Driving to races (not marathon) vs. bus

[vinotinto]

Hello! We are trying to decide whether to drive our car or take the bus to the 5K, 10K, Half races for Rival Run. I've heard that taking the bus can be beneficial because the drivers will know the road closures and be able to navigate around them. This makes sense for the marathon. But, are there always road closures in the shorter distances? For example, the 5K starts and ends in the Epcot parking lot. Would they close any roads for the 5Ks? What about the 10Ks/Half that start at MK and end in Epcot?

Also, does the bus also drop you closer to the corrals?

Thanks for your opinions on this!

 

[Mr. Drauer]

The buses are provided by an off-site vendor, not Disney, so they may or may not know the roads any better than GPS on their phone shows them. That being said, if the 10K and Half start at the MK parking lot as the past 2 years, driving your own car means going to park at Epcot and taking a bus from there to the MK start. All buses drop off in the same location at MK (give or take the parking lot row and order of the buses pulling in) so everyone walks to the security check area and then the entertainment area, which are before the corrals. Everyone has to walk to the corrals, which don't open until around 4:30 or so. The 5K, if at Epcot, will not have any road closures, and any road closures for the 10K will be minor (if it follows the last 2 years, start at MK parking, come down World Drive to the overpass to HS, into HS then path to boardwalk and finish Epcot parking). The half only has some minor closures too. Really, only the full marathon has significant lane closures, and the Marathon Half / Princess Half which closes Epcot Center drive for the corrals does too. It really comes down to whether or not you want your car there and are willing to take a bus ride to the start, or are content to get on the bus at your resort and go directly to the start and wait for one after the race.

 

[vinotinto]

The buses are provided by an off-site vendor, not Disney, so they may or may not know the roads any better than GPS on their phone shows them. That being said, if the 10K and Half start at the MK parking lot as the past 2 years, driving your own car means going to park at Epcot and taking a bus from there to the MK start. All buses drop off in the same location at MK (give or take the parking lot row and order of the buses pulling in) so everyone walks to the security check area and then the entertainment area, which are before the corrals. Everyone has to walk to the corrals, which don't open until around 4:30 or so. The 5K, if at Epcot, will not have any road closures, and any road closures for the 10K will be minor (if it follows the last 2 years, start at MK parking, come down World Drive to the overpass to HS, into HS then path to boardwalk and finish Epcot parking). The half only has some minor closures too. Really, only the full marathon has significant lane closures, and the Marathon Half / Princess Half which closes Epcot Center drive for the corrals does too. It really comes down to whether or not you want your car there and are willing to take a bus ride to the start, or are content to get on the bus at your resort and go directly to the start and wait for one after the race.

I didn't realize that you couldn't park at MK. That definitely seals the deal for taking the bus for the 10K and Half. Maybe even the 5K. Thank you!

 

[JohnFilipoff]

If you drive you'll still end up on a bus. You have to park at Epcot, the finish line, then take a bus to Magic Kingdom parking, which is where the start is. I've run several Disney races from various hotels and the buses are great. They take you exactly where you need to be, and the buses they use are the nice comfy travel buses, not your traditional Disney bus. As soon as the bus is full they send it off and another is usually waiting behind it. I've never had to wait more than 5-10 minutes in either direction. So when your race is over, chances are there's a bus waiting to get you back.

 

[vinotinto]

If you drive you'll still end up on a bus. You have to park at Epcot, the finish line, then take a bus to Magic Kingdom parking, which is where the start is. I've run several Disney races from various hotels and the buses are great. They take you exactly where you need to be, and the buses they use are the nice comfy travel buses, not your traditional Disney bus. As soon as the bus is full they send it off and another is usually waiting behind it. I've never had to wait more than 5-10 minutes in either direction. So when your race is over, chances are there's a bus waiting to get you back.

Great info, thank you! Sounds like the bus is the way to go.