Official Disneyland ½ Marathon & 5k

[kim3339]

I need some advice on touring the parks. The family ds11, ds15, hubby, & I will be visiting. Both hubby & I will be doing the half. We will arrive on 8/30 due to work constraints & leaving Labor day. Coming from the Midwest, going to Land is difficult & costly so te chances of us coming back to CA in the next 5 years are slim.

I'd love to tour the parks & see the new Cars Land & DCA. Plus have the kids experience Land as we visit WDW frequently. What would be the best approach? It appeas we will have a half day on arrival day, Friday, Saturday, & the rest of he day after the half.

I would like recommendations from anyone who uses the half event as a vacation as well. This will also help in determining on what park tickets to buy.

For trying to see Cars Land, I would get to DCA before it opens to stand in line first thing Friday morning and Saturday morning if you don't get everything in. You could try Thursday as well ~ pass by and see how bad it really is. Radiator Springs Racers (essentially Test Track from WDW) will have Fastpasses near It's a Bug's Life Theater, which is next to the Giant bear rock structure. The harder one to get on will be Luigi's Flying Tires. They are not going to have FPs and from what I've read it's a really slow turn over of people. So maybe get FP for the Races and straight to the tires. Or you could try and tackle each ride each day. Keep in mind there'll be early admission for people staying at the resort so there will already be a line, and if you're staying at the resorts, take advantage of it. Also, make sure you see WOC, it's really a great show. And if you're looking for a cool place to relax for a bit, Aladdin (also in DCA) is a good show as well.

Saturday I really play it by ear and take it easy. I try to stick to one 1/2 of the park so I'm not going all over the place. What I did for Tink this year was I went to DL 1st thing and did Fantasyland, NOS, Adventure land and Main Street and I walk out. Then I went over to DCA and did TOT, watched Aladdin (they're right next to each other) and headed back to the hotel for the afternoon. Tip for Saturday morning, if you're not running the 5k, try and get to security a little earlier than planned, b/c w/ the 5k in both parks non-runners will be held at security so the line can get a little long. But once the sweep is done, there isn't a problem.

If this is your first time at DL, you should make reservations for the Blue Bayou and/or Carthay Circle. Blue Bayou is a Cajun/Creole/Southern type of restaurant and it's inside POC. Carthay Circle is the new resturant that is opening up in DCA close to the entrance. It's kind of pricey, but if it's your first time there and the menu appeals to you it's definitely a must. You could do it as a celebratory lunch or dinner Sunday after the race. DL does 60 days in advance so 6/30 or so you can call or they do email now as well, and both need a reservation.

Aside from Cars Land, you shouldn't have a problem seeing everything over the 4 days. I usually get there mid-morning Friday and go straight to the expo so I'm not in the parks until 2 or so and don't have a problem getting everything in by the time I leave.

 

[rthutchens]

Has anyone eVer booked through the travel operator? I missed out on registering before it sold out but am rethinking going. I really want the Coast 2 Coast medal. How many days to tour the parks? I've only been once and that was over 20 years ago.

 

[melaniemiller2002]

We booked through GET travel for Tinkerbell and were quite pleased with them. There were no problems, we stayed at the DL Hotel, check in went smoothly. We also had purchased the shuttle from the airport through them but then a family member provided transportation. When we got home, I just had to sent the unused vouchers to them and they promptly refunded my money. I would use them again in a heartbeat.

 

[Bursley2010]

We booked through GET Travel for the DL Half, and I'm so glad to hear of your good review. Looking forward to what should hopefully be a smooth experience for us as well.

We are flying into LAX on Friday morning, but haven't secured any transportation from the airport to the Disneyland Hotel yet. Does anyone have any suggestions? We are looking to get from the airport to the hotel as fast as possible so we can get through the expo out out to the parks for the afternoon!

 

[kim3339]

We are flying into LAX on Friday morning, but haven't secured any transportation from the airport to the Disneyland Hotel yet. Does anyone have any suggestions? We are looking to get from the airport to the hotel as fast as possible so we can get through the expo out out to the parks for the afternoon!

Try Super Shuttle. I used them when I went down last month and didn't have any problems. I got in 1st thing Sat. and there wasn't any traffic, but traffic would be your only delay getting to the park. I think it took 45 minutes/hour or so to get to the hotel from LAX. I have a discount code at the office, so I can post it for you tomorrow.

 

[Bursley2010]

Try Super Shuttle. I used them when I went down last month and didn't have any problems. I got in 1st thing Sat. and there wasn't any traffic, but traffic would be your only delay getting to the park. I think it took 45 minutes/hour or so to get to the hotel from LAX. I have a discount code at the office, so I can post it for you tomorrow.

That sounds great! We aren't getting in first thing, more like 10:30am, but hopefully we'll still be able to get there by noon. Appreciate the discount code too, many thanks!

 

[cobbler]

Well tomorrow things get more real. I doubt my wait list will come through so I'm going to bite the bullet & use my points to stay at the DL hotel. Not the best use I know but it will save over $1,000 instead of paying cash. I have my rental car booked & will buy airfare in the next week & a half. Tickets come later..

Becoming excited. Now if airfare will fall lower than $481 I will be happier

 

[RENThead09]

We booked through GET Travel for the DL Half, and I'm so glad to hear of your good review. Looking forward to what should hopefully be a smooth experience for us as well.

We are flying into LAX on Friday morning, but haven't secured any transportation from the airport to the Disneyland Hotel yet. Does anyone have any suggestions? We are looking to get from the airport to the hotel as fast as possible so we can get through the expo out out to the parks for the afternoon!

I would also consider the Disneyland Express. For me is has always been faster than the hit or miss Supershuttle. You never know where is Orange County you will be stopping with Supershuttle or how many trips around LAX you will take till the van is full.

If you have 4 or more people, one of their specifically reserved vans may be more cost effective and efficient.

 

[Bursley2010]

I would also consider the Disneyland Express. For me is has always been faster than the hit or miss Supershuttle. You never know where is Orange County you will be stopping with Supershuttle or how many trips around LAX you will take till the van is full.

If you have 4 or more people, one of their specifically reserved vans may be more cost effective and efficient.

Do we need any kind of reservations for the Disneyland express? How much does it cost?

 

[kim3339]

Here's the code for Super Shuttle: UYR59. I think w/ the code it goes down to $13-15 for 1 way. Don't know about the Express though.

Facebook posted a pic of the necklace if anyone's interested:

 

[Qltrgrl2]

We used Supershuttle last year and it worked out great. The coupon code i found online made it around $15.00 roundtrip, a steal. I arrived the morning of the Expo and rode in with a couple vendors. One even gave me half price on the hat I purchased at her booth a few hours later!

The necklace is supercute. I would buy one if I was lucky enough to be running again this year.

 

[Bursley2010]

Here's the code for Super Shuttle: UYR59. I think w/ the code it goes down to $13-15 for 1 way. Don't know about the Express though.

Facebook posted a pic of the necklace if anyone's interested:

Thanks so much for the code and for posting the pic! So glad I ordered the necklace- very cute!!

 

[VickiHD]

Here's the code for Super Shuttle: UYR59. I think w/ the code it goes down to $13-15 for 1 way. Don't know about the Express though.

Facebook posted a pic of the necklace if anyone's interested:

I LOVE it. I'm so glad it purchased it. Thanks for posting.

 

[MotoXPrincess99]

Off to order one now...

Here's the link if anyone's interested:

http://www.active.com/framed/event_detail.cfm?CHECKSSO=0&EVENT_ID=2024122

 

[MightyDuck001]

I'm thinking about doing the Disneyland Half... I'd have to book through a travel agent, though, which I've never done AND it would be my first time in Disneyland. I'm debating what to do about the hotel. I'm used to the bounty of options in WDW, the Magical Express... Is it possible to waitlist for a cheaper room? Should I do the room through Disney? Why doesn't disney handle the Disneyland half like they handle everything in WDW, at least it's something I'm familiar with...

 

[kim3339]

I'm thinking about doing the Disneyland Half... I'd have to book through a travel agent, though, which I've never done AND it would be my first time in Disneyland. I'm debating what to do about the hotel. I'm used to the bounty of options in WDW, the Magical Express... Is it possible to waitlist for a cheaper room? Should I do the room through Disney? Why doesn't disney handle the Disneyland half like they handle everything in WDW, at least it's something I'm familiar with...

I never registered for the 1/2 through a travel agent so can't help you there. The other stuff I can though. Disney doesn't handle the travel like WDW, b/c it's very different from WDW. At DL, there are only 3 resort hotels and their prices are equivalent to b/w moderate and delux. Also, the parks are encompassed by hotels on all sides, so most people make their own reservations. You can find a hotel is every different price range, it all depends on how much you want to spend and how close do you want to get to the parks. Almost all of the hotels are w/in walking distance to the parks as well. Most people stay on Harbor or Katella, but Harbor is the most popular. But since you have to register for the race through the travel agency you choices might be limited. But know that it's not needed to stay at a resort hotel if you don't want to. Everything is really close.

As for flying, there are also different choices for airports. SNA is close to DL but can be a tad more than LAX. LAX is the "big" airport so it's cheaper but also a little further out. People have also used Long Beach, Ontario and Burbank airports depending on rates they find, but SNA and LAX are by far the most popular.

Get Travel did have spaces left, not sure if they still do, and they are the ones to also get the discounted park tix if you go through someone else.

Hope that helps

 

[Blondie1973]

Here's the code for Super Shuttle: UYR59. I think w/ the code it goes down to $13-15 for 1 way. Don't know about the Express though.

Facebook posted a pic of the necklace if anyone's interested:

I ordered one as well. Can't wait!

 

[MightyDuck001]

I never registered for the 1/2 through a travel agent so can't help you there. The other stuff I can though. Disney doesn't handle the travel like WDW, b/c it's very different from WDW. At DL, there are only 3 resort hotels and their prices are equivalent to b/w moderate and delux. Also, the parks are encompassed by hotels on all sides, so most people make their own reservations. You can find a hotel is every different price range, it all depends on how much you want to spend and how close do you want to get to the parks. Almost all of the hotels are w/in walking distance to the parks as well. Most people stay on Harbor or Katella, but Harbor is the most popular. But since you have to register for the race through the travel agency you choices might be limited. But know that it's not needed to stay at a resort hotel if you don't want to. Everything is really close.

As for flying, there are also different choices for airports. SNA is close to DL but can be a tad more than LAX. LAX is the "big" airport so it's cheaper but also a little further out. People have also used Long Beach, Ontario and Burbank airports depending on rates they find, but SNA and LAX are by far the most popular.

Get Travel did have spaces left, not sure if they still do, and they are the ones to also get the discounted park tix if you go through someone else.

Hope that helps

Thank you! I ended up using the other domestic travel agent so I didn't have to book the room through them (I found cheaper AAA rates) and the agent was a lot more helpful. Plus with the park ticket included it worked out to be the same as if I had paid the late registration.

I was in San Francisco about 10 years ago, but this'll be my first time to Southern California. The agent from Disneyland reservations kept laughing at my questions and joked, "You're not in Orlando anymore!" I apparently speak the language of WDW.

 

[TiggerAllie]

Hi All! I just ran a 10K this wknd to get a new qualifying time for corral placement. Anyone have a guess as to where a 58:30 10K will put me? TIA!

Any Boston-area people running the BAA 10K at the end of the month?

 

[kim3339]

Hi All! I just ran a 10K this wknd to get a new qualifying time for corral placement. Anyone have a guess as to where a 58:30 10K will put me? TIA!

Any Boston-area people running the BAA 10K at the end of the month?

They added 2,000 extra spots this year, so not exactly sure, but I would say B or C. Last year I entered a 2:45 time and was in E.