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| Where Was The Amazing Race 39 Filmed? All Filming Locations Revealed. |
The Amazing Race 39 takes its teams on a huge international journey, with the competition filmed across nine destinations spanning five continents. From the opening race in Vancouver to the final stretch in Honolulu, the season moves through British Columbia, Spain, Morocco, Albania, Sri Lanka, Laos, Australia, New Zealand and Hawaii, giving the teams plenty of scenery to admire while presumably having very little time to actually admire it. Filming began in September 2025 and continued for more than three weeks, wrapping around the middle of October.
Created by Elise Doganieri and Bertram van Munster, the CBS competition once again follows pairs as they travel between countries, complete physical and mental challenges and fight to reach the finish line first. Phil Keoghan returns as host, while the prize remains a substantial $1 million. Season 39 also adds an unusual twist: every team receives an Express Pass that can be used to skip one task before Leg 6. With more than 25,000 miles of travel, 13 cities and challenges ranging from a 200-foot jump to paramotor flights, the locations are very much part of the competition rather than simple scenery.
Vancouver, British Columbia, provides the starting point for The Amazing Race 39. The teams gather at Jack Poole Plaza in Coal Harbour, setting the season in motion against one of Vancouver's most recognisable waterfront settings.
The city offers a particularly dramatic opening backdrop, with its combination of glass towers, mountains and harbour views. Areas associated with Vancouver's wider cityscape include Science World, Stanley Park, Lions Gate Bridge and Harbour Centre, giving the opening leg plenty of recognisable scenery before the teams disappear into the race.
Madrid, Spain, is the next major destination, bringing the competition into the Spanish capital. Madrid is an ideal setting for a race that needs contrasting environments, with grand historic architecture sitting alongside modern city streets.
The city is also home to major cultural institutions including the Prado Museum, Reina Sofía Museum and Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum. Between the architecture, busy streets and famously late-night atmosphere, Madrid gives the teams a very different challenge after the Vancouver opening. Presumably, nobody gets much time to stop for tapas.
Marrakesh, Morocco, adds another sharp change of scenery. The Moroccan city, known for its distinctive streets, traditional architecture, gardens and mosques, provides a visually rich setting for the competition. Among the city's best-known landmarks are the Koutoubia Mosque, Ben Youssef Mosque, Menara Gardens and Agdal Gardens. The race moves through streets and neighbourhoods where the surroundings become part of the challenge, creating the sort of environment where getting directions wrong could turn a simple task into an unwanted sightseeing tour.
Tirana, Albania, brings the teams into the country's capital, where urban streets meet a landscape framed by surrounding hills and mountains. The city provides a mixture of modern development and historic landmarks, including Skanderbeg Square, the Pyramid of Tirana, the National History Museum and the Resurrection of Christ Cathedral. That combination makes Tirana another substantial visual change in the season, with the racers having to deal with a completely different cityscape from the European destinations that came before it.
Colombo, Sri Lanka, becomes another major stop on the route, shifting the competition towards the Indian Ocean. Sri Lanka's executive and judicial capital combines high-rise development with older buildings and religious landmarks, giving the race plenty of visual variety.
The city's skyline can be associated with locations such as Lotus Tower, Shangri-La Colombo, One Galle Face, Gangaramaya Temple, Viharamahadevi Park and the Colombo National Museum. It is the kind of setting where the teams could be surrounded by impressive architecture one minute and trying to work out their next clue the next.
Vientiane Province, Laos, takes the race into a markedly different landscape. The competition reaches Vientiane, while the production also moves into the area around Vang Vieng, a town known for its dramatic natural scenery and popularity with travellers. The landscape gives this leg a more outdoors-focused feel, with the surrounding countryside providing a natural contrast to the dense urban environments featured earlier in the season. After several major capitals, Vang Vieng looks like the sort of place where the scenery does some of the heavy lifting.
Melbourne, Australia, continues the international route with a stop in Victoria's capital. Melbourne's mixture of skyscrapers, historic buildings and major sporting venues gives the race another distinctly urban backdrop. The city's recognisable locations include Flinders Street Station, the Royal Exhibition Building, Princes Bridge and the Melbourne Cricket Ground. With the teams already covering thousands of miles, Melbourne adds another major city to an itinerary that appears determined to give them absolutely no chance of getting comfortable.
Christchurch, New Zealand, provides another change of pace as the race reaches the Canterbury region. The city is known for its combination of urban spaces, gardens, rivers and surrounding landscapes, making it particularly suited to a competition that constantly shifts between city-based and outdoor challenges. Filming takes place around areas including the Avon River and the Edmonds Band Rotunda at 230 Cambridge Terrace, bringing the teams into one of Christchurch's recognisable central settings.
Honolulu, Hawaii, serves as the final destination, bringing the sprawling international journey to its finish. Hawaii's capital combines beaches, mountains, historic sites and a modern skyline, creating a suitably dramatic setting for the final stages of the competition.
The wider Honolulu backdrop includes ʻIolani Palace, First Hawaiian Center, Pearl Harbor, Bishop Museum, Waikiki Beach and Aloha Tower. After travelling through multiple countries and completing a string of demanding tasks, reaching Honolulu means the finish line is finally within sight — although by this point the teams probably have little energy left for appreciating the view.
The biggest appeal of The Amazing Race 39's filming locations is how dramatically the season keeps changing its visual identity. Vancouver gives the opening a polished North American feel, Madrid and Marrakesh bring historic European and North African settings, while Tirana and Colombo keep the journey moving into less familiar territory.
Laos and New Zealand provide some welcome natural scenery before Melbourne and Honolulu bring the race back into major city environments. It is a pretty ridiculous amount of travelling for one competition, but that is exactly what makes the format work. The locations never feel like an afterthought because each destination changes the atmosphere, terrain and potential challenges. If anything, the teams deserve a holiday after filming. Ideally one that does not involve running to a clue.
That is the international route for The Amazing Race 39, from the opening moments in Vancouver to the final destination in Honolulu. With cities, coastlines, historic landmarks and dramatic landscapes packed into one season, there is plenty here for travellers to add to their own wish lists. Which of these filming locations would you most like to visit, and which one would you choose as your first stop? Let us know what you think