Avoiding the Marathon?

[awoogala]

We are not involved in the Marathon, and were planning on spending January 13th around the hotel at first, but I am thinking of popping into one or more parks and seeing what we could see, with the understanding that it will not be a full commando day, depending on getting around the crowds..maybe we will hit the parks later? or is earlier better- before everyone finishes?
What parks would be best for avoiding some of the crowding? I am thinking EPCOT would be an ok bet, but I have never been there for the marathon, so I don't know.
Give me any ideas you have!

 

[luv]

I've been in Epcot when they're running through. It isn't not a big deal. You could go over and cheer them on, if you want to...but if you just want to ignore them, you can do that, too.

Sometimes there are traffic tie-ups earlier in the day, but they don't take forever.

Disney has done this before. They've done it many times. They do it well. Nobody is n conveniences much, if at all.

IMO, the marathon is no big. I wouldn't worry.

 

[awoogala]

I've been in Epcot when they're running through. It isn't not a big deal. You could go over and cheer them on, if you want to...but if you just want to ignore them, you can do that, too.

Sometimes there are traffic tie-ups earlier in the day, but they don't take forever.

Disney has done this before. They've done it many times. They do it well. Nobody is n conveniences much, if at all.

IMO, the marathon is no big. I wouldn't worry.

cool. I know there are transportation issues, and i assume since they run through the parks, access to some of the rides may be blocked off? Or do they just run down the street, but you can walk the same area? Sorry, I REALLY have no ideas, we always have gone when there was no big thing at disney.

 

[luv]

cool. I know there are transportation issues, and i assume since they run through the parks, access to some of the rides may be blocked off? Or do they just run down the street, but you can walk the same area? Sorry, I REALLY have no ideas, we always have gone when there was no big thing at disney.

Disney gets it set up very well. They block off part of the path at Epcot, but you can still get where you're going. I've done both things - stop and cheer & go about my business. Very simple. Very easy. No sweat.

 

[Susan Savia]

We've been to WDW many times during the marathon and have found it to be a normal day. We were in HS two years ago and the runners were going thru the park. They had cones set up to keep folks from stepping into their path. People were cheering them on. When a break would come, CMs would let us zip across to the other side of the street. No big deal, no bigger crowds that we could see. It ends rather early in the morning and then its a normal park day.

 

[awoogala]

Thanks, everyone! Just what I needed. My experience with marathons is limited to the NYC marathon, and the insanity and crowding probably made me overthink this one!

 

[Ariel484]

I ran the marathon last year and will be back again this year. Most of the course doesn't even go through the parks. You really only need to worry about Hollywood Studios and Epcot, as we'll be through Magic Kingdom before the park opens (and I think most runners will be through Animal Kingdom before it opens). As the pervious posters have said, there will be cones set up to mark the course. Cast Members will let you know when you can cross over the course...purely a safety thing for the guests and the runners. All runners need to maintain a 16 minute/mile pace...those that don't are swept off the course, so all runners should be done one way or another by about 1PM. It really should not affect you too much beyond possible road closures, but I think that's more of an issue for people who drive to the parks.

 

[awoogala]

I ran the marathon last year and will be back again this year. Most of the course doesn't even go through the parks. You really only need to worry about Hollywood Studios and Epcot, as we'll be through Magic Kingdom before the park opens (and I think most runners will be through Animal Kingdom before it opens). As the pervious posters have said, there will be cones set up to mark the course. Cast Members will let you know when you can cross over the course...purely a safety thing for the guests and the runners. All runners need to maintain a 16 minute/mile pace...those that don't are swept off the course, so all runners should be done one way or another by about 1PM. It really should not affect you too much beyond possible road closures, but I think that's more of an issue for people who drive to the parks.

Thanks! Maybe we'll hit animal Kingdom then!

 

[DisneyPrincess5]

We used to go in January and always faced the crowds of the Marathon but they're not what you would imagine. As another poster said, Disney does a good job of accommodating non-runners at the parks.
From our experience, the parks tend to see volume but we never ever had issues waiting in long lines and the like. Enjoy your trip!

 

[dreamfinder]

MK is cleared prior to park open. You may run into transportation issues if you are trying to get to an early breakfast reservation anywhere in the MK resort area, or for an early tour. The last runners should be going through AK about 10 AM. DHS won't be cleared til about 1, and Epcot shortly after 1:30. The runners going through the parks aren't that hard to avoid as by that time, with the exception of the pace groups, the runners should be fairly spread out. Just pay attention to the marked path, and listen to CMs directions on when and where to cross. I'd say that DHS is the toughest, only because the runners go down Sunset Blvd, which is the main way in/out of the park. It's kinda like trying to enter MK during a parade. You have to stick to the sides or cut through the shops. Epcot it's a non issue due simply to the width of the paths in World Showcase, and will only really have to cross the runners to get to TT or Mission Space.

 

[lukacseven]

We are not involved in the Marathon, and were planning on spending January 13th around the hotel at first, but I am thinking of popping into one or more parks and seeing what we could see, with the understanding that it will not be a full commando day, depending on getting around the crowds..maybe we will hit the parks later? or is earlier better- before everyone finishes?
What parks would be best for avoiding some of the crowding? I am thinking EPCOT would be an ok bet, but I have never been there for the marathon, so I don't know.
Give me any ideas you have!

This will be year 8 for me running in some capacity. To give you a brief description of what goes on: Thursday through Monday there will be additional bus service to and from all resorts to WWOS and on Friday, Saturday, Sunday mornings to Epcot starting at 3:00 am. This is operated by Mears and will not affect regular transportation to the parks. Saturday, the half marathon start is at 5:30 (wheelchairs). Both Saturday and Sunday, there will be a brief, but spectacular fireworks display at 5:35 on the highway outside the Epcot entrance. The time limit for the race is 3 1/2 hours from the last runner crossing the start line, so roughly 9:30 everyone should be clear of Epcot. The Saturday half marathon course has runners entering the park around mile 12 at the resort bus drop-off location. Runners will then go through a short backstage area around Nemo and enter the park under Spaceship Earth. They will run towards World showcase, but turn around when they reach the lagoon and go back to SE, exiting the park by the restrooms and behind the kennels and finishing in the parking lot. Disruption are very limited on Saturday. Sunday is a different story, because the race is a full 26.2 miles with a 7 hour time limit. On both days MK is open for the race, but access is limited to Main Street. The race will have passed through and all spectators are cleared before normal park opening. AK HS and Epcot will have runners passing through during normal park hours. Disney does a nice job of roping off the walkways and allowing park guests to cross the course when the situation presents itself. At this point, runners should be spaced out enough that there is little to no wait time. Please be courteous to runners! The biggest issue is getting to the parks via buses, because the main roads that are normally used between AK, WWOS, HS and Epcot will be closed or have limited access. The walking path from Boardwalk and Y&BC to Epcot and HS will also be closed as it is part of the course. For the marathon, runners enter World Showcase from the entrance behind France and run counter clockwise around the countries to the same finish line outside the park. The race will not affect the bus drop off or park entrance.

With all that said, Saturday shouldn't be a problem - if so only minor issues very early at Epcot. Sunday - use race transportation to Epcot and navigate to MK using the monorail. Use boat travel to HS if applicable. Allow 30-60 minutes additional travel time when taking a bus for park opening to HS or AK.

This year the course has been modified for the 20th Anniversary, so runners will be clear of AK earlier than usual (up to an hour earlier), but will be arriving at HS and the finish in Epcot at the same time. There can still be walkers finishing/in Epcot after noon.

Remember it's okay to offer encouragement if you see runners in the parks!

 

[Ariel484]

@dreamfinder, love your new avatar.

 

[dreamfinder]

@dreamfinder, love your new avatar.

: ) Thanks, can't wait to replace it with a new one in a few weeks. (Although it only took me 3 months to finally upload this one.......)

 

[awoogala]

MK is cleared prior to park open. You may run into transportation issues if you are trying to get to an early breakfast reservation anywhere in the MK resort area, or for an early tour. The last runners should be going through AK about 10 AM. DHS won't be cleared til about 1, and Epcot shortly after 1:30. The runners going through the parks aren't that hard to avoid as by that time, with the exception of the pace groups, the runners should be fairly spread out. Just pay attention to the marked path, and listen to CMs directions on when and where to cross. I'd say that DHS is the toughest, only because the runners go down Sunset Blvd, which is the main way in/out of the park. It's kinda like trying to enter MK during a parade. You have to stick to the sides or cut through the shops. Epcot it's a non issue due simply to the width of the paths in World Showcase, and will only really have to cross the runners to get to TT or Mission Space.

Thanks! Maybe we will hit ak!

 

[awoogala]

This will be year 8 for me running in some capacity. To give you a brief description of what goes on: Thursday through Monday there will be additional bus service to and from all resorts to WWOS and on Friday, Saturday, Sunday mornings to Epcot starting at 3:00 am. This is operated by Mears

This year the course has been modified for the 20th Anniversary, so runners will be clear of AK earlier than usual (up to an hour earlier), but will be arriving at HS and the finish in Epcot at the same time. There can still be walkers finishing/in Epcot after noon.

Remember it's okay to offer encouragement if you see runners in the parks!

awesome, thanks for all the info! We hadn't picked our daates this time, so when we saw marathon, I was not sure what to expect. We will arrive on Saturday, but won't hit the parks until Sunday. I am thinking we will hit ak or epcot at this point, and just wing it!

 

[lukacseven]

awesome, thanks for all the info! We hadn't picked our daates this time, so when we saw marathon, I was not sure what to expect. We will arrive on Saturday, but won't hit the parks until Sunday. I am thinking we will hit ak or epcot at this point, and just wing it!

They published transportation info in the race program...

http://as1.wdpromedia.com/media/rundisney/pdf/wdw-marathon/2013-WDW-MarathonFRI.pdf

It relates to race day activities, but can give you an idea of how much it may affect your planning, which should be minimal and limited to taking extra time if you're using buss transportation to certain parks.