Eco-Trail Dinh Lap 2026
- Next event : Sun, December 6, 2026Date confirmed
The event in a few words
Forget Christmas markets and mulled wine: in December, we’re taking you to sweat in Asia! ✈️ The Eco-Trail Dinh Lap sets up its markers in Đình Lập, in Lạng Sơn province, in northeastern Vietnam. To set the scene, this mountain corner shares more than 50 km of border with China! 🇨🇳 Weather-wise, December falls right in the dry season: the thermometer in Lạng Sơn often ranges between 13°C and 20°C, with possible drizzle or a veil of fog in the early morning 🌫️. Still, slip an extra layer into your bag: you’re not made of sugar, but you’re not made of steel either 😉.
On site, three formats await you: a discovery trail of 7 km that already bites with its 418 mD+ 💥, a 13 km with 809 mD+, or a 20 km with 1,267 mD+—enough to bring out the best in you 🥵. Rice paddies, ridgelines, dense forests, and traditional villages follow one another along wild trails that give your thighs no respite 📈. The Đình Lập pines, tapped for their resin, perfume the climbs 🌲, and the province—one of Vietnam’s great star anise lands—adds its spicy note. The result: you’ll feel like you’re running inside a bottle of perfume, pretty handy for masking the smell of sweat, right? 😂
The concept of the Eco-Trail Dinh Lap? A trail designed with local homestays and committed to the planet, to support sustainable tourism and exchanges with local residents 🌍. Your registration also includes a contribution to local support, in an area the organizer presents as very little touristed. Run local and respect the playground—that’s the whole philosophy 🫶.
Once the medal is around your neck 🏅, extend your recovery in the region. Head to the city of Lạng Sơn and the Tam Thanh caves, which house a pagoda and open out onto the rice paddies 🪨. Want one last panorama? Climb up to the Mẫu Sơn plateau, the province’s highest point at over 1,500 m, where it sometimes happens that snow dusts the neighboring peaks in winter! ❄️ Feeling peckish? Thất Khê duck, the province’s culinary pride, will set you right far better than an energy bar 🦆.
So, ready to swallow elevation like a bowl of rice? 🍚
4 reasons to join this race
A distance for every taste
20 kmTOP
13 km
7 km
- Sunday, December 6, 2026 at 2:00 PM
- Elevation gain : 1267mD+
- 20 km
A few more words
The “Advanced Course” lives up to its name: 20 km and 1,267 mD+ spread over two big climbs, with both the start and finish in Đình Lập 😤. The beginning follows the same profile as the 13 km: a first climb up to km 2, a second ascent up to 620 m, then a ridge between km 4 and 5. Instead of dropping down toward the finish, you’ll string together more than 3 km of false flat around 400 m altitude, a flowing section where you’ll need to manage your pace 🛤️. The big challenge comes at km 10: 2.5 km of continuous climbing to the high point of the course, around 650 m, around km 12 🔥. The descent that follows, steep and fast, will make you lose more than 300 m in less than 1.5 km, a true test for your thighs. All that remains is a leg-breaking finale, increasingly runnable, that will bring you back to the finish line 🙌. With its two big walls, this demanding trail is aimed at trail runners who already have a few mountain outings in their legs.
- Sunday, December 6, 2026 at 2:00 PM
- Elevation gain : 809mD+
- 13 km
A few more words
Same start at Đình Lập for the “Challenger Course”, a short trail of 13 km that begins with the same profile as the 7 km before aiming higher 🔋. After the 2nd km, a second climb will take you up to the highest point of the course, around 620 m, near the 4th km 🧗. Then comes the most enjoyable section: about 1.5 km of ridge between 600 and 630 m altitude, where you’ll enjoy the panorama (as long as the vegetation lets you catch a glimpse). At the 5th km, the turning point begins. A long descent of nearly 3 km drops the altitude to 300 m, perfect for letting loose without forgetting to spare your quadriceps 🛷. Up to the finish, the last 5 km, almost flat, will mainly call for consistency ⏱️. This format and its 809 mD+ already require a solid habit of elevation gain.
- Sunday, December 6, 2026 at 2:00 PM
- Elevation gain : 418mD+
- 7 km
A few more words
Start and finish at the same place, in Đình Lập, for this discovery trail of 7 km that the organizers have dubbed “Fun Course” 🚦. A few hundred meters of flat to warm up the legs, then the first climb hits without warning: nearly 240 m of elevation gain to swallow before the 2nd km, enough to understand why the word fun keeps a touch of irony 🪜. Up there, a flatter section above 400 m of altitude will let you catch your breath in the middle of the forests. The descent, more than 1 km long, will then bring you back down to the valley floor 🎢. The return, more runnable despite two or three small bumps, rolls along calmly to the finish line 🎉. With 418 mD+ in total, this format remains accessible to any regular runner, as long as you don’t burn all your matches on the first climb.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
You’ll be able to pick up your bib at Mien Ecohouse in Đình Lập on Saturday, December 5, 2026 or Sunday, December 6, 2026 before the start.
The race start times will be announced soon.
No, no medical certificate is required. You’ll need to complete a medical self-declaration and sign a waiver of liability when registering. Travel insurance covering sports activities is strongly recommended for foreign participants.
Price: The 2026 rates are as follows:
8 km: €30
13 km: €40
20 km: €55
Yes:
7 km: 14 years old
13 km: 16 years old
20 km: 18 years old
Yes, for the 13 km and 20 km, the following gear is mandatory:
a pair of trail running shoes
a minimum 500 ml water reserve
a mobile phone with an emergency contact saved
a whistle
a rain jacket or a windproof layer
For the 20 km, the organizer may also require a survival blanket and a headlamp in case of an early start or a late finish.
Your registration includes:
a finisher medal
medical assistance
basic event-related insurance
a snack at the finish
If you still have questions, you can contact the organizers by email: ecomarathon@runningintokyo.com.
You can check the race rules here
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