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A hiker on a grassy ridge above Zinal facing the snowy peaks at the head of the Val d'Anniviers
Xavier von Erlach / Unsplash

Sierre-Zinal course map and aid stations

31 km from the Rhône valley floor in Sierre to Zinal, past Chandolin and the Hotel Weisshorn, under five 4,000 m peaks.

August 7, 2027 Val d'Anniviers, Valais, Switzerland

Sierre-Zinal was first run in 1974. The organizer calls it the Race of the Five 4000s, after the Weisshorn, Zinalrothorn, Obergabelhorn, Matterhorn and Dent Blanche, the peaks you run beneath. It was part of the Golden Trail World Series in 2026, and the 2027 edition is on Saturday, August 7.

It's 31 km with 2,200 m of climbing and 1,100 m of descent. It starts at Finges on the edge of Sierre, climbs hard through forest to Chandolin, then traverses high above the Val d'Anniviers by Tignousa and the Hotel Weisshorn before dropping into Zinal. You enter in one of two categories. Touristes start before dawn and get looser cutoffs; Coureurs start late in the morning and get ranked. Touristes can also take the first climb by the Saint-Antoine chapel instead of Niouc.

The map below has every aid station, its kilometer and each category's cutoffs, so you can download it and check where the next water is without opening the organizer's site on a phone at 2,300 m.

This is an unofficial guide: Goat Maps isn't affiliated with Sierre-Zinal. Check the official site before you enter or race.

Sierre-Zinal 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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Sierre-Zinal courses

CourseDistanceClimbingStartTime limit
Touristes31 km (19.3 mi)2,200 m (7,218 ft)Sat, Aug 7, 4:45 AM
Coureurs31 km (19.3 mi)2,200 m (7,218 ft)Sat, Aug 7, 10:30 AM

Sierre-Zinal Touristes

The full course from a pre-dawn start, timed but not ranked.

Distance
31 km (19.3 mi)
Climbing
2,200 m (7,218 ft)
Start
Sat, Aug 7, 4:45 AM

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In 2026 Touristes went off in blocks between 4:45 and 6:15 in the morning, and the organizer emails your block about a week before. The first climb is in the dark, so bring a lamp you can hand to someone once it's light: the organizer won't carry it for you. You're expected to take more than 4:30, and you get an official time but no ranking and no ITRA, UTMB or Betrail score. You must be at least 10 years old.

At the start you choose your climb: by Niouc, the route this page's kilometers follow, or by the Saint-Antoine chapel, which rejoins it just before Beauregard. The cutoffs are 10:40:59 at Chandolin, 12:00:59 at Tignousa and 13:30:59 at the Hotel Weisshorn, and the finish closes at 17:30:59.

aid stations

kmWhereCutoff
0Finges, Sierre (start)
4Beauregard
7.5Ponchette
12Chandolin Sat 10:40:59
16Tignousa Sat 12:00:59
20Hotel Weisshorn Sat 13:30:59
24Nava (water only)
27Barneuza
31Zinal (finish) Sat 17:30:59
The moon over snowy peaks and glaciers at twilight, seen from near the Tracuit hut above Zinal
Benoit Rondeux / Unsplash

Sierre-Zinal Coureurs

The ranked race, starting late in the morning.

Distance
31 km (19.3 mi)
Climbing
2,200 m (7,218 ft)
Start
Sat, Aug 7, 10:30 AM

Take this course offline

Download its map in Goat Maps and you can find the next aid station without a signal.

Open in web map

The Coureurs category is for runners 18 and over who expect to finish under 4:30. Your result is ranked and can count toward your ITRA, UTMB and Betrail scores. The climb is by Niouc only.

In 2026 the women's start went at 10:30, and women could choose it or a mixed block. The invited elites and the first mixed block left at 11:00, then blocks at 11:10 and 11:20. Women who start at 11:00 or later can't win the overall prize money. The cutoffs are much tighter than the Touristes': 14:10:59 at Chandolin, 14:40:59 at Tignousa, 15:20:59 at the Hotel Weisshorn and 17:30:59 in Zinal.

The first 7.5 km, up to Ponchette, take you from 564 m to 1,870 m. At Tignousa, after 16 km, there's a timed 100 m sprint, and the Golden Trail series scores a climb, a sprint and a descent for bonus points.

aid stations

kmWhereCutoff
0Finges, Sierre (start)
4Beauregard
7.5Ponchette
12Chandolin Sat 14:10:59
16Tignousa Sat 14:40:59
20Hotel Weisshorn Sat 15:20:59
24Nava (water only)
27Barneuza
31Zinal (finish) Sat 17:30:59
The Zinal Glacier and the peaks above it under cloud, with a rocky slope in front
Simon Maisch / Unsplash

Getting an entry

For 2026 the organizer dropped first come, first served. Pre-registration was open on April 2 from noon to 6 PM, and it didn't matter when in that window you signed up. If demand outstrips the 4,000 Touristes and 2,100 Coureurs places, there's a draw. In 2026 the results went out by email the next afternoon, with payment due by April 10. Groups of 2 to 20 are drawn together or not at all. You pick your category when you pre-register and can't change it later.

The fee was CHF 110, with no refunds, though you can buy cancellation insurance when you register. If you miss the draw, there's a waiting list from May 2. Entries also come with the race's packages (accommodation or a training camp), which opened on March 2 and sold out. Bibs can be transferred from May 2 to July 21 for CHF 25.

The 2027 registration dates weren't out when this page was checked.

Getting to the start and back from Zinal

A dirt road through vineyards on the edge of Sierre, with mountains behind
Michael Loftus / Unsplash

Sierre is on the main Valais rail line, with two InterRegio trains an hour from Geneva Airport plus regional trains. In 2026 the race ran a special overnight train from Geneva at 1:54 AM, arriving in Sierre at 4:10.

Bibs are handed out at the Sierre Town Hall, three minutes' walk from the station. It opens early on race morning too, but it's 4 km from the start, so pick yours up on Friday afternoon if you can. Free shuttles run to the start from Restaurant Le Bourgeois, near the station: every 10 minutes from 3:30 to 5:45 for Touristes and 9:30 to 10:45 for Coureurs. Leave your bag in the trucks at the start and it's waiting in Zinal, where you collect it with your bib by 7 PM.

After the finish, special buses leave the Zinal cable car station every 10 minutes or so from noon to 7:45 PM, free with your bib or medal. The road up the Val d'Anniviers is closed for short spells around each start, so friends driving to Zinal should check the organizer's road closure times.

Kit and rules

Yellow hiking signposts on a wooden post near Zinal
Andri Aeschlimann / Unsplash

There's no mandatory kit, but the organizer reminds you that part of the course is above 2,000 m, so dress for the forecast. Poles and headphones are banned, and so is running with anyone who isn't registered, dogs included. You can't leave anything at the aid stations, and taking help outside the official refreshment zones can get you disqualified.

Beauregard and Ponchette are hard to supply, so water there is limited. Nava, at 24 km, is water only. If you drop, the organizer only brings you back from Chandolin, where your bib gets you on the PostBus for free, or from Tignousa, by shuttle. Past Tignousa you make your own way to Zinal.

For friends watching, the Saint-Luc funicular runs up to Tignousa every 30 minutes on race day, and spectators can line the last 700 m into Zinal.

Weather in August

You start on the Rhône valley floor, where Sion, down the valley at 482 m, averages highs around 27°C in August. From Chandolin to Barneuza, about half the course, you're at around 2,000 to 2,400 m. Evolène, a weather station at 1,825 m in the Val d'Hérens about 10 km west of Zinal, averages an August high of 17.5°C and a low of 8.6°C, with about 11 days of rain in the month (NOAA's 1991 to 2020 normals).

Touristes start in the cool before dawn. Coureurs start the forest climb late in the morning, when the valley floor is warming up.

Sierre-Zinal 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.

  • Finges, Sierre (start)

    564 m (1,850 ft)

    46.28989, 7.56416

  • Beauregard

    1,146 m (3,760 ft)

    46.27954, 7.55872

  • Ponchette

    1,870 m (6,135 ft)

    46.27436, 7.58542

  • Chandolin

    2,000 m (6,562 ft)

    46.25193, 7.59791

  • Tignousa

    2,180 m (7,152 ft)

    46.22867, 7.61076

  • Hotel Weisshorn

    2,337 m (7,667 ft)

    46.20819, 7.61804

  • Nava (water only)

    2,390 m (7,841 ft)

    46.18310, 7.62587

  • Barneuza

    2,210 m (7,251 ft)

    46.16635, 7.63015

  • Zinal (finish)

    1,668 m (5,472 ft)

    46.13793, 7.62519

Sierre-Zinal FAQ

When is Sierre-Zinal 2027?

Saturday, August 7, 2027, according to the organizer. The timetable isn't out yet. In 2026 the Touristes started from 4:45 AM and the Coureurs from 10:30 AM, which matches the regulation's usual times.

Should I enter as a Touriste or a Coureur?

It depends on your expected time. Coureurs are for runners 18 and over aiming for under 4:30, and get ranked. Touristes are for anyone 10 and over expecting more than 4:30, with an early start, looser cutoffs and an official time but no ranking. You can't switch categories or start blocks after you register.

Does Sierre-Zinal count for my UTMB or ITRA index?

Only in the Coureurs category. Touristes results are excluded from the ITRA, UTMB and Betrail indexes.

Can you use poles at Sierre-Zinal?

No. Poles are banned on every Sierre-Zinal course, and so are headphones. Breaking either rule means disqualification.

How many aid stations are there?

Seven, by the regulation: Beauregard (4 km), Ponchette (7.5 km), Chandolin (12 km), Tignousa (16 km), Hotel Weisshorn (20 km), Nava (24 km, water only) and Barneuza (27 km). Water is limited at Beauregard and Ponchette.

Is there a shorter race for kids?

Yes. The junior race runs from Chandolin to Zinal for 10 to 17 year-olds on the same morning, 20 km by the organizer's junior page. Children aged 4 to 9 can run the Course des Cinq Obstacles in Sierre the evening before.

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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.