Running the Half marathon...what should my park schedule be?

[mckay94]

So my mom and I are running the half marathon during marathon weekend at WDW and we are trying to plan our trip around the race in the best way possible. Here's what we were thinking so far:


Friday- Fly in around 11 am, spend the day at expo & Disney Springs (ah still wanna say downtown Disney!) and just take it easy
Saturday- Race day! get up and run the race at 5:30. I'm guessing well be done and back at our hotel by maybe 10-10:30 at latest for shower and rest, then I was thinking Epcot would be our best bet since its a little bit more lad back/not many lines to stand in although MK is open till 11 while Epcot is only open till
Sunday- Hollywood Studios (AM-EMH 8am-7pm)
Monday- MK (hours: 9am-8pm)
Tuesday- A day at Universal
Wednesday- Departure day Our flight is for 5!

*(so far we all do not seem interested in Animal Kingdom, although, neither of us have been)*

My biggest frustration is the lack of magic hours offered during this weekend! With the exception of Friday and Saturday, MK closes at 8. So sucky I know! I'm used to always planning my trip around the park hours (who doesn't?!) to get the most out of my time and money!

But here's my question for you guys: Does the schedule above seem about right when getting the most out of my money? Am I trying to do too much? Should I get a park hopper to hop between MK and Epcot saturday or will I be too exhausted? I do tend to run myself into the ground while at Disney but I'm not much into relaxing as I get bored and want to go go go. Opinions and advice are GREATLY appreciated!

 

[mckay94]

Just moved this to correct forum, sorry guys im new to this!

 

[ohMom]

Not sure where you started,lol, but I'm going to move to the RunDisney subforum where I think you'll get more replies

 

[Patsydust]

Hiya Mckay94! I think that's a fine trip! My friend and I did PHM and we did the 5k + the half and crammed it all into one weekend! It was a blast! It looks like you have an easier day the day before your race (good on your legs) and it seems you're managing to get to all the places you want to visit in! You will be back from the race around 10ish for sure! We made it back in that time and that was after waittingggg for forever to get my medal engraved (at the time it was my first half, had to do it )! Also a good choice not to do MK on a race weekend but after, definitely less crowded on a Monday. I personally wouldn't worry about a park hopper pass. It's seems you've designated plenty of day time for each park and I'd just relax and enjoy it. I really wasn't exhausted simply because my adrenaline and excitement was sky high. Because I should have been tired. I woke up at 2:50 am (to get to the 3:15 bus) on 4 hours of sleep (some mishaps) and then we didn't make it back to the hotel for bed until 11pm! It was crazy! So I'm sure if you somehow found spare time that you needed to do something else you could do downtown disney, or even other hotel visits? Grand Floridan has an awesome High Tea and others have cool shops, movie nights, geysers, museums etc! When we went to high tea there was another group of runners who all had different Disney themed fascinators, it was really awesome! But park hopper to me isn't worth the money when you have other things planned like runs etc. And just in case your body needs rest, you won't have to worry about the money waste. But I love the race environment at the parks! Seeing everyone with their medals and shirts and just having fun celebrating your achievement! My tip is, (which you may already know, not sure how much of an avid Disney tripper you are) but I would get my Disney experience app so you can change fast passes in case there are any hold ups at the race etc. The app will let you move fast passes at any time and since there are always people changing fast passes, there are always new fast passes available! Oooh and Universal is amazing! I am a huge Harry Potter fan and if your going there for those parks you will need a park hopper! And it's my recommendation that you start at the England entrance first (newer HP park) because it's so much less crowded right when it opens! Everyone always wants to go to Hogwarts first and its quite a hassle! And even the Hogwarts Express ride is so much quicker from the new park in the morning! Enjoy your race!!!

P.S. I have never been to Animal Kingdom and I have never really felt like I have missed anything (it never seemed to appeal to me) but I have added to my next trip and as I am now trying to discover more about it, it seems really cool. So many people are raving it's their favorite and saying how authentic the park is! So if you want to do some research you might find it may be worth a visit! I mean, your already at Disney might as well go big or go home!

Sorry I wrote you a book, don't know if that helps at all!