The BMW Dallas Marathon festival runs December 11 to 13, 2026, and the convention center hosts part of it. Packet pickup runs at Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center Dallas in Hall A on December 11 and 12. Every race starts and finishes at Dallas City Hall Plaza, 1500 Marilla Street. The booking decision follows those two addresses.
The venue’s event page carries two readings of the dates. Its header block reads December 11-12, 2026. Its body reads December 11-13. The festival’s own event pages settle the three days: a 1-mile race on Friday evening, the 10K and 5K on Saturday, the marathon and half marathon on Sunday.
Friday 11:00 a.m. Is the Deadline That Bites
The Health & Fitness Expo opens Friday, December 11 at 11:00 a.m. and closes at 6:00 p.m. Admission is free. The expo is the official packet pickup for every event, and it runs seven hours that day.
No packet pickup runs on race morning. Saturday’s expo window opens at 9:00 a.m., one hour after the 10K starts at 8:00 a.m. A runner entered in Saturday’s 10K therefore collects a packet on Friday.
Friday Night Lights Mile starts at 7:00 p.m. from City Hall Plaza, after the expo closes. Its entrants collect packets at the expo earlier that day.
The 5K Team Challenge adds one step. The team captain collects every team shirt at the expo on Friday, December 11.
Saturday Morning Sets the Room Demand
Saturday, December 12 runs five events from Dallas City Hall Plaza. The 10K starts at 8:00 a.m., the 5K and 5K Team at 8:10 a.m., the 5K Walk at 8:15 a.m., the Kids 100M Dash at 10:00 a.m. and the Oncor Kids Race at 11:00 a.m.
Current entry prices: 10K adults $69, 5K adults $59, the five-person 5K Team Challenge $239, 10K youths $20, 5K youths $15, Kids 100M Dash $5.
A room held for Friday night serves every one of those starts. A room held for Saturday night serves the post-race party and the families staying through Sunday.
Sunday Is Sold Out, and That Reshapes the Stay
The Sunday events page marks the full marathon, the half marathon, the half marathon walk, the 50K ultra and the Legacy Runner entry sold out. Sunday’s start is 8:00 a.m. at Dallas City Hall Plaza.
Saturday night then carries the travelling parties who came to watch a race they cannot enter. It also carries the Sunday entrants who must collect a packet by 6:00 p.m. Saturday, the expo’s closing hour.
Anyone racing Sunday finishes the expo errand on Saturday. Race morning offers no second window.
The Five Properties Holding Rates
The organiser reserves special room rates at several downtown properties and names the Omni Dallas as official headquarters hotel. The page lists five.
Omni Dallas Hotel, 555 S Lamar Street, 75202, (214) 744-6664. Aloft Dallas Downtown, 1033 Young Street, 75202, (214) 761-0000. Hyatt Regency Dallas, 300 Reunion Boulevard, 75207, (214) 651-1234. TownePlace Suites Dallas Downtown, 555 Evergreen Street, 75201, (214) 749-5155. Fairfield Inn & Suites Dallas Downtown, 555 Evergreen Street, 75201, (214) 573-6555.
No nightly rate appears on the page. The booking link carries its own search window of December 10, 2026 with four nights, which starts one night before the expo opens.
Ask each property for the marathon rate and the cancellation date in writing. The page publishes neither.
Two Addresses for the Car
Dallas Love Field is the closest airport, and the organiser puts the drive to the Omni at 20 to 30 minutes. A DFW arrival needs at least 45 minutes.
The closest DART station to the start and finish is Akard Station.
Rideshare drop points: the convention center at 650 S. Griffin Street for the expo, the Omni at 555 S. Lamar Street for headquarters, and Dallas City Hall Plaza at 1500 Marilla Street for the races.
Downtown parking is paid only. The organiser routes drivers to SpotHero for a prepaid space.
What the Room Buys Beyond the Bed
The Pegasus Runners Lounge sells a single-day pass at $44 for Saturday, 6:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m., and $74 for Sunday, 6:30 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The pass covers a heated tent near the start and finish, private gear check, pre-race snacks and beverages, post-race brunch and climate-controlled restrooms. Parking sits outside the price.
A room near the start line covers the gear check and the restrooms for the price of one night. Add the pass where the walk from the room is long.
Pick a Rate You Can Leave
Registration transfers run through October 31, 2026 at a $15 fee, and a transfer holds only while the event has capacity. Sunday’s events have none left. A Friday or Saturday entry can still move.
Book the nights the calendar requires and keep the deposit terms in writing. The expo clock, the 8:00 a.m. starts and the sold-out Sunday set the nights. The rate is the number left to negotiate.