While the Mother City might be famous for its laid-back lifestyle of fine dining, wine farms and lazy days spent on shimmering beaches, it is also home to one of the world’s toughest trail races: Ultra-Trail Cape Town (UTCT).
Since the inaugural event in 2014, UTCT has evolved into one of the world’s leading ultra-trail events and the largest off-road running event in Africa. Placed alongside the Cape Town Cycle Tour and Two Oceans Marathon, it forms a trinity of iconic sporting events that draws enthusiastic travellers to Cape Town from across the globe.
And the star of the UTCT show is the iconic 100-mile route.
Now 100 miles (around 160 kilometres) is a long way in anyone’s book. And to run it? Challenging. But when it also includes more than 7000 metres of vertical ascent – D+, if you want to talk the trail lingo – on rugged paths and single-track trails that lead up, down and across an entire mountain range? Madness, surely.
And yet UTCT attracts both professional runners and ambitious amateurs each year. In 2024 runners from 47 countries laced up on the start line to tackle this remarkable race. But happily, UTCT is not only for madcap runners. Part of the charm of the UTCT is that there’s a race for everyone, from weekend warriors looking for a gentle challenge to runners with an eye on tackling the 100 miler... one day.
And whichever you choose to run, you’ll enjoy some of the Cape’s best scenery, with mountain slopes filled with flowering fynbos and stunning sea views.
Here’s the line-up of races on offer at Ultra-trail Cape Town 2025:
UTCT100 MILER
The flagship race, from the city to Simonstown and back.
Start: Friday, November 21, 5pm
Cut Off: 45 hours
Entry fee: R6195
UT100
A beast in its own right, with 100 kilometres of technical trail and almost five kilometres of vertical gain.
Start: Saturday, November 22, 4am
Cut Off: 26 hours
Entry fee: R5195
PT55
Technical trails in the southern peninsula, with 55 kilometres of track ending at the Gardens Rugby Club
Start: Friday, November 21, 7am
Cut off: 15 hours
Entry fee: R3755
TM35
Don’t be fooled by a route that’s ‘only’ 35 kilometres. With 1954 D+ there’s a sting in the tail of this route that blends climbs and technical descents.
Start: Sunday, November 23, 6am
Cut off: 11 hours
Entry fee: R2655
EX23
A blend of rolling Constantia green belts and technical trail that asks runners to dig deep for a big climb in the last 10 kilometres.
Start: Saturday, November 22, 9am
Cut Off: 6.5 hours
Entry fee: R1595
KS16
A taster portion of UTCT for intermediate trail-runners looking to test themselves on a big climb to the Back Table and some technical descents. A fine introduction to UTCT.
Start: Friday, November 21, 8.30am
Cut off: 6.5 hours
Entry fee: R955
Find all the info on routes, entries and what you’ll need to run at www.ultratrailcapetown.com.
You'd rather walk? Step this way for the Best Day Hikes in Cape Town.