without a signal.

This is an unofficial guide: Goat Maps isn't affiliated with Puerto Vallarta México by UTMB. Check the official site before you enter or race.

Puerto Vallarta course map

Every course's aid stations on the Goat Maps topo map. Each course has a map of its own further down.

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Puerto Vallarta courses

CourseDistanceClimbingStartTime limit
Hikuri 81K80.2 km (49.8 mi)3,900 m (12,795 ft)Fri, Mar 5, 12:00 AM20 h 30 min
Nakawé 53K53.1 km (33 mi)2,500 m (8,202 ft)Fri, Mar 5, 4:00 AM13 h 30 min
Haramara 37K37.2 km (23.1 mi)1,600 m (5,249 ft)Sat, Mar 6, 5:00 AM9 h
Ereno 20K20.3 km (12.6 mi)1,050 m (3,445 ft)Sat, Mar 6, 6:45 AM5 h 30 min
Pata Salada 5K4.9 km (3 mi)200 m (656 ft)Sat, Mar 6, 7:30 AM2 h 30 min

Puerto Vallarta Hikuri 81K

The long one: a midnight start and a big loop into the Sierra Madre.

Distance
80.2 km (49.8 mi)
Climbing
3,900 m (12,795 ft)
Start
Fri, Mar 5, 12:00 AM
Time limit
20 h 30 min

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You start on the Malecón at midnight on Friday and are climbing within a few kilometers, up to Aguacatera at 589 m. From there it works east through the mountains to Barandillas, around km 42, the highest aid station at 1,205 m. The course itself tops out around 1,440 m. The organizer describes pine forest up high, then muddy singletrack, agave fields and coastal jungle on the way down, finishing along the Cuale River back to the sea. The race page gives 3,900 m of climbing, and its course table measures 80.2 km.

UMA, at km 49, is the big stop: hot food, your drop bag and your crew. Aguacatera and Barandillas have only drinks. The longest gap comes late, nearly 13 km from La Venada to Canopy River Park. You get 20 hours 30. The cutoffs shown are from 2026, when the race also started at midnight on a Friday.

aid stations

kmWhereCutoff
0Malecón (start and finish)
6.5Aguacatera Fri 02:00 AM
16.9El Hundido CrewFri 05:00 AM
24.8El Jorullo Fri 06:30 AM
32.4Jaguar
41.9Barandillas
49.4UMA Crew, Drop bagFri 12:45 PM
60.2La Venada Fri 03:45 PM
72.9Canopy River Park (20K start) CrewFri 07:15 PM
80.2Malecón (start and finish) Fri 08:30 PM
Houses spread through a green valley in Puerto Vallarta, under steep forested mountains
Ondrej Bocek / Unsplash

Puerto Vallarta Nakawé 53K

The Hikuri without its far loop, starting at 4 a.m.

Distance
53.1 km (33 mi)
Climbing
2,500 m (8,202 ft)
Start
Fri, Mar 5, 4:00 AM
Time limit
13 h 30 min

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The Nakawé leaves the Malecón at 4 a.m. on Friday and follows the Hikuri's route over Aguacatera and El Hundido to El Jorullo, at 945 m. There it skips the far loop to Barandillas and UMA and heads for La Venada, then down to Canopy River Park and the sea. It climbs 2,500 m.

Plan your food: the first three stations, out to km 25, have only drinks, and the first food is at La Venada, km 33. Then it's almost 13 km to Canopy. The limit is 13 hours 30, and the 2026 cutoffs are shown.

aid stations

kmWhereCutoff
0Malecón (start and finish)
6.5Aguacatera Fri 06:10 AM
16.9El Hundido Fri 09:00 AM
24.8El Jorullo Fri 11:30 AM
33.1La Venada Fri 12:45 PM
45.8Canopy River Park (20K start) Fri 04:10 PM
53.1Malecón (start and finish) Fri 05:30 PM
A beach and hillside neighborhoods in Puerto Vallarta below a forested mountain
Ondrej Bocek / Unsplash

Puerto Vallarta Haramara 37K

A Saturday start before dawn, out to Canopy River Park and up into the hills.

Distance
37.2 km (23.1 mi)
Climbing
1,600 m (5,249 ft)
Start
Sat, Mar 6, 5:00 AM
Time limit
9 h

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The Haramara starts on the Malecón at 5 a.m. on Saturday and runs fairly flat for its first 8.7 km to Canopy River Park. Then it climbs, through Guásimas to Higueras at 625 m, and turns back west to Aguacatera before dropping steeply to the finish. It has 1,600 m of climbing and a 9 hour limit.

Canopy and Guásimas have food. Higueras and Aguacatera have only drinks, so your last food is at Guásimas, with 21 km to go. The cutoffs shown are 2026's.

aid stations

kmWhereCutoff
0Malecón (start and finish)
8.7Canopy River Park (20K start)
16.2Guásimas Sat 08:45 AM
20.9Higueras
29.1Aguacatera Sat 12:15 PM
37.2Malecón (start and finish) Sat 02:00 PM

Puerto Vallarta Ereno 20K

A point to point from Canopy River Park over the hills to the Malecón.

Distance
20.3 km (12.6 mi)
Climbing
1,050 m (3,445 ft)
Start
Sat, Mar 6, 6:45 AM
Time limit
5 h 30 min

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The Ereno is the one race that doesn't start on the Malecón. A shuttle leaves the Malecón at 5:45 a.m. on Saturday for Canopy River Park, where waves go off at 6:45, 7:00 and 7:15. You climb to Guásimas and Aguacatera, both drink stops, then get food at Carmelitas before the drop back to the Malecón. It climbs 1,050 m, and you have 5 hours 30. The Aguacatera cutoff is 2026's.

aid stations

kmWhereCutoff
0Canopy River Park (20K start)
4.9Guásimas
12.2Aguacatera Sat 10:30 AM
15.5Carmelitas
20.3Malecón (start and finish)

Puerto Vallarta Pata Salada 5K

A short run up to the Cerro de la Cruz viewpoint and back along the river.

Distance
4.9 km (3 mi)
Climbing
200 m (656 ft)
Start
Sat, Mar 6, 7:30 AM
Time limit
2 h 30 min

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The Pata Salada starts on the Malecón at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday and climbs 200 m in all, past the Cerro de la Cruz viewpoint, then comes back down via Isla Cuale. There's water at El Caloso and Isla Cuale. It doesn't carry Running Stones, and you get 2 hours 30.

People walking under palms on Puerto Vallarta's Malecón, with the sea on the right
Nicole Herrero / Unsplash

Registration and the UTMB Finals

Registration for 2027 is open on all five races. You need a complete MyUTMB profile first. International runners pay in US dollars and Mexican runners in pesos, with the discount for Mexican runners applied at checkout.

Every finisher of the 81K, 53K, 37K and 20K earns Running Stones for the UTMB Mont-Blanc draw. The Hikuri counts as a 100K race in the World Series, and its top three women and men get direct entry to the CCC; the Nakawé's get the OCC. The 2026 Hikuri winner, Canada's Mandy Currie, took a CCC place for 2027 that way.

Getting to Puerto Vallarta

Puerto Vallarta's Malecón and beach from above, with the crowned church tower and a green hill behind
Aliux Saavedra Cantellano / Unsplash

Puerto Vallarta's airport (PVR) sits inside the city, just north of Marina Vallarta, with direct flights from the US and Canada. By road, the organizer puts Guadalajara at about 4 hours, Tepic at 2 and Mexico City at 8; ETN and Primera Plus are among the bus lines.

The Ultra Trail Village and bib pickup are at Plaza Lázaro Cárdenas. Hikuri and Nakawé bibs go out on Thursday 4 March, 12:00 to 18:00, with the briefing at 12:15. The 37K, 20K and 5K bibs are on Friday, same hours.

Crews, pacers and drop bags

Along the course, crews can only meet you on the Hikuri, at El Hundido, UMA and Canopy River Park. You get one assistant, who works in the zone from 500 m before to 500 m after the station and can hand you a bag of up to 30 liters. They can't give you medical care.

Pacers aren't allowed: nobody who isn't entered may run with you outside the marked spectator zones near aid stations. Drop bags are for the 81K only, at UMA. Aid stations don't hand out cups or cutlery, so carry your own.

Heat and what to carry

Jungle-covered hills dropping to the bay at Casas de las Brisas, Puerto Vallarta
Chris McQueen / Unsplash

March is dry on this coast. Puerto Vallarta averages a high of 27 °C (81 °F) and a low of 17 °C (63 °F), with about 2 mm of rain all month. In 2026 the race ran in April, with up to 28 °C and 88% humidity, which made it feel closer to 35 °C.

The race runs on semi-autonomy. Stations give you food and drink to eat there, but only water and sports drink to fill your bottles, so leave each one with enough to reach the next. If you start with poles, you carry them to the finish: they can't go in a drop bag.

Puerto Vallarta aid stations and GPS coordinates

For crews and spectators: each place on the map in decimal degrees, latitude first. Paste them into any map app or add them as waypoints in Goat Maps.

  • Malecón (start and finish)

    2 m (7 ft)

    20.60896, -105.23597

  • Canopy River Park (20K start)

    176 m (577 ft)

    20.57797, -105.20172

  • Carmelitas

    323 m (1,060 ft)

    20.61123, -105.21561

  • Aguacatera

    589 m (1,932 ft)

    20.60251, -105.19447

  • Guásimas

    454 m (1,490 ft)

    20.57504, -105.17123

  • Higueras

    625 m (2,051 ft)

    20.58498, -105.14972

  • El Hundido

    592 m (1,942 ft)

    20.57583, -105.15035

  • El Jorullo

    945 m (3,100 ft)

    20.56205, -105.13721

  • Jaguar

    917 m (3,009 ft)

    20.53963, -105.09011

  • Barandillas

    1,205 m (3,953 ft)

    20.51262, -105.04353

  • UMA

    901 m (2,956 ft)

    20.54105, -105.09164

  • La Venada

    938 m (3,077 ft)

    20.56029, -105.13805

  • El Caloso

    41 m (135 ft)

    20.60856, -105.22536

  • Isla Cuale

    15 m (49 ft)

    20.60658, -105.23290

Puerto Vallarta FAQ

When is Puerto Vallarta by UTMB 2027?

4 to 6 March 2027. The Hikuri 81K starts at midnight going into Friday 5 March and the Nakawé 53K at 4 a.m. that morning. The Haramara 37K, Ereno 20K and Pata Salada 5K are on Saturday 6 March. Bib pickup starts on Thursday 4 March.

Is Puerto Vallarta by UTMB in March or April?

March. The 2026 edition was set for March too, then postponed to April because of violence in the region. The 2027 race is 4 to 6 March.

How many Running Stones do you get at Puerto Vallarta by UTMB?

3 for the Hikuri 81K, 2 for the Nakawé 53K or the Haramara 37K, and 1 for the Ereno 20K. The Pata Salada 5K has none.

Can you have a pacer or crew at the Hikuri?

Crew, yes: one person at El Hundido, UMA and Canopy River Park. Pacers, no. The shorter races have no crew points along the way.

How hot is Puerto Vallarta in March?

Highs average about 27 °C (81 °F) and lows about 17 °C (63 °F), and it barely rains. The 2026 race, held in April, saw 28 °C with 88% humidity.

Was there a Puerto Vallarta by UTMB in 2025?

No. It skipped 2025 because of a scheduling shift with its sister race, Chihuahua by UTMB. It was first run in 2022, and 2026 was its fourth edition.

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Updated . An unofficial guide, from the organizer's published information. Coordinates from the organizer's course and OpenStreetMap contributors. Photos from Unsplash. Organize a race? We help with course files.