Marathon Weekend 2017!

[camaker]

There is. I forget the exact date but it's 1 week before regular registration - April 19 maybe?

You are correct. That date is already causing anxiety amongst folks using it to travel home from SWDS.

 

[rteetz]

I'd swap the order of the half and the 5k. I don't think the half during marathon weekend sold out as fast as the two shorter races last year. Wine and Dine sold out very quickly, as does Princess, but the other half-distance races at WDW take longer to do so.

Last year the half went quicker than the 5K I think. Also this year is the 20th anniversary of the half do it might be popular.

 

[Princess_Nikki]

Last year the half went quicker than the 5K I think. Also this year is the 20th anniversary of the half do it might be popular.

Crikey!! I had planned to do the race in 2018. But with it being the 20th?! Ah! I want to do it now. Bugger.

Thank you for pointing that out!! Good to know, as that is an added allure!

 

[rteetz]

Crikey!! I had planned to do the race in 2018. But with it being the 20th?! Ah! I want to do it now. Bugger.

Thank you for pointing that out!! Good to know, as that is an added allure!

Well you can do both 2017 is the 20th for the half. 2018 is the 25th for the full and 5th for the 10K and Dopey.

 

[PrincessV]

Anyone have the scoop on whether there will be early registration for AP holders? Nothing on runDisney, so I'm thinking.....maybe not.

Yep, April 19! Coming up...

 

[minniebeth]

Has anyone stayed at Shades of Green for Marathon Weekend? This will be our 7th year and we've always stayed on property, but my DS is eligible to stay there now. I know a bus picks up there for the Expo (shares with the Polynesian and Grand Floridian bus), but was wondering if there was transportation to the races as well. Any help and experiences would be appreciated!!

 

[ZellyB]

Has anyone stayed at Shades of Green for Marathon Weekend? This will be our 7th year and we've always stayed on property, but my DS is eligible to stay there now. I know a bus picks up there for the Expo (shares with the Polynesian and Grand Floridian bus), but was wondering if there was transportation to the races as well. Any help and experiences would be appreciated!!

We stayed at Shades of Green the first year we ran marathon weekend. There is bus transportation for both the Expo and for the races. We were on one of the first buses heading to the race and when headed back, there was a bus sitting and waiting when we finished up. It was very easy and there was a lot of information in the lobby about where and when the race event transportation was handled.

I'm not sure if SoG allows for room requests (we didn't bother to ask), but our room was WAY far away from the lobby. The walk to and from the room after the race was not fun. Although probably good for our tired legs to keep moving, but I sure would have liked being closer to the lobby.

 

[Curiouser&curiouser!]

Also this year is the 20th anniversary of the half do it might be popular.

EEEKKKK!!! I was already stressing about registering myself and my DH for the 1/2 in 2017. The main reason we are planning to run this particular one is that it falls on our exact 10 year wedding anniversary. Now I am even more concerned about making sure we get in!!

 

[ZellyB]

EEEKKKK!!! I was already stressing about registering myself and my DH for the 1/2 in 2017. The main reason we are planning to run this particular one is that it falls on our exact 10 year wedding anniversary. Now I am even more concerned about making sure we get in!!

Honestly, I think as long as you are ready to register when registration goes live you should be fine. But, I totally understand about stressing out.

 

[Curiouser&curiouser!]

Honestly, I think as long as you are ready to register when registration goes live you should be fine. But, I totally understand about stressing out.

Thanks! That is my plan. Fingers crossed!!

 

[Dan1]

I'm starting to stress about registering for the Dopey. DW is the runner....I'm the plodder (translation: run walker)....and at my advanced age (upper 50's) and bad knee I plan to hang up my long distance running career once the Dopey is done. I only have run 2 1/2's previously and never run a marathon. This year, we plan to run the Portland Marathon in early October then the Dopey Jan 2017....I will have run not one but 2 marathons which is enough for me. So, I'll be at the ready to register DW then myself for the Dopey. I even have scheduled a work meeting when registration opens!

 

[sammykster]

You are correct. That date is already causing anxiety amongst folks using it to travel home from SWDS.

I'm not traveling home yet that day but we'll be in the parks. I'm holding out hope that my phone doesn't let me down. Fingers crossed.

 

[Dis5150]

DD26 and I are thinking of renting points for Marathon weekend. The company we are working with has no availability for the resort we want and suggested we wait until the 7 month mark to save $$ on points, since we will most likely end up at SS, OKW or AKV. It makes me a little nervous to wait that long.. Does anyone have experience renting points for that weekend and having availability at the 7 month mark? And has anyone stayed at any of those 3 resorts during a race weekend that can share their experiences (bus wait times, long walk to race busses, etc.)?

 

[purplekicks]

I called yesterday to check on room pricing for the weekend. Wow! Much higher than I was expecting.

Those that are booking early, do you see any decrease in pricing as time gets closer?

 

[Jaxasaurous]

DD26 and I are thinking of renting points for Marathon weekend. The company we are working with has no availability for the resort we want and suggested we wait until the 7 month mark to save $$ on points, since we will most likely end up at SS, OKW or AKV. It makes me a little nervous to wait that long.. Does anyone have experience renting points for that weekend and having availability at the 7 month mark? And has anyone stayed at any of those 3 resorts during a race weekend that can share their experiences (bus wait times, long walk to race busses, etc.)?

The past 2 years I stayed at OKW for the marathon weekend. I believe the bus for the races only picks up at the front of the resort, so if your room is far from the front/main desk area you will have a long walk or you can take the internal bus shuttle. The bus wait times weren't that long last year and the traffic was fine getting to and from the start.
2 years ago the traffic in the mornings was ridiculous, and even though you can see the starting corrals from the exit it still took us probably 45-60 minutes to get to EPCOT. I don't know if we left later in 2014 versus 2015 and more roads were closed by the time we left.
I like OKW because the rooms are spacious, and they feel larger than other DVC properties.
What resort are you looking at renting points for, what size unit, and what days? I'm a DVC member and just checked availability for a few days around marathon weekend, some resorts have partial availability and others still have all dates open.

 

[DopeyBadger]

DD26 and I are thinking of renting points for Marathon weekend. The company we are working with has no availability for the resort we want and suggested we wait until the 7 month mark to save $$ on points, since we will most likely end up at SS, OKW or AKV. It makes me a little nervous to wait that long.. Does anyone have experience renting points for that weekend and having availability at the 7 month mark? And has anyone stayed at any of those 3 resorts during a race weekend that can share their experiences (bus wait times, long walk to race busses, etc.)?

We rented points and stayed at AKL this past year. It was a great experience. The bus only goes to AKL (2 stops) and was quite quick to most places which we didn't expect given the distance. The longest bus ride was to MK and it took about 15-20 minutes. I think availability at the 7 month mark was limited to those three DVC properties. We ended up in a 2BR savannah room. We're booking again but we did it at the 11 month mark and are in a 2 BR AKL but standard view instead. For the site we used, the 11 month booking for AKL was the same price as the 7 month booking.

The worst part about the busses at AKL is the rooms can be REALLY far away. The whole walk was inside (which was nice) but it would take 10-20 minutes to walk from our door to the busses. And when you've got dead legs it feels like forever.

 

[Dis5150]

The past 2 years I stayed at OKW for the marathon weekend. I believe the bus for the races only picks up at the front of the resort, so if your room is far from the front/main desk area you will have a long walk or you can take the internal bus shuttle. The bus wait times weren't that long last year and the traffic was fine getting to and from the start.
2 years ago the traffic in the mornings was ridiculous, and even though you can see the starting corrals from the exit it still took us probably 45-60 minutes to get to EPCOT. I don't know if we left later in 2014 versus 2015 and more roads were closed by the time we left.
I like OKW because the rooms are spacious, and they feel larger than other DVC properties.
What resort are you looking at renting points for, what size unit, and what days? I'm a DVC member and just checked availability for a few days around marathon weekend, some resorts have partial availability and others still have all dates open.

We really wanted a studio at BWV, Wed-Tue (4-10). The traffic you were talking about at OKW was from on the bus?

 

[Dis5150]

We rented points and stayed at AKL this past year. It was a great experience. The bus only goes to AKL (2 stops) and was quite quick to most places which we didn't expect given the distance. The longest bus ride was to MK and it took about 15-20 minutes. I think availability at the 7 month mark was limited to those three DVC properties. We ended up in a 2BR savannah room. We're booking again but we did it at the 11 month mark and are in a 2 BR AKL but standard view instead. For the site we used, the 11 month booking for AKL was the same price as the 7 month booking.

The worst part about the busses at AKL is the rooms can be REALLY far away. The whole walk was inside (which was nice) but it would take 10-20 minutes to walk from our door to the busses. And when you've got dead legs it feels like forever.

Do you know if there was availability for a studio at AKL at the 7 month mark? We would love to stay there. Are you allowed to share what company you used? Or can you PM it to me?

 

[DOOM1001]

Since I'll be at WDW Friday through Monday for the Dark Side challenge I can't see me also taking off from work on Tuesday to sign up for the 2017 marathon weekend full,I know its not a big deal or a must to sign up for it since its not a quick sell out like some of the other races or challenges but I'm the type of person who likes doing everything ASAP.So my question is will it still be open say at 6pm for AP early registration,or will I have to wait until next Tuesday.

 

[Dan1]

Since I'll be at WDW Friday through Monday for the Dark Side challenge I can't see me also taking off from work on Tuesday to sign up for the 2017 marathon weekend full,I know its not a big deal or a must to sign up for it since its not a quick sell out like some of the other races or challenges but I'm the type of person who likes doing everything ASAP.So my question is will it still be open say at 6pm for AP early registration,or will I have to wait until next Tuesday.

Lunch time registration? via smart phone? I'm like you and like having reservations locked down ASAP so in my mind I can do this => .