Disneyland Half Marathon 2024

[jodeja]

So I emailed rundisney to ask at least for shuttles since they moved the start and finish so far away. So if u are staying at a disney hotel I would suggest to email them too about shuttles too. Maybe if enough of us email we will at least get that.

I also emailed them about shuttles but haven't received a reply yet.

 

[jwblane]

Thanks for the heads up on the ticket discount. We were able to scoop up 2 3 day PHs with Genie plus. Saved $198.00!

 

[sandam1]

Like several others, I (finally) got my DL tickets through the Target/Tripadvisor sale. Now I'm trying to figure out my park reservations and I need some help.

I have a five day park hopper, no Genie+ right now (we are open to buying it day of, but are planning on figuring it out as we go). We are going to be at DL from Thursday to Monday and am running the 10K (me) and the half marathon (both of us). I know that our first park is definitely going to be DL. What would people suggest be my mixture of reservations for the rest of our time? Maybe CA on Friday? And then???

Also, with the park hoppers, if we don't get to the park until after 11 a.m., do we still have to start at the park where we have a reservation? I suspect for Sunday especially we won't get to the parks before hopping time. Which park would be "better" for a later morning start?

Yikes, this is all starting to get VERY real.

 

[DLFun]

Fueling/Hydration Advice for Race Day

This will be my first RunDisney event and I am doing the half marathon. I am thinking about fueling and hydration during the half. I will bring my own fuel, because I don't want to try anything new on race day and I don't know if/what Disney will offer. I am wondering if there are ample hydration stations? I am trying to decide if I should bring my standard handheld water bottle or if I should bring my hydration vest which carries much more water.

 

[luv2cheer92]

Fueling/Hydration Advice for Race Day

This will be my first RunDisney event and I am doing the half marathon. I am thinking about fueling and hydration during the half. I will bring my own fuel, because I don't want to try anything new on race day and I don't know if/what Disney will offer. I am wondering if there are ample hydration stations? I am trying to decide if I should bring my standard handheld water bottle or if I should bring my hydration vest which carries much more water.

Disney races always have ample water stops. I've never had to carry any water on me at all, and I drink a lot. Usually stops every 1-1.5 miles.

 

[Popo]

Fueling/Hydration Advice for Race Day

This will be my first RunDisney event and I am doing the half marathon. I am thinking about fueling and hydration during the half. I will bring my own fuel, because I don't want to try anything new on race day and I don't know if/what Disney will offer. I am wondering if there are ample hydration stations? I am trying to decide if I should bring my standard handheld water bottle or if I should bring my hydration vest which carries much more water.

I agree RunDisney has ample water stops. The stops usually consist of two sections, one with water and the other for Powerade. Over the years I have found the water stops don't always match my perceived need. So I carry an empty water bottle with me with an electrolyte in it. About halfway through the race I fill the water bottle.

 

[jmasgat]

ETA: Outdated info (from DL website) removed

 

[LorrieAnn5]

@sandam1 & @jmasgat
these are the terms and conditions of current theme park reservations.

based on this, for my arrival day when I won't get to a park until afternoon I've reserved DCA (to be nice by not taking up the more popular DL reservation) and I expect that I'll be able to enter DL first if I want.

Park Hopper Tickets


Guests with Park Hopper tickets should reserve for the first park they plan to visit on their selected date. They may cross over and switch between parks the same day beginning at 11:00 AM (subject to availability). After 11:00 AM, Guests with Park Hopper tickets who have a park reservation for both parks and who have not entered any park yet, may enter either park despite the first park that is designated in their park reservation. Please check the Park Hours calendar and the Disneyland app for the most up-to-date Park Hopper hours, as they could change, depending on the day and park. At this time, a park reservation is not required for the other park after visiting the first park; however, reservation requirements are subject to change. Please note that the ability to visit the other park will be subject to that park’s capacity limitations, operational hours, closures and other restrictions, and is not guaranteed.

 

[Novatrix]

I really wanted to echo thanks for everyone reporting on this deal and all the tips and tricks they found.

I saved nearly $100 on my Disneyland tickets, and my friends who are traveling with me to Disney World next year saved another $230!

 

[DisneyParrothead]

Like several others, I (finally) got my DL tickets through the Target/Tripadvisor sale. Now I'm trying to figure out my park reservations and I need some help.

I have a five day park hopper, no Genie+ right now (we are open to buying it day of, but are planning on figuring it out as we go). We are going to be at DL from Thursday to Monday and am running the 10K (me) and the half marathon (both of us). I know that our first park is definitely going to be DL. What would people suggest be my mixture of reservations for the rest of our time? Maybe CA on Friday? And then???

Also, with the park hoppers, if we don't get to the park until after 11 a.m., do we still have to start at the park where we have a reservation? I suspect for Sunday especially we won't get to the parks before hopping time. Which park would be "better" for a later morning start?

Yikes, this is all starting to get VERY real.

I'm doing 3 days at DL and Friday morning at DCA. For me personally, I'm not an Avengers fan, so there's a whole section at DCA I'm not interested in. DCA is a mix of Epcot, Studios, a little bit of MK, with some of its own specific rides. If you like Pixar's Cars, Carsland is a must-do. There's also a super cute Monster's Inc dark ride, the Incredi-Coaster, plus Grizzly River Run, though I'm not sure how much of a fan you are for Kali River Rapids. I hear they're kind of comparable.

I'm doing 3 days at DL because I too am trying to work around buying Genie+. I get in Wednesday, leave Sunday. I hope that the Wednesday and Thursday of a school week are quiet so I can get in the rides I want before long weekend crowds descend sometime Friday. I haven't been at DL for a long weekend so I don't know what to expect crowds-wise. By Saturday I'm going to DL to walk around and do some active recovery after the 10K, and see what rides I can get on without Genie+. I also want to do the In Walt's Footsteps, or whatever the tour is called, to do something different in the park.

 

[The Expert]

Grizzly River Run, though I'm not sure how much of a fan you are for Kali River Rapids. I hear they're kind of comparable.

GRR > Kali (IMHO)

And Incredicoaster is my favorite ride in all of Anaheim. The "Wheel of Death" is also pretty great.

 

[jodeja]

I received an email reply from runDisney this morning that transportation from the resort to the start will not be provided.

 

[DLFun]

Great to know, thank you!

Disney races always have ample water stops. I've never had to carry any water on me at all, and I drink a lot. Usually stops every 1-1.5 miles

 

[DLFun]

I agree RunDisney has ample water stops. The stops usually consist of two sections, one with water and the other for Powerade. Over the years I have found the water stops don't always match my perceived need. So I carry an empty water bottle with me with an electrolyte in it. About halfway through the race I fill the water bottle.

Thanks for the info!

 

[EPCOT-O.G.]

I received an email reply from runDisney this morning that transportation from the resort to the start will not be provided.
View attachment 800421

 

[DisneyMountainWoman]

I received an email reply from runDisney this morning that transportation from the resort to the start will not be provided.
View attachment 800421

Thanks for the info. I disagree with it.... but bah.. cannot change hotels cause my son is looking forward to staying at the Pixar Hotel and this trip is his birthday trip too. I just wanted my son to cheer me at the finish line I hope we run past the hotels so maybe my son can cheer us there.

 

[nekonekoneko]

What would people suggest be my mixture of reservations for the rest of our time? Maybe CA on Friday? And then???

As someone who's never been there, the only thing I'm glued to is being in Disneyland Park after the half, just because we love getting medal pictures in front of Cinderella Castle in Orlando, so we want to take similar pictures in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle. Other than that, we bought hoppers, so we can go back and forth at will.

 

[Let's Get Kronk]

As someone who's never been there, the only thing I'm glued to is being in Disneyland Park after the half, just because we love getting medal pictures in front of Cinderella Castle in Orlando, so we want to take similar pictures in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle. Other than that, we bought hoppers, so we can go back and forth at will.

And I'm sure you've heard this, but hopping between the parks is a breeze. The entrance gates to each park are literally about 50 yards across from each other. I had Genie+ on my trip in February and I was hopping constantly for LLs. Lol. The convenience and walkability of the DL parks and Downtown Disney certainly beats WDW in that regard.

 

[sandam1]

I'm doing 3 days at DL and Friday morning at DCA.

Thank you! I was leaning towards only starting one day at CA, but then I was wondering (overthinking) that it might be too much DL.

If you like Pixar's Cars, Carsland is a must-do. There's also a super cute Monster's Inc dark ride, the Incredi-Coaster, plus Grizzly River Run, though I'm not sure how much of a fan you are for Kali River Rapids.

And Incredicoaster is my favorite ride in all of Anaheim. The "Wheel of Death" is also pretty great.

I definitely want to do Carsland because it sounds absolutely awesome. I'm not a fan of loops, large drops, heights, or getting excessively wet so most of the "big" rides at CA just aren't for me. I know that it will be a hard pass for my travel partner on Incredi-coaster, but she might want to do Guardians or the Wheel.

Yeah, I think one day of CA reservations will be enough, particularly since it is going to be one of our two non-running days.

 

[jodeja]

Thanks for the info. I disagree with it.... but bah.. cannot change hotels cause my son is looking forward to staying at the Pixar Hotel and this trip is his birthday trip too. I just wanted my son to cheer me at the finish line I hope we run past the hotels so maybe my son can cheer us there.

Yes, we were really looking forward to staying at the Disneyland Hotel, especially since some in our party have never stayed there before.
The really annoying part for me is that the 5k and 10k have different starting points. I'm doing both, so unless we do a split stay between 2 hotels, I'll be far from the start of one of them.