Ultimate Guide to runDisney: The Courses

You’ve registered. You’ve trained. You’ve managed to get yourself awake and on the bus to Epcot. The hardest parts are over, and when the fireworks go off you’re finally on the runDisney course. While the distances and themes change, there are a few constants in every runDisney race.

The runDisney courses all start from Epcot and include a mix of Disney parks, roads, and parking lots.

Years ago the Springtime Surprise mixed in Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios as their starting park, but the last few years they’ve all started at the Epcot parking lot. Given how early the races start, be ready for the majority of the course to be dark before the sun comes up (for faster runners that’ll mean the tail end of the half marathon and about half the full marathon). The early morning helps ensure there won’t be any vehicle traffic and only minimal guest traffic during the WDW Marathon. Even during the Marathon you’re likely to only see guests in Animal Kingdom, Hollywood Studios, and Epcot, and the running path is partitioned off so there’s little risk of interference. For the 2025 WDW Marathon, runDisney moved the starting time up to 4:30 am and altered the Epcot route to lessen the impact on guests. Lots of Marathon runners were upset to lose the final run through World Showcase where they routinely grabbed a margarita for the finish, so we’ll see if the route changes back for 2026. Team runDis has a good archive of the historical course maps here.

While the 5k races are untimed, you’ll need to keep a minimum pace of 16 minutes per mile for all other distances… sorta.

The caveat is 16 min/mile pace (about a 7-hour marathon) from the last runners to cross the start line. The infamous Balloon Ladies, the group of run/walkers at the end of the last corral, will hand out balloons to runners they pass (or sweep) signifying their run is done and they must head to a bus taking them to the finish line. So that means anyone starting in earlier corrals will have more time to complete the races – although ironically those in early corrals shouldn’t necessarily need the extra time. Although even if you’re a faster runner you don’t want to get placed in a lower corral, for the reasons mentioned in my Corrals section: mostly you’d A) have a hard time finding space to run the pace you want, and B) you have less of a buffer for character stops.

It's not a runDisney race without plenty of character stops.

I totally get it if getting your picture taken with characters is not your thing, at least when you're not with your kids. But even if you don't want to stop or get your picture, it's still fun and very "Disney" to at least run past and wave at the various characters on the course. Typically you can expect to see:

• 5-6 characters in a 5k

• 7-10 characters in a 10k

• 10-13 characters in a half marathon

• 20-26 characters in a marathon

For the 5k, 10k, and early stages of the longer runs you'll usually see long lines that can take several minutes, so if you're worried about your time you may need to be selective with your stops. Thankfully runDisney has gotten better with placing Cast Members at the end of each line with a sign for their character, so you're not either standing in line for a character you don't care about or running past a huge line only to turn around for a character you really enjoy. Many characters are also tipped off by a sampling of music from their movie or attraction, so be sure to listen for clues on upcoming character stops. Hopefully runDisney can continue getting creative with stops, such as the "Star Wars Mile" for the 2025 WDW Marathon where a tree-lined area turned into Endor with lasers, smoke machines, explosions, and several Star Wars heroes and villains lined a portion of the course.

In terms of getting your photos, you are welcome to use your own phone or Photopass. If you're using your phone, make sure to get it out and ready to hand off to the Cast Member before you step up for your photo. If you're doing a full Walt Disney World vacation along with your runDisney event, I highly recommend purchasing the Memory Maker with your vacation package. You'll get every photo from runDisney (characters and throughout the parks wherever you see someone huddled in a green tent) as well as all of your ride photos and Photopass spots throughout your park vacation.

There will also be hydration and medical stops along the course.

Each water station will have both water and Powerade, so if there's some other hydration source you prefer you should plan on bringing it with you. You can expect to find one hydration stop halfway through a 5k, two stops during 10k races, and about one every couple miles during longer races. For half marathons or longer I always have a handheld bottle that I will refill a couple times as I'm a heavy sweater.

During the half and full marathons you'll also find fuel stops (typically one for half marathons and three or four for the marathon). As of 2025 runDisney provides Sport Beans as their fuel, and the running joke (pun intended) is you always know you've passed a fuel stop by the jelly beans littering the course. You're welcome to train on Sport Beans, but I'd recommend almost any other fueling alternative. The marathon course also features one or two banana stops and a chocolate stop just as you enter Hollywood Studios.

The longer races also have a few medical tents as well that are well stocked with wraps, ice, bandages, blister treatments, and whatever else you may need when things aren't going your way on the course.

I know what you're thinking and don't worry: there are plenty of bathroom stops along the way.

Between the long wait in your corral and all the hydration on the course, you shouldn't have to sprint for the treelines (although many still will). There are usually a few rows of port-o-potties along different parts of the route, plus one or two at each medical station. Plus any in-park bathroom you pass along the course is fair game, including the fan-favorite Tangled Toilets in Magic Kingdom. Just don't try to stray too far off the course, as there are usually Cast Members stationed around the parks to keep runners from sneaking off the route.

If you're running the WDW Marathon, don't miss out on riding Everest if you can.

While I've heard of the Prince Charming Carousel or Mad Hatter Teacups opening up for runners, the one constant is usually Expedition Everest in Animal Kingdom. For faster runners you really need to time it right as it opens for Early Entry (7:30 am), and you'll likely be somewhere between mile 17 and mile 18 when you reach Everest. I was lucky in 2025 as Cast Members just started waving in runners as I ran by, allowing me to be among the first few riders for the day. Yes, I kept my Strava running, and it was wild to see the swirls of the roller coaster on the route. So long as you're feeling good I'd recommend aiming for Everest since there are so few chances in life to ride a rollercoaster in the middle of a marathon.

Most importantly - be considerate of your fellow runners!

The runDisney races attract both new and experienced runners, which routinely cause clashes on the course. General etiquette usually dictates:

• Walkers stay to the right, runners stay to the left

• If you need to stop for whatever reason, raise your hand and get off to the side of the course without crossing in front of others

• Mind where you're tossing your water cups, especially if there's still water in them

• Keep your head on a swivel and try to be aware of the other runners around you

As with any race, you will see people breaking ALL of these general etiquette rules. Since runDisney races can get crowded due to the sheer number of people and narrowness of some areas of the course, these annoyances can be exacerbated even more. Go to any runDisney social media page and you'll find no shortage of feuds between runners and walkers not following protocol or folks ruining others' photos by trying to time their "jump photo" right in front of the castle. These issues are unavoidable, so if you find that others aren't following the generally accepted rules (because I know you are doing the right thing) make sure to look up and take in where you're at: the happiest place on Earth.

Last Section: Post-race