My marathons

Walt Disney World Marathon

04:304:30 AM Orlando
Sold out
Lake Eola Park
Lake Eola Park. Photograph by OrlandoThings.com, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

The course

The organiser describes the marathon as a 26.2-mile course through Walt Disney World Resort, with Disney characters and entertainment along the way.

The course in short 3 lines
  • 26.2 miles inside Walt Disney World ResortA 26.2-mile course through Walt Disney World Resort, with character sightings on the way.
  • A 16-minute-mile pace rule, enforced by red flagsMinimum 16-minutes-per-mile pace; a red flag at a mile marker means you are behind it.
  • An Eastern Time start at 4:30 AM on a SundaySunday 10 January 2027, start 4:30 AM Eastern Time, at Walt Disney World Resort.
Course notes 3 short reads on the course
Whole courseGeometry26.2 miles inside Walt Disney World ResortA 26.2-mile course through Walt Disney World Resort, with character sightings on the way.

runDisney lists the highlights as a “26.2-mile course through Walt Disney World Resort” and “an array of Disney Character sightings and entertainment throughout the race”, with refreshments on the course and after the finish.

The organiser publishes no course map or street list for 2027, so the order of the parks is not given.

Sourced

Whole courseTacticsA 16-minute-mile pace rule, enforced by red flagsMinimum 16-minutes-per-mile pace; a red flag at a mile marker means you are behind it.

The race policies say runners “must maintain a minimum of 16-minutes-per-mile pace for all participants for all race distances”, and recommend a training pace of 15 minutes per mile. Pace cyclists ride the course, and a red flag waving at a mile marker means the runner is behind the required pace and can be picked up and taken to the course pick-up tent.

Start groups follow the finish time a runner expects. Anyone who expects to finish in 5 hours or less has to give proof of time; slower runners do not.

Sourced

Whole courseConditionsAn Eastern Time start at 4:30 AM on a SundaySunday 10 January 2027, start 4:30 AM Eastern Time, at Walt Disney World Resort.

runDisney gives the start as “4:30 AM Eastern Time” on Sunday, January 10, 2027, at Walt Disney World Resort. Marathon Weekend runs from January 6 to 10. Runners collect their bibs at the expo on the days before.

Sourced

Race fuel

Energy gel
An energy gel sachet
Illustration · drag to turn

5 gels for Orlando, plus 1 spare

Finish

One every 40 minutes, by the clock:

  1. km 7mile 4.4
  2. km 14.1mile 8.7
  3. km 21.1mile 13.1
  4. km 28.1mile 17.5
  5. km 35.2mile 21.8

Our pick: SiS BETA Fuel gel, box of 6, strawberry and lime. 40 g of carbohydrate a gel, about twice a usual gel, from two kinds of sugar your body takes up side by side.

Easy to forget on race morning: pack them with your bib the night before.

Order by 20 December to test them on two long runs first.

Get it on Amazon

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In Canada the button opens GU Energy Gel, Salted Caramel, 24-pack, the best seller there.

Outside the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Austria and Switzerland, the UK and Ireland, Spain and Portugal, Italy, the rest of the EU and Canada the button opens GU Energy Gel, Chocolate Outrage, 24-pack on Amazon.com, the best seller there.

Anti-chafe
Compeed Anti-blister stick
Photo: Compeed

Compeed

Compeed anti-blister stick, 8 ml

Best selling on Amazon amazon.nl, read 2 Nov

An invisible layer before the start keeps seams, straps and shoes from rubbing skin raw.

Put it on before you leave for the start: heels and toes, inner thighs, under a bra or heart-rate strap.

Try it on a long run first, like everything you use on race day.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Number belt
A race number belt
Illustration · drag to turn

Compressport Race Belt

Holds your bib without safety pins through your top, with loops for up to 8 gels.

Clip the bib on the night before, so it goes on with your shorts in the morning.

Keep the number on the front, where officials and photographers can see it.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Electrolytes
A tube of electrolyte tablets
Illustration · drag to turn

SiS Hydro electrolyte tablets, tube of 20

One tablet in a bottle puts back some of the salt you sweat out.

One tablet in 500 ml of water in the hour before the start.

Only if you have used them in training: nothing new on race day.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.

Blister plasters
Compeed Blister plasters, medium, 6
Photo: Compeed

Compeed

Compeed blister plasters, medium, 6

Best selling on Amazon amazon.nl, read 2 Nov

One in a pocket cushions a blister if one starts.

Put it on clean, dry skin and leave it until it comes off by itself.

Give a couple to whoever comes to cheer, so they are there at the km you need them.

Get it on Amazon

We earn a small fee if you buy through these links. The price is the same.
distance
42.2 km26.2 mi
finishers
13,282
first held
1994

A loop starting and finishing at Epcot, with the route running through Walt Disney World's theme parks along the way.

Race week

Timetable

Wednesday 6 January Bib pickup

  1. 10:0010:00 AM–20:008:00 PM

    Bib pick-up at the Health & Fitness Expo Bibs are collected at the expo at least one day before a runner's first event, with the Check-in Pass from the online account.

Thursday 7 January Bib pickup

  1. 12:0012:00 PM–19:007:00 PM

    Bib pick-up at the Health & Fitness Expo Bibs are collected at the expo at least one day before a runner's first event, with the Check-in Pass from the online account.

Friday 8 January Bib pickup

  1. 12:0012:00 PM–19:007:00 PM

    Bib pick-up at the Health & Fitness Expo Bibs are collected at the expo at least one day before a runner's first event, with the Check-in Pass from the online account.

Saturday 9 January Last bib day

  1. 11:0011:00 AM–15:003:00 PM

    Bib pick-up at the Health & Fitness Expo Bibs are collected at the expo at least one day before a runner's first event, with the Check-in Pass from the online account.

Sunday 10 January Race day

  1. 04:304:30 AM

    Marathon start The letter on the bib sets the start group. Start groups are set from proof of time for a finish of 5:00 or less, otherwise from the estimated finish time.

  2. Time not published

    Pace requirement Every participant must keep a minimum pace of 16 minutes per mile. Pace cyclists wave a red flag at each mile marker to show runners who are behind it.

Times as published by runDisney, in Orlando time, checked .

Add to calendar .ics file, times in Orlando time

Trip

Getting a place

Sold out for the 2027 race As read 26 October 2026.

Past years and every way in
Every way in, year by year →
Entry details on the organiser’s site →

runDisney, a third party. We take no entries and have no part in the race.

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Keep exploring

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Questions about the Walt Disney World Marathon

When is the Walt Disney World Marathon 2027?

Sunday 10 January 2027. The start is at 4:30 AM.

How do I enter the Walt Disney World Marathon?

The 2027 race is sold out. Entry opened on 17 March 2026. Entry fee: US$265 (for the 2027 race). Entry details on the organiser’s site

How many runners finish the Walt Disney World Marathon?

13,282 runners finished in 2026.

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