Amelia Island Half Marathon
Amelia Island, FL
- Half Marathon, 12K, 5K
- Road (Paved)
- Official race website
Enjoy the beautiful sights of Amelia Island, including the historic downtown, the oldest lighthouse in Florida and shady Fort Clinch. Register to run the Half Marathon, 12K, Lighthouse Loop 5K or the Seaside Challenge!
Local Historical Weather (Oct 10):
| 2025 | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 | 2021 | |
| H (°F) | 75 | 76 | 77 | 77 | 78 |
| L (°F) | 68 | 67 | 54 | 66 | 69 |
Find Nearby Lodging (hotel, rental, etc.):
13.1 Miles of North Florida Vibes
This race went under new management in 2024 - I was disappointed because the medals for the women's races were stunning and I wanted something akin to those, but I … MORE
This race went under new management in 2024 – I was disappointed because the medals for the women’s races were stunning and I wanted something akin to those, but I also didn’t mind that the race opened up to all genders and I was able to sign my husband up to do the weekend with me.
The 2024 race was cancelled due to a hurricane. The hurricane had actually hit further south and swiped across Florida, so North Florida was “just” dealing with flooding and people evacuating up i95. My husband and I debated if we should cancel the hotel room and just eat the cost of the entry fee (didn’t want to deal with traffic on i95, felt unethical about taking a hotel room from someone who may need it, unsure if the race would even happen, etc). Fortunately, the race directors are from central Florida (and were very aware of the circumstances since, y’know, they were in the thick of it) and communicated with the race participants for several days in advance. I think they finally cancelled it by Tuesday or Wednesday before the Saturday/Sunday race weekend. The communication was good – we got text messages as well as emails and they allowed us to defer the race to 2025. That being said, the same race company also does the Charleston (SC) half marathon and cancelled the race a couple days before due to ice and didn’t allow deferrals. So, check each race they run carefully for their weather policy.
Anyway, 2025 thoughts, in no particular order:
The host hotel was maybe .25 miles from the start/finish line, so that was worth the cost IMO (still $200 with the race discount, which ouch, big city price for a small coastal town in October/hurricane season). We were able to park our car at the hotel and walk to the race, the packet pickup, a couple restaurants, and the ocean, which was really convenient. So if you’re flying in, study the map/decide what you want to do and figure out if you want to rent a car or not. That being said, Amelia Island is super close to a lot of other neat historical towns/islands, so probably plan on making it a real vacation and go see Savannah or St Augustine or whatever if you’re flying out. Or there’s a state park next to the start/finish line (the half literally runs through it for the last like four miles), so if you’re an RV person, check out the camp sites bc that would work. And there are bike lanes around downtown, so you wouldn’t need to unhook to go explore.
The half started at 7:20am – so just after sunrise. There were pacers for the race, which helped people to line up better than the 5K. But the pacers do Galloway method, so they started walking pretty quickly. So, use that info with figuring out where to line up/pace yourself for the first mile or so until things thin out.
Race started out as a nice mixture of downtown with historic buildings and through neighborhoods. The only complaint is going east was blinding because of the sun (even with sunglasses), but there were enough twists and turns that it wasn’t a huge issue after the first few miles.
The Trails:
so the race advertised a bit of trail and I assumed that meant like .10-.20 – like transitioning from one area to another (I’ve had a few of those in other races where you run over a grassy median or some loose gravel to get back to the road, something small and annoying but nbd in the scheme of 13.1 miles). No. This race had us do like three miles on two separate rustic trails. During hurricane season, the day after tons of rain. The first was this single track on grass out and back like a mile, except it was ALL of us going out and back. I’m a middle of the packer and the speed demons were coming out when we went in and then the runners who were getting their money’s worth came in while we were leaving. Except the ground was wet, nobody could actually run ON the trail, so everyone was up on uneven surfaces, and the Galloway people were STILL walk/running their intervals. It was awful and unexpected. Couldn’t even enjoy the marsh/wetlands because I was too focused on the ground and not bumping into anyone and trying not to swear too loudly. I felt awful for everyone in their thin carbon plated shoes because it was NOT cute on wet grass. My Superblasts did okay, but they’re not cross country shoes.
We finished that stretch after a mile and spat back onto the road, only to cross and hit another two mile stretch of trail. At least this was wider and people could pass more comfortably, but it was bizarre and not advertised in any of the emails/website (that I saw). Lovely views, I love marshes/wetlands and seeing ecologically unique areas during races, but from mile 4-7 was a wild choice. We spat back onto the road at mile 7 and my husband and I were both like “if this were a training run, we’d call it at this point”, lol. No bugs, fortunately and 36 hours later I haven’t broken out, so I don’t think there was any poison ivy either. But damn. Either they need to advertise that part more seriously for next year or make a change. I love trail running but that’s a different pair of shoes/mental race strategy than road racing, yknow.
Anyway, the last stretches were good – beautiful trees, tons of Spanish moss, a little bridge that overlooked the water, and several miles in the state park. Only eh is that the road is open to traffic and some of the road cones were so close to the edge it was only enough room for a single file of people. Or, god love them, some runners families were going along the course and parking so they could cheer on their runners at different points – which is wonderful, but they’re the ones we had to avoid on the road over and over and over again.
Police took it super seriously – one officer was ticketing a guy for speeding when we finished/went back to the hotel, so that was reassuring to see (as a pedestrian). We didn’t have a ton of police presence from miles 4-13, but the ones who were around were taking their jobs of traffic control seriously.
Gatorade was so watered down, it was just orange water. So bring your own electrolytes if you’re not used to the humidity. Fortunately we’ve trained in South Carolina all summer, so this was akin to what we were used to, but we were still soaked at the finish line and my underarms are so chafed I couldn’t sleep last night. So if you’re coming in from a place that isn’t humid or summer has been over for several weeks, make good choices.
Finish line was fine – they had wine cups as the extra gift for runners and the idea was to get a mimosa in your cute little wine cup. The cup itself was plastic (which was a little cheap, but I guess it travels better and is safer if you’re gonna have it by the pool or whatever) and the mimosa line was like 50+ people deep, so we just got our cups and called it good – we wanted to shower and hit the beach before hotel checkout.
Medal quality was solid – not the same as those stunning ones before 2024, but Florida coded and good sized. Shirt is good, 3/5 stars – print/design is good, color is nice, fits well, material is a little cheap/seems like it won’t breathe as well for being a tech shirt. The shirts and medals for 2025 were better than what they were offering in 2024, so hopefully the quality will continue to improve as the race grows.
Overall, solid race. It felt like Florida, was a nice little tour of the area, and is close enough to the border/i95 that you could double it with something else in GA, SC, or AL if you’re chasing states and trying to hit a couple in a weekend. And early October is close enough that we hadn’t lost our summer endurance – much better than trying to do Miami in like February and passing out on the bridge, lol.
Run through the state park
This is a smallish race that's part of a race weekend so make it a racecation. There's a 5K Saturday evening and then a 12K and Half Marathon Sunday morning. … MORE
This is a smallish race that’s part of a race weekend so make it a racecation. There’s a 5K Saturday evening and then a 12K and Half Marathon Sunday morning. I did the 5K and 12K. I did this.race first in 2023, it was canceled in 2024 due to a hurricane and back with new owners in 2025. This is a solid race that takes you through the streets of Amelia Island and then through the main road in the state park where both sides of the street and lined with trees draped in Spanish moss. The organization is top notch as is the nutrition on the course which was about every 2 miles.- Gatorade and water. You get a tech shirt and a stemless wine glass (plastic) fled with mimosa (if you widh) at the finish. I hope this race gets bigger and bigger each year as theres lots to do on the island during the weekend. It truly does feel like a getaway.
A Fun Race Weekend
Great race production, beautiful start and finish by the beach and the weather and humidity wasn't an issue (not this year - but it's Florida, every year is different). The … MORE
Great race production, beautiful start and finish by the beach and the weather and humidity wasn’t an issue (not this year – but it’s Florida, every year is different). The course for the 12k runs through the neighborhoods, over a scenic bridge and through the state park which has a gorgeous canopy of trees for the last few miles. This is part of a race weekend (the 5K was the evening before) and is a good destination event. There’s also post race mimosas and massages.
Great Women's Race with Bonus Swag
It was a hot and humid race, but lots of the race had shade- thank goodness! I was surprised that parts were on an uneven trail. It seemed like that … MORE
It was a hot and humid race, but lots of the race had shade- thank goodness! I was surprised that parts were on an uneven trail. It seemed like that was a last minute course change though. The rest of the course was a good mix of city/park and flat/slight inclines. The race swag was great, by signing up early we got an extra long sleeve shirt. Staying in a hotel close to the start/finish was super convenient.
Love this race!
This was my second year running Zooma Amelia Island and was once again blown away by the race staff and volunteers. To be amongst so many incredible women creates an … MORE
This was my second year running Zooma Amelia Island and was once again blown away by the race staff and volunteers. To be amongst so many incredible women creates an atmosphere that is joyful and empowering. The medals are absolutely stunning!
Great Race
Great race! The event staff was wonderful even though the weather on Saturday made them cancel the expo and move the packet pick up. The communication on the race event … MORE
Great race! The event staff was wonderful even though the weather on Saturday made them cancel the expo and move the packet pick up. The communication on the race event was outstanding the week and weekend of.
Highly recommend this race.
Awesome experience & vacation event. ❤
Perfect destination vacation. From start to finish, it's an experience to enjoy. While focused on women, men can participate. Feom awesome pre-events to post events such as sunrise yoga morning … MORE
Perfect destination vacation. From start to finish, it’s an experience to enjoy. While focused on women, men can participate.
Feom awesome pre-events to post events such as sunrise yoga morning after. And the SWAG!!! Great scenery, too.