Marathon Weekend Reality

[Cellthing]

First off we are not runners (unless being chased ). We are AP holders who live 7+ hours from Disney so we have 2 days of travel each time we go. We thought about going next weekend, Jan. 11-14 as a friend’s mother has funeral services that weekend. Not a necessity to go but an excuse to do so. I just found out it’s marathon weekend and now questioning going. Our park days would be Friday night, Sat. & Sun. Prime race days. We love Disney. We were just there in Oct, went for Toy Story Land opening, and again in July for a week. Would really like a trip with cooler weather and shorter wait times. How bad are the park crowds historically that weekend? We tend to drive ourselves to the parks but would we regret even trying? Looking for what the reality of what to expect. Worth it for a short weekend trip? I got excited with the thought but now I’m afraid it will be more trouble than it’s worth. Would you?

 

[gap2368]

I am doing a last minute trip next weekend and my thought is any day at Disney is better than one at home or work, I do not plan on doing many rides just show people watching, there where still some good FP left, but I would say go for it and just know it will be crowded.

 

[Nole95]

We are runners and have been to marathon weekend four of the past five years. Last year was extremely crowded because marathon weekend started on January 3, so a lot of people were still at Disney for their winter break.

All the other years we went were like this year where the weekend falls on the second full weekend of January. Those years I did not find the crowds to be unbearable. There were still people around, but nothing like we experienced last year. Also this year, I do not think any of the races sold out and based on the number of bibs running in the half and full marathon, there are a lot fewer people running this year. If you are rope drop people, the bulk of the runners would not even make it to the parks on Saturday and Sunday until well after rope drop.

The main thing you have to keep in mind for Saturday and longer on Sunday are road closures for the races. Parts of World Drive will be closed or have reduced lanes on Saturday and Sunday. Same for Osceola Parkway on Sunday morning. Just plan on taking extra time to get where you need to be. Also, since the last mile of the marathon runs through World Showcase and Future World at Epcot, it can get congested in spots where people need to cross the course, but the cast members do a good job of moving people.

 

[dragonfly57005]

My husband has raced the last 12 years. This will be his 6th year of the Dopey challenge.
Compared to 12 years ago - there are more people each year. The numbers of people who want to do these races has increased exponentially. Now the past few years the crowds have been crazy compared to initially when we travelled during this time. Disney made a good financial decision to promote the races but less fun for us.

 

[rteetz]

This year shouldn’t be as bad the last few. Races did not sell as well and the weekend doesn’t collide with school breaks or the holidays.

 

[Fangorn]

We were there for race weekend just this past October. That weekend had 5K, 10K and half marathon races. We were there several days before the races as well as a couple of days after, and did not experience any additional crowds in the parks on those days.

Runners have to be at the starting area by 5:30am. All the folks I know that were running (a fair number BTW) went to bed early, ran their race and went back to their room to shower and take a nap. We met up with several of our friends in the parks, but it was always for an early dinner. No one was interested in doing a whole lot of park time. A couple of rides, a meal and back to the room to prepare/recover.

As mentioned though, the biggest issue is road closures and the resultant transportation issues. Bus, and car transportation, including Uber/Lyft/MinnieVans, is greatly affected for several hours each morning. Even after the race is finished, roads may not be reopened right away. Buses will be on alternate routes and will take far longer than normal to get anywhere, particularly to MK and Epcot. Plan wisely if you have early ADRs. We were staying at Poly and had no difficulty, but then we had ready access to the monorail to get to MK and Epcot. Those staying at other resorts were not as fortunate.

Steve

 

[kwdw]

I've been marathon weekend a couple of times - and while the parks are busy - I don't think they are "too crowded" - so I would say not to worry about park crowds. The runners are in lines in the parks AFTER their races - and they all tend to be happy and cheerful - so I think the overall mood of the crowd is pretty positive.

The HARD part is getting TO the parks. The road/lane closures do slow things down in the morning getting to the parks. I think if you are driving yourself and plan to arrive in the lots well before rope drop - I think traffic in general will still be lighter - so you shouldn't lose too much time. And part of it will depend on where you are staying and exactly when you are headed to the parks. The one time - I waited like 40 minutes for a bus at POFQ at like 10 am because the bus timing was messed up due to where the bulk of the runners were on the course. But the drive to the park I was headed to was really only slowed down by about one extra traffic light signal.

 

[AngiTN]

Chiming in with another to say the parks aren't what you need to worry about. They barely get a blip due to the races.
Roads, yes! They are a disaster on race day mornings. How long depends on which distance, Full having the longest impact, 5K little to none. I won't even try to get anywhere on a half or full day ever again, unless it's a park we can walk to. Late starts on those days

 

[Redhead5]

If you stay in a Disney resort with transportation to the parks that isn't bus or car (i.e. boat, monorail, feet) and you don't drive anywhere that weekend you should be OK. Several years ago, we went during Marathon Weekend and didn't even know it was going on until we checked out on Sunday morning and tried to drive to the Polynesian for breakfast at Kona (arriving very late.) After that we went to Epcot and found half of the lots closed off for the Marathon and no Disney CM to direct us. It was a zoo. It took a while but we finally got out of there (without going into Epcot) and fled the area.

 

[rteetz]

Chiming in with another to say the parks aren't what you need to worry about. They barely get a blip due to the races.
Roads, yes! They are a disaster on race day mornings. How long depends on which distance, Full having the longest impact, 5K little to none. I won't even try to get anywhere on a half or full day ever again, unless it's a park we can walk to. Late starts on those days

5K shouldn't have any impact at all. 10K much either. The half and full are the ones people need to worry about especially if going to MK early or Epcot.

 

[DisneyDeb83]

I just posted on transportation board , but maybe you all can help. We are staying at Best Western Disney Springs Saturday night before moving to Kidani. I was planning on pre-checking in Sunday around 10 am then heading to DHS. After reading potential traffic issues I’m thinking we may be better off just throwing all the bags in the rental car and going to Kidani after the park. I’d hate to be sitting in traffic.

Is there a time frame where traffic would be at its worst? I know nothing about marathon weekend. Thanks!

 

[AngiTN]

10am is when it's awful
We tried to go to AK about that time on a race morning and it took 3 times as long as normal

 

[AngiTN]

5K shouldn't have any impact at all. 10K much either.

Yeah, little to none and I only said little because there is extremely minor impact on Epcot parking lot really early, like those going to a PPO ADR

 

[Nole95]

I just posted on transportation board , but maybe you all can help. We are staying at Best Western Disney Springs Saturday night before moving to Kidani. I was planning on pre-checking in Sunday around 10 am then heading to DHS. After reading potential traffic issues I’m thinking we may be better off just throwing all the bags in the rental car and going to Kidani after the park. I’d hate to be sitting in traffic.

Is there a time frame where traffic would be at its worst? I know nothing about marathon weekend. Thanks!

I’d definitely wait until after the park to head to Kidani. Osceola Parkway is a mess on Marathon morning because it’s part of the course.

 

[DisneyDeb83]

I’d definitely wait until after the park to head to Kidani. Osceola Parkway is a mess on Marathon morning because it’s part of the course.

Thanks, like I said, I’m not at all familiar with the marathon. We go most every January, but normally not until after MLK weekend.

How are the parks during the week after?

 

[rteetz]

Thanks, like I said, I’m not at all familiar with the marathon. We go most every January, but normally not until after MLK weekend.

How are the parks during the week after?

Parks are good. Most runners leave Monday or Tuesday.

 

[GADisneyDad14]

Here’s some decent WDW travel impact info from Orlando Theme Park News: http://www.orlandoparksnews.com/2019/01/walt-disney-world-marathon-weekend-to.html

I think this info comes from Disney directly as I’ve seen it on a few other blogs. Worth a read if you have early Sat/Sun plans.

I also recently saw a very good road closure map covering all of WDW with approximate times, but having trouble finding it at the moment.

 

[DisneyDeb83]

So, most of the travel impact will be in the am ?

 

[AngiTN]

So, most of the travel impact will be in the am ?

Yeah. They start at 5:00/5:30 and longer ones have time limits

 

[rteetz]

Yeah. They start at 5:00/5:30 and longer ones have time limits

All four races start at 5:30PM.

Marathon Course should be completely clear around 2PM

The marathon says you must complete it in 7 hours (16 min mile) however that time doesn't start until the last person crosses the start line which could be at 6:15AM or even later.