Better half- Donald or Princess?

[czmom]

I have run several full and half marathons, so this won't be my first, just my first Disney one.

That being said, is one better than the other? Or are they basically the same (other than Princess being geared towards women)?

Seems like the weather is about equal, course the same perhaps. What about characters? Spectators? Overall Disney magic?

January looks to have a lower crowd level in the parks, and the DVC points are much lower for us.

Thanks for any input!

 

[Haas4Concern]

Ive never done the princess half, but marathon weekend in january is quite the event. There are so many runners and seeing all the medals in the parks is very cool.

 

[Danhockey04]

The Princess tends to be a slower race, many first time runners run that race. The Donald is a great race. Both are fun, have good support. You will see many more costumes and tutus at the Princess. I'd go with the cheaper of the two.

 

[JCH]

I have run several full and half marathons, so this won't be my first, just my first Disney one.

That being said, is one better than the other? Or are they basically the same (other than Princess being geared towards women)?

Seems like the weather is about equal, course the same perhaps. What about characters? Spectators? Overall Disney magic?

January looks to have a lower crowd level in the parks, and the DVC points are much lower for us.

Thanks for any input!

The Princess was a great first race and I am so glad I did it as my first half. I did it again this year, and was quite frankly disappointed in the crowdedness and sloooowness. I'm a pretty slow person with a fairly steady 14 minute mile, and even starting in corral E, I couldn't keep that up. Marathon weekend is better, but was still slow this year. I am hopeful the new proof of time requirements will help!

Otherwise, course is the same, the medal for Marathon weekend seems more "Disney", and the whole atmosphere of Marathon weekend is better. Number of characters are the same, but there is more variety at Marathon weekend. Spectators were pretty similar at each.

So, I would say Marathon weekend, but Princess can still be fun as a girls weekend!

 

[paxsarah]

I've done January twice and Princess once. If you plan to stay beyond the weekend to enjoy the parks, the low crowd levels in January are great. I've seen (and worn!) more costumes at Princess and obviously it's more women-centered. If better corral placement matters to you, it will probably happen at the Princess. The January weekend is a bigger event overall with more runners on property, but the Princess is pretty huge on its own. Magic abounds at both, the courses are the same, I found the spectators to be similar, and at this point the size of the field is very similar.

 

[czmom]

Great info! Thanks everyone. My husband is going to run with me, so maybe we better shoot for the Donald.