Daybreak 76® Panama City Beach Marathon

Daybreak 76® Panama City Beach Marathon is run in Panama City Beach, Florida, on December 5, 2026, along the beaches of the coast. Three distances share the morning: a 5K, a half marathon (13.1 miles) and the full marathon (26.2 miles). The route follows the shoreline, with the ocean and the sea air as a constant backdrop, and the profile is flat in the way Florida coastal courses usually are.

That flat profile is the main argument here. If you are chasing a personal best or a Boston qualifier, a coastal marathon in early December removes one of the variables that costs the most time. Build with a 16-week block and a weekly long run that peaks around 20 miles, and rehearse your goal pace on flat ground so your legs get used to running without the natural breaks that rolling terrain provides. The half and the 5K reward the same approach on a shorter scale.