Expo, schedule and race morning

Packet pickup

• Wednesday, January 6, 2027: 10:00 AM - 8:00 PM
• Thursday, January 7, 2027: 12:00 PM - 7:00 PM
• Friday, January 8, 2027: 12:00 PM - 7:00 PM
• Saturday, January 9, 2027: 11:00 AM - 3:00 PM

• Mandatory expo pickup: you must attend the expo at least one day prior to your first event to collect bib, shirt and pre-purchased merchandise. There is officially no race-morning bib pickup (runDisney via RunSignUp 2027 listing).
• Trap for marathon-only runners: the final expo day (Saturday) runs only 11:00 AM - 3:00 PM and the marathon is Sunday morning. Miss that 3:00 PM Saturday close and you have no bib.
• Bring a valid photo ID plus your Check-In Pass for each event; the pass appears in your runDisney account shortly before the weekend (for the 2026 weekend it posted the day before the expo opened). Waivers are signed digitally in the runDisney account about two weeks out; paper waivers are available at the expo if you forget.
• Proxy pickup is not allowed: per The Castle Run's runDisney guide, you cannot pick up for another runner unless that runner is a minor.
• The expo is at ESPN Wide World of Sports, which is not the race start (races start/finish at EPCOT), so it is a separate trip.
• First-day event merchandise uses a virtual queue; Gold and Platinum Club runDisney members skip the queue via early shopping windows on day one.
• The clear gEAR bag used for race-morning bag check is issued at expo pickup, so no expo means no bag check either.
• Expo hours here are the 2027 dates reported by a search summary of rundisney.com/expo; the runDisney site itself returned HTTP 403 and could not be fetched directly, so verify against rundisney.com before locking plans.

August 2026

The published weekend schedule

2027 Marathon Weekend runs Wednesday January 6 through Sunday January 10, 2027 (30th anniversary of the WDW Half). Race dates and marathon 4:30 AM start come from search summaries of the runDisney marathon page (direct fetch blocked, HTTP 403); expo dates/hours from a search summary of the runDisney expo page plus the RunSignUp 2027 listing (Wed Jan 6 - Sat Jan 9); arrival, bag-check, corral and pickup mechanics come from The Castle Run's 2026 Marathon Weekend guide and are prior-year behavior, not confirmed 2027 policy. Corrals are printed on the bib and assigned from proof of time submitted at registration; you may drop back a corral but never move up. Gate-close times vary by corral, so treat the published arrival windows (3:30-4:00 AM at EPCOT) as the real deadline, not the gun time.

Getting there

Everything funnels through EPCOT, which is both start and finish (thecastlerun.com), and the driving picture is unusually hostile: the main EPCOT entrance from World Drive is closed roughly 5:00 to 7:00 a.m. on race mornings and roads begin closing as early as 11:00 p.m. the night before (themouseforless.com). Drivers heading to the marathon take I-4 to exit 65, Osceola Parkway West, and follow signs to EPCOT; the other three races use exit 64/192 West, and anyone coming from 192 is strongly urged to use the World Drive exit because of significant delays starting at 3:30 a.m. (thecastlerun.com). Buses do run early enough for a 4:30 a.m. start, but only barely, and only if you board at the front of the window rather than the back.

• EPCOT parking lots. Self-drivers park in the EPCOT lot. Parking is free before 6:00 a.m. on race mornings per thecastlerun.com; themouseforless.com instead says complimentary before 7:00 a.m. with paid parking after, so the two sources disagree and 6:00 a.m. is the safe assumption. themouseforless.com identifies the Explore Lot as the corral access point, the Taxi Lot as the runner drop-off, and the Wonder Lot (Family Reunion area) as a 20-minute walk from the start. That page also states runners are prohibited from entering the start corrals from Bonnet Creek Parkway or Buena Vista Drive and risk disqualification for doing so.
• runDisney race buses. Complimentary buses serve Walt Disney World resorts, Shades of Green and the Swan/Dolphin (thecastlerun.com). For the marathon, thecastlerun.com gives resorts to start 2:00 a.m. to 4:00 a.m. and finish to resorts 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.; themouseforless.com gives 3:00 to 5:00 a.m. outbound and 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. back, with a recommendation to board by 4:00 a.m. Buses keep running through the closures on adjusted routes and may be delayed, but are more reliable than a car (insidethemagic.net). This is also your ride home from the finish: the return window is long precisely because the field is still on course until early afternoon.
• EPCOT monorail. thecastlerun.com states monorail access to EPCOT is available for Magic Kingdom-area resort guests during the Half Marathon and Marathon only, beginning at 2:30 a.m.; themouseforless.com puts the marathon-morning monorail start at 3:00 a.m. Note that runDisney's Princess Half Marathon Weekend guidance says no monorail or Skyliner runs for that weekend's races, so monorail service is race-weekend-specific and worth reconfirming on the official site.
• EPCOT International Gateway Dock and walking paths. EPCOT-area resorts connect to EPCOT and Hollywood Studios on foot (insidethemagic.net), which is the one route road closures cannot break. If you are based at Beach Club Villas, walking in through the International Gateway side avoids the bus queue entirely on both ends of the day, and it is the only approach that is immune to the 5:00 to 7:00 a.m. World Drive entrance closure.
• Getting back after you finish. Plan on the race buses. Return service to the resorts runs from the finish for most of the morning and into early afternoon (thecastlerun.com: 6:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.; themouseforless.com: 7:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.). Driving out is the worst option: insidethemagic.net's own advice for anyone with a car on marathon Sunday is to sleep in and not attempt to move until after 1:00 p.m. Rideshare pickup is unreliable during the closures for the same reason.
• Dinner the night before. General knowledge, not from any page fetched for this dossier: Beaches & Cream Soda Shop at Disney's Beach Club is a short walk from Beach Club Villas and serves plain, carb-heavy American food, which is what you want the night before. It is small and books out, so reserve well ahead; the BoardWalk, a few minutes further on foot around Crescent Lake, has additional options if it is full.

Published entry tiers

Checked 2026-08-27; fees and tiers can change.