The Amazing Race 37 is the thirty-seventh season of the American reality competition show The Amazing Race. Hosted by Phil Keoghan, it featured fourteen teams of two, each with a pre-existing relationship, competing in a race around the world to win US$1,000,000. This season visited three continents and ten countries and regions, traveling over during twelve legs. Starting in Los Angeles, racers traveled through Hong Kong, Japan, Indonesia, the United Arab Emirates, Bulgaria, Italy, Germany, France, and Portugal, before returning to the United States and finishing in Miami. It was described as a "season of surprises", as each leg of the race includes a twist in the form of an obstacle or a unique task. New elements introduced this season include the Fork in the Road, the Driver's Seat, and Valet Roulette. Elements of the show that returned for this season include the double elimination leg, the Intersection, the Live U-Turn Vote, the Fast Forward, the Double U-Turn, the non-elimination leg, the Head-to-Head, and the Scramble. The season premiered on CBS on March 5, 2025, and concluded on May 15, 2025.
Best friends and gamers Carson McCalley and Jack Dodge were the winners of this season, while siblings Han and Holden Nguyen finished in second place, and married parents Jonathan and Ana Towns finished in third place.
Production Development and filming
On May 2, 2024, the show was renewed for its 37th season with CBS Entertainment President Amy Reisenbach teasing a potential new twist for the show. In an interview before the finale of Season 36, Phil Keoghan stated, "We know the audience loves the airports; we know the audience loves mixing things up. We know that the audience loves going to new places, like Slovenia in Season 35. We got so much great feedback about Slovenia, so expect to see some new destinations, and also trying some new things."
Filming for this season began on May 18, 2024, at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures in Los Angeles with teams then flying to Hong Kong. On May 21, teams left Hong Kong for Osaka, Japan. On June 10, a leg was filmed in Northern Portugal. Filming concluded on June 14 in Miami, which coincided with the June 2024 South Florida floods that caused a multi-day delay in filming of the final leg. This season also included visits to Dubai, United Arab Emirates, and Strasbourg, France, as well as a first-time visit to Bulgaria. In total, the season featured nine countries across .
In August 2024, Keoghan stated in an interview, "We wanted to do a season where there were a few surprise elements, so I guess that's what I would say would summarize what we did. There's just some things that come [out] of left field for the contestants and I think the viewers will find it fun. Not necessarily new twists but just surprises."
This season was dubbed the "Season of Surprises" by CBS, with every episode featuring a "game-changing twist". These twists included longstanding staples of the show such as the Fast Forward (last seen in season 29) and U-Turn. In a new twist called the "Fork in the Road" during the first leg in Hong Kong, teams chose one of two race routes to the Pit Stop and one team on each route was eliminated at the end of the leg. The Intersection returned for the first time since season 16 during the second leg. Teams had a chance to win an Express Pass during the third and eighth legs. The fourth leg also introduced a new twist called the Driver's Seat, where one team gained the power to determine how much work racers had to perform during the Roadblock. The fifth leg saw the return of the U-Turn Vote, this time in public as in season 31 rather than in private. The seventh leg included the first standard Double U-Turn since season 32. The ninth leg featured the first planned non-elimination leg since season 33. The tenth leg had the first instance of the Head-to-Head since season 31; however, the Head-to-Head was placed at a Roadblock in the middle of the leg rather than just before the Pit Stop as in previous appearances. The eleventh leg introduced a new twist called Valet Roulette, where teams had to blindly choose either a manual or automatic car. The final leg featured a Scramble.
The final episode was dedicated to Jack Walworth, a longstanding producer of The Amazing Race since 2006, following his death.
Casting Casting for the season began on December 4, 2023.
Release Broadcast In May 2024, CBS announced that the thirty-seventh season would air in 2025 on Wednesday nights alongside Survivor 48 with 90-minute episodes. On November 13, 2024, CBS announced that the season's premiere date as March 5, 2025.
Marketing The first episode of this season was screened at SCAD TVfest in Atlanta during a panel with Phil Keoghan, Han & Holden, and Nick & Mike on February 5, 2025. The first trailer for this season was released on February 19, 2025.
Contestants Scott and Lori Thompson were revealed early on January 9, 2025, on a special "Survivor V Amazing Race" episode from the second season of Raid the Cage. The full cast was revealed on February 5, 2025. With fourteen teams, this season features the largest cast for the American edition of The Amazing Race. ContestantsAgeRelationshipHometownStatus51SistersWaco, TexasEliminated 1st & 2nd(in Hong Kong)6163Retired FirefightersWatertown, Tennessee59Bartlett, Tennessee59Father & DaughterChicago, IllinoisEliminated 3rd(in Minoh, Japan)28 Somerville, Massachusetts33Dating NursesLeland, North CarolinaEliminated 4th(in Kyoto, Japan)34 31 Friends Dallas, TexasEliminated 5th(in Kubu, Indonesia) 33 Denver, Colorado 47 Married Parents of EightSalt Lake City, UtahEliminated 6th (in Nusa Dua, Indonesia)4965Father & Son LumberjacksSt. Louis, MissouriEliminated 7th (in Dubai, United Arab Emirates)3632BrothersBrooklyn, New YorkEliminated 8th (in Sarantsi, Bulgaria)2866Mother & DaughterChandler, ArizonaEliminated 9th (in Sofia, Bulgaria)32Englewood, Colorado 36 Married Vegas Performers Las Vegas, NevadaEliminated 10th (in Scherwiller, France) 37 31 Married Nurses Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaEliminated 11th (in Vila Nova de Gaia, Portugal) 32 42Married ParentsPomona, CaliforniaThird place 35 26SiblingsLos Gatos, CaliforniaRunners-up 22 28Best Friends & GamersBrooklyn, New YorkWinners 27
Results The following teams are listed with their placements in each leg. Placements are listed in finishing order. A placement with a dagger () indicates that the team was eliminated. An placement with a double-dagger () indicates that the team was the last to arrive at a Pit Stop in a non-elimination leg. A indicates that the team won the Fast Forward. A indicates that the team used an Express Pass on that leg to bypass one of their tasks. A indicates that the team used the U-Turn and a indicates the team on the receiving end of the U-Turn. A indicates that teams encountered an Intersection. A indicates that teams encountered a Fork in the Road. +Team placement (by leg)Team123456789101112Carson & Jack 1st 4th 2nd 2nd 2nd 1st 6th 4th 4th 1st 1st 1stHan & Holden 5th 11th 9th 6th 5th 2nd 4th 5th 4th 2nd 2nd Jonathan & Ana 2nd 1st 3rd 1st 8th 5th 3rd 3rd 1st 3rd 3rd 3rdAlyssa & Josiah 1st 3rd 7th 5th 3rd 3rd 1st 2nd 3rd 2ndBrett & Mark 2nd 9th 5th 7th 1st 4th 2nd 1st 2ndMelinda & Erika 6th 5th 4th 4th 6th 6th 5thNick & Mike 5th 10th 8th 8th 7th 7th Pops & Jeff 4th 7th 6th 9th 4thScott & Lori 3rd 2nd 1st 3rd Bernie & Carrigain 4th 8th 10thCourtney & Jasmin 6th 6th Ernest & Bridget 3rd Mark & Larry Jackye & Lauren
Race summary
Leg 1 (United States → Hong Kong)
Episode 1: "Double the Stakes, Double the Eliminations" (March 5, 2025) Prize: (awarded to Carson & Jack Alyssa & Josiah) Eliminated: Mark & Larry Jackye & Lauren Locations Los Angeles, California (Academy Museum of Motion Pictures) (Starting Line) Los Angeles → Hong Kong Hong Kong (Tian Tan Buddha) Hong Kong (Central Piers → Cheung Chau Ferry Pier) Hong Kong (Cheung Chau Family Walk) Hong Kong (Pak Tai Temple Playground) Hong Kong (Cheung Chau Ferry Pier → Central Piers) Hong Kong (Lok Kwan Street Park ) Hong Kong (Jao Tsung-I Academy Xiqu Centre) Hong Kong (West Kowloon Cultural District – Art Park Terrace)
Episode summary Teams began at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures and drove to the airport, where they had to book one of two flights to Hong Kong. Once there, teams had to travel by Lantau Taxi to the Tian Tan Buddha and climb up the stairs to the clue box. Teams then traveled to Central Piers, took the Sun Ferry to Cheung Chau, and searched the promenade in Cheung Chau Family Walk for their next clue. In this season's first Roadblock, one team member had to climb a Cheung Chau Bun Festival bamboo tower at the Pak Tai Temple Playground and retrieve their next clue from the top. After the Roadblock, teams had to take the ferry back to Central Piers and then find their next clue at Lok Kwan Street Park. Teams encountered the Fork in the Road and had to choose one of two routes to the Pit Stop: Dance ( – ) or Sing ( – ). In Dance, teams had to travel to Jao Tsung-I Academy and perform a short lion dance routine to receive their next clue. In Sing, teams traveled to Xiqu Centre, where they had to dress up in traditional costume and make-up and perform a section of a Cantonese opera, fully in Cantonese, to receive their next clue. Each route had a limit of seven teams, and teams had to reveal their choices for later-arriving teams. After completing either route, teams had to check in at the Pit Stop: the Art Park Terrace in the West Kowloon Cultural District. Additional note The first team on each path of the Fork in the Road to reach the Pit Stop was awarded a prize, while the last team on each path was eliminated.
Leg 2 (Hong Kong → Japan)
Episode 2: "Very Strong Warrior Energy" (March 12, 2025) Prize: Cashback rewards for a trip for two to Kilimanjaro, Tanzania (awarded to Jonathan & Ana) Eliminated: Ernest & Bridget Locations Hong Kong (Tsim Sha Tsui Promenade) Hong Kong (Crocodile Center – Skywards Travel) Hong Kong → Osaka, Japan Osaka (Tsūtenkaku Tower) Osaka (Namba Hatch ) Osaka (Dōtonbori Bridge) Sakai (Ohama Daishin Arena Ohama Sumo Arena) Minoh (Katsuō-ji Tahōtō)
Episode summary At the start of this leg, teams were instructed to fly to Osaka, Japan, with teams required to book their flight at the Crocodile Center. Once there, teams had to travel to the Tsūtenkaku Tower and find their next clue, which sent them to Namba Hatch. Teams encountered an Intersection, which required two teams to mutually join together to complete the following task. The teams were paired up thusly: Ernest & Bridget and Brett & Mark, Carson & Jack and Jonathan & Ana, Alyssa & Josiah and Nick & Mike, Courtney & Jasmin and Pops & Jeff, Melinda & Erika and Han & Holden, and Bernie & Carrigian and Scott & Lori. In this leg's Roadblock, one member from each of the newly-joined teams had to memorize and perform a taiko drum routine alongside a drum group to receive their next clue. After this task, teams were no longer joined. After the Roadblock, teams had to travel on foot to the Dōtonbori Bridge, which had their next clue. This season's first Detour was a choice between Mochi or Mawashi. In Mochi, teams had to pound steamed rice with a large mallet and then make twelve mochi balls to receive their next clue. In Mawashi, both team members had to properly wrap a mawashi on each other and then push a sumo wrestler out of a sumo ring to receive their next clue. After the Detour, teams had to check in at the Pit Stop: Katsuō-ji Tahōtō in Minoh. Additional note Teams left the Pit Stop in the order they arrived, regardless of which route they took in the previous leg.
Leg 3 (Japan)
Episode 3: "Chaotic, Crazy, That's What We're Used To" (March 19, 2025) Prize: US$5,000 (awarded to Scott & Lori) Eliminated: Courtney & Jasmin Locations Osaka (Osaka Castle Park) Osaka → Kyoto Kyoto (Shimogamo Shrine) Kyoto (Shiramine Shrine) Kyoto (Yasaka Kōshin-dō)