runDisney Announces 2024 and 2025 Races

I’ve got great news, runDisney fans! Disney just announced the dates for its 2024 and 2025 runDisney events. So, let’s talk fun runs!

What Is runDisney?

You’re likely familiar with runDisney by now, even if you’ve never participated in one. During these runDisney events, Disney opens its parks early, but it’s not for guests to ride anything!

Instead, the runDisney participants race in and around the parks at a time when they’re closed to guests. So, you’ll experience Disney in a way that only runDisney runners can. 

Of course, you don’t need to run, though. On the contrary, Disney happily encourages everyone to get a bit of exercise. Walkers and joggers are warmly encouraged to participate. While some competitive runners will participate in runDisney events and likely win the races, everyone else is simply there to have a great time.

Depending on the runDisney event, you can participate in 5Ks, 10Ks, half-marathons, and sometimes even longer races. In short, you decide how much energy you want to expend, which can be a challenging determination. 

After all, you’ll likely combine your runDisney race with a Disney vacation. Those are challenging enough on their own. For this reason, I generally recommend that runDisney first-timers start small with the shortest run. 

runDisney Announces a New Race

This year’s race schedule comes with a surprise. New for 2024 is the previously unannounced Disneyland Halloween Half Marathon Weekend. runDisney will host this event from September 5th through September 8th, 2024.

🎃 Boo! We have a fang-tastic surprise: The @Disneyland Halloween Half Marathon Weekend joins the #runDisney season in 2024! 🏃🏽‍♀️👻 Don't miss out on these thrills and chills – learn more on the @DisneyParks Blog!

— runDisney (@runDisney) October 30, 2023

Over these four days, runDisney will offer several different entertainment options for would-be participants. Activities range from yoga to kids’ races to the half-marathon itself. You can also run in a 5K and/or a 10K. Disney is incentivizing runners to test their mettle with a 10K/half-marathon combo during this event, too.

As the name implies, the theme for this runDisney half-marathon is Halloween. You’ll find spooky character interactions during your race, and they’ll cheer you on while you run! 

Also, the Oogie Boogie Bash began on September 1st this year. You can reasonably expect the 2024 version of the after-hours ticketed event to be an option during your early September Disneyland Resort visit. Disney also indicates that you’ll race through Disney California Adventure AND Disneyland Park during these events, which doubles the fun. 

runDisney Club members can register for the Disneyland Halloween Half Marathon Weekend on February 6th, 2024. Everyone else can sign up on February 13th, 2024. These events do sell out, which explains why Disney created the runDisney Club.

Here Are the Other 2024 and 2025 Marathon Dates

Disney will host five other in-person runDisney events over the next 18 months. Plus, Disney has remembered the folks who would like to participate but cannot get to the parks in that timeframe.

Yes, the virtual runDisney events will return in 2024 as well. You can participate in them from June 1st through August 31st and again during December 2024. Here’s a Disney video if you’d like to know more about them.

Here are the in-person runDisney events coming in 2024 and 2025:

• 2024 Disney Wine & Dine Half Marathon Weekend — October 31st through November 3rd at Walt Disney World
• 2025 Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend — January 8th through January 12th, 2025, at Walt Disney World
• 2025 Disneyland Half Marathon Weekend – January 30th through February 2nd, 2025, at Disneyland Resort
• 2025 Disney Princess Half Marathon Weekend – February 20th through 24th, 2025, at Walt Disney World
• 2025 runDisney Springtime Surprise Weekend – April 3rd through April 6th, 2025, at Walt Disney World

Registration opens on March 5th, 2024, for the Wine & Dine Half Marathon. You must be in the runDisney Club to book early, though. Everyone else may register starting on March 12th. You can read the official site for additional registration dates for the various events. 

The one word of caution I’ll offer is that aligning a DVC reservation with a runDisney event often proves challenging. Those weekends frequently book quickly, as many DVC members love runDisney. 

So, my general advice is to book your DVC room at your 11-month window if possible. Then, you can try to reserve a spot for the various runDisney events. If that strategy doesn’t work, you may want to join the runDisney Club. I only recommend that for diehard runDisney fans, but I know more than a few of them. Have fun running, everyone!

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