Marathon Weekend

[Red Randal]

I'm thinking about going in January, with a few dates possibly corresponding to marathon weekend. I know it's January and will be pretty dead but I'm not at all familiar with how the marathon will effect normal guest experience. Reduced hours? Closed roads?

Is it the kind of thing where if we just sleep in that morning and don't show up until the afternoon things are fine? Should I avoid Disney World that day? (Our plans are VERY flexible.) Will it not effect me at all?

[WelshieLover]

We were there during the 2009 marathon. It definitely affects the bus tranportation. We were staying at OKW. To get to EPCOT they bussed us over to the TTC (it took a long time to get to the TTC huge bus back-ups) where we had to take the monorail over to EPCOT. I don't think the parks were any more crowded, but I think you really need to plan your day out so as to not waste too much time getting to where you want to be. With planning it really should not be too much of an aggravation. If you are staying at a monorail resort or at an EPCT resort it is not much of an issue, any of the other resorts require seriously planning.

[Rosemickey68]

We will be going around the same time. We will be leaving in the late afternoon on that Sunday for that airport.

So, what would you suggest as far as planning goes for that Sat & Sunday to best utilize our time? (we are staying at Pop Century)

We were planning on possibly going to AK as soon as it opens on that Sunday, is that a good idea?

Will it just be the days of the half-marathon and marathon we would need to worry about?

[WelshieLover]

I think if you are going first thing to AK you should be fine. I probably would not park hop form there though. It just will take longer to get there becasue of all the re-routing of the bus routes. You may want to talk to the CMs at your resort to find out how early you can get on the bus those days. I remember they put literature in our room the night before both the 1/2 marathon and full marathon. We browsed through it, but should have read it in more detail and then we would have known how they were routing us to EPCOT thru the TTC. We probably would have chosen not to go to EPCT that day.

So make sure you read what they leave you and find out how early the buses run to AK and you should be fine.

One thing that was really neat was they actually routed a bus through the back lot of EPCOT we got to see the back side of Test Track and all the pavillions on that side of the park. It was interesting to see.

[kdbianchini]

We have gone duing marathon weekend twice. We didn't enter the parks until after the marathon was complete because my dad and uncle ran the marathon, so I don't know about the parks during the marathon. But after the marathon, and the days after, it was slow and we pretty much walked onto every ride. We cheered the guys on when they passed at the entrance to Animal Kingdom and at the end at Epcot's entrance. We took the bus from our resort (All Star both times) to Animal Kingdom and then took the bus from Animal Kingdom to Epcot. It did take longer to get to our destination, but it wasn't bad at all. You pass by the runners and like to look to see if we see anyone we know! I think Disney really has it together and knows how to re-route the buses appropriately.