WDW Marathon

[WolfpackFan]

Has anyone been down to WDW during the marathon in January? What are the crowds like? Our daughter is running in the half-marathon on Saturday and we're going down to watch her. If you've been there - do you have any words of wisdom where we should place ourselves so we can see her run? Is the finish inside of Epcot or outside? I imagine it will be a crowd of people and I'm concerned we may get there and not even see her. Also, what is the parking like at the Wide World of Sports? Is there bus transportation there? We're supposed to go to a pasta dinner with her on Friday at the Wide World of Sports. The problem is compounded in that we're not traveling with her and she isn't staying with us. She is running with the Leukemia association and will be traveling and staying with them.

 

[wdw1972]

The half marathon will start and end in the Epcot parking lot. Expect car & bus traffic to be a nightmare that day, and the next day for the Marathon. Streets will be blocked off, and you find the map of the route you can ballpark when each segment will be filled with runners.

The weekend will have long ago sold out in terms of resort rooms. Parks will be a little bit busier than normal, but not by a huge margin.

I believe they'll let you ride the Disney transportation to the start of the half marathon, but it's ONLY if there's room for you on that particular bus. Runners get the priority. From my memory, the transportation begins at 3am, and ends at 4am. The earlier you're at the bus stop, the better your chances of getting on. Once you arrive at Epcot you'll have a little time with your daughter until she has to go wait in her corral....which I think is by 5am...possibly sooner. Then you'd have to go to the viewing area and stand in the (possibly cold) dark until after 6am when it begins and she will pass you. Hopefully she can give you an idea of how long the 13.1 miles will take her, so you'll know when to return. The year I ran, I was shocked at the car gridlock when my bus arrived around 3:30 am. So, figure how much time you think you'll need, and then at least triple it!

You can drive to WOS, so the dinner shouldn't be a problem. If you don't have a car - ask her to find out how you get there. They used to regularly run a bus from MGM, and there's always the taxi option.

Have fun - it's a very well run event.

 

[wildernessDad]

We arrived this January on the last day of the marathon. We were staying for 5 nights. I found that there were crowds even after the marathon. I think that there was some cheerleader competition or something coming in after the marathon and that helped to swell the crowds. This was my personal experience based on this one visit.

 

[Deb & Bill]

For the half marathon, you won't see much of anything at the start at Epcot, so position yourself in MK on Main Street. She will come in near Tony's, head up Main Street, veer off to the right at the Tomorrowland bridge (you won't be able to go past Main Street) and then come through the castle from the back to the front. She'll leave MK and head back over to Epcot, do a little loop in Future World and then finish in the parking lot (over to the left- facing Spaceship Earth) that is closest to Caribbean Beach Report. You can hop the monorail from Epcot to MK and then hop it back to Epcot. It will be roughly 6 miles over and 6 miles back, all of it adding up ot 13.1 miles. The race starts at 6AM, so you need to be at Epcot early to catch the monorail and not get caught in traffic.

They do have bus transportation to and from WWoS for the Expo and dinner.

We were staying at OKW and I dropped my husband and his friend off on Bonnet Creek Parkway (at the corner of OKW where the traffic light is closest to Port Orleans) and they walked to the full marathon start. My friend and I continued over to Epcot, had to go the long way since the road is blocked off (towards CBR, Disney Studios, BW, etc). I think we arrived at Epcot about 5:15 or so. I think we left OKW about 4:45AM. It was slow getting into park, but not horrid.

We rode the monorail over to MK, watched the guys run down Main Street and through the castle. Then we hopped the monorail back to Epcot and got the car to drive to AK so we could see them come out of AK. Then we drove back to Epcot and waited in the parking lot for their finish.

The two guys did the Goofy Challenge that year. But I did the 5K (that was the last year that it followed the half marathon at Epcot), so we didn't follow them to MK for the half.

 

[WolfpackFan]

Let me ask you all this. I don't plan on us getting up and being over to Epcot when it starts. What about the finish though? If it starts at 6:00AM and it will probably take her 2-3 hours to run it. Could we not just be somewhere at the finish line around 8:00 or so? What will the setup be like at the finish? We will be staying at ASMusic. Could we just take the regular Epcot bus (I wonder what time they start running)? Or we could just drive to Epcot and park there.

 

[nunzia]

What are the dates for the marathon?

 

[OhioDVC]

WDW Marathon weekend is Jan 12-13-14. With the Half Marathon on the 13th and the full Marathon on the 14th.

To decide where the best place is to see your runner, wait until you register on the 12th. You'll get a booklet describing the course and the best place for spectator.

For more info, see the marathon web site

I've always used Disney's transportation and I haven't had any trouble getting around.

Since Disney separated the half and full marathon, bus transportation after the race is not a problem. 5-10 minute wait at the most

 

[NCRedding]

A couple of things I remember from the marathon in 2005:

The marathon/expo buses did not use the bus stop at ASMusic; and most of the buses used for the marathon/expo were not Disney buses, but were charter buses brought in for the event. The expo buses picked up at the front entrance to ASMusic.

There is parking at WWOS, but it gets very crowded, and the traffic backs up quickly.

The booklet on marathon info should have included information about spectator transportation. It also should include a map of the event. On the WISH events board on the DIS, there is lots of info for participants and spectators. I think a lot of people go to boardwalk/beach club and cheer people on there too.

Expect traffic delays--the logistics of moving this many people over a relatively short period of time can be difficult. We were at Epcot in 2006 until midnight the night before the half-marathon. As we were leaving, the buses were starting to line up for the half--I've never seen so many buses in my life.

 

[Deb & Bill]

The biggest problem with all the charter buses is that some of the drivers don't have a clue of where there are going, nor even how to get there if they did know the final destination. I've heard stories from lots of people how they had to show the driver how to get to Epcot.

If you just want to see the finish of the race, take the park bus to Epcot and then walk over to the finish. It's a bit of a hike from the bus stop. Just walk like you are heading to the main entrance, but pass it by and just keep walking. It seems like forever, but you should see tents, bleachers and hear the speakers announcing the finishers.

Good luck to your daughter. I hope she has fun.

 

[sznk]

Aside from the actual Marathon dates, when do Marathon participants &/or enthusiasts typically arrive at WDW, and how long after it do they stay?

 

[Reginak]

I can't tell you much about the marathon but I can tell that it had little or no effect on on the crowds when we went. The walkway from BWV to MGM was closed the night before so I think that we had to take a special bus, but other than that everything was fine.

 

[NCRedding]

The biggest problem with all the charter buses is that some of the drivers don't have a clue of where there are going, nor even how to get there if they did know the final destination. I've heard stories from lots of people how they had to show the driver how to get to Epcot.

This is definitely true. I got on the charter bus at 3:15 am at ASMusic heading for Epcot since participants needed to be there by 4. We went to POFQ; DTD; Beach Club, and some other places--not stopping to pick people up, just turning around. Finally someone on the bus went up to the front and told the bus driver how to get there!

 

[pixie08]

We thought it wouldn't be busy but we were sooooo wrong! I do plan to do the marathon one day but otherwise I would not just plan a vacation for that time imo!

 

[ktbugsmom]

At the finish, they have grand stands set up where spectators can watch. That would probably be a good place to go.

Yes- it does get crowded and getting around the "world" can be tricky - blocked off roads, detours etc. To get to MK, the buses don't go to the front of the park in the morning, they drop at TTC. So - if you are driving or taking a bus - add 30+ minutes to your drive/commute time.

However, as for the crowds in the parks - it is just fine. This will be our 4th year going during marathon weekend and we love it. We just make sure to avoid "commuting" on the mornings of the half or the full. Since we stay at BWV - we will just walk to Epcot or the Disney Studios this year. Last year, I made the mistake of trying to get to MK on half marathon day since that is where some friends wanted to meet. Very frustrating just "sitting" in traffic. However, once inside the park (30 minutes after opening), we went on BTTMR 3 times in a row with maybe a 5 minute wait. By noon - all of the traffic is back to normal.

Also- the resorts tend to get booked up during the weekend early (I tried to change things 8 months out and had to waitlist - but that did come through eventually) - but again, crowds are fine.

 

[sznk]

We check out of BCV on January 10th. Should we expect Marathon-related crowds while we're there, or will we be leaving early enough to avoid Marathon Mayhem?

 

[blueroses]

WDW Marathon weekend is Jan 12-13-14. With the Half Marathon on the 13th and the full Marathon on the 14th.

This is off by one day. The Half is Saturday the 12th, and the Full is Sunday the 13th. The 5K is on Friday.

 

[Deb & Bill]

Good luck, blueroses, on the Goofy! Enjoy your 39.3 miles.

 

[blueroses]

Thank you! Good luck to the folks running in your party as well!

 

[tigger2esq]

my personal experience has been that the weekend of the actual races tends to be crowded but the days prior to the race and following are pretty low crowd-wise. when racers arrive varries. there is a group of my friends (including me) running this year. one family is heading down the sunday before the race and spending the whole week before the race in the parks and leaving the day after the race, the other friend is not arriving until late friday night, taking it easy on saturday, running the race on sunday, and hitting the parks in the days FOLLOWING the race. we arrive thursday night, and leave tuesday. traffic will be messy on race days with lots of roads blocked in the mornings. if you stick to your resort until the afternoon, the marathon will be done by 1pm or so. the magic kingdom will be your best bet earlier in the day as the race passes through there at mile 9 so all the runners will be through before 9am. epcot will be the worst as thats where it ends.

 

[sznk]

...

thanks - that's the info I was looking for.