Looking for tips on how to Run Disney on a budget? After running the Princess Half Marathon in February, it looked like a long, hard wait until my next runcation for the Disneyland Tinkerbell Half in January, 2014. When registration for the November Wine & Dine Half Marathon opened I was ripe for the picking. When I found out my BRF’s (best running friends) were going, I started dreaming and lobbying my financial manager, otherwise known as my husband. I eventually got the green light with a scaled down trip plan. What steps am I taking to make this trip cheaper?
Get In And Get Out: We are flying in Friday, racing Saturday night and leaving Sunday. Since I had 4 days in the park at PHM and know that I am hitting Disneyland in January, I can live with a short trip.
How Many Princesses Does It Take To Change A Husband’s Mind?: Four. That’s how many of us are sharing a room at a Disney moderate resort. Two nights between four women is less than $100 per person, total.
We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Tickets: We decided to forego park tickets this time (gasp!) because we are on such a tight schedule. There is a party in Epcot after the run that is included in our entry fee, so we still get some attraction time. I was a little sad, though, that I couldn’t see the Magic Kingdom decorated for Christmas. Or can I?
Merry Christmas, Mickey!: The Friday night we arrive just happens to be the first night of Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party. Well, look at how that works out! This event requires purchase of a ticket but park admission is included. The event officially begins at 7:00pm but you are admitted to the park as early as 4:00pm with this special event ticket. The MVMCP ticket is much less than a one day park admission and the MK is open late that night, so that affords us plenty of time for fun at a discount! We’ll get the MK experience “plussed” with Disney Christmas magic for much less. My inner child is already wearing her Christmas ears!
If you really want to experience runDisney magic but are on a budget, I’ll bet there are plenty of ways you can make it happen without having to break the Hammy bank!
Learn more about the Run Disney events at Walt Disney World.
Amy is a 40-something mother of 3 boys who have a melting pot of ADHD and ODD behaviors. She likes race day more than she likes the actual running, but she loves how she feel about herself after she knocks out a training run. Her blog, Mom’s Magical Miles, is her journey through motherhood, running and Disney magic! Amy is currently running the 2014 Princess Half Marathon to raise funds for Give Kids The World. You can see her fundraising page here.
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i’m with you on skip the parks. i did the princess half in 2010 and am doing the tower of terror this year. While this year we are doing a whole week long vaca. in 2010 we stayed at all star sports skipped the parks and did the expo, boardwalk, and downtown disney. we had plenty of disney magic without paying for tickets. i think there are plenty of ways to enjoy the magic of disney without park tickets. not to mention you get to do the parks during the race and see the characters at that time.
what a great article! While not a runner myself, my oldest two sons are runners and the oldest has made a goal to run in a marathon when he turns 18 (he is almost 15 right now). SO in turn I promised him that if he would like to run in one I would take him to Disney to run in one there. Now I know that I have loads of time to save (but lets be honest you all know that time goes by so quickly) but everything else that comes along with having a senior (and my next two sons are right behind him so 3 graduations in 3 years ) that is going to be a more expensive year than most. SO saving up now, love the idea of not getting the tickets and going to the Christmas party, I think that is an excellent idea!! Thanks and good luck!!
I would love to read more from Amy, especially handling the behaviorally spunky bunch. My oldest has potential undiagnosed SPD & I often wonder how I’m going to be able to handle her at Disney with the stimulation overload.
Check out the articles that they have about taking autistic kids to Disney (I know there are a couple on here, I wrote one and I know there is a recent one about Disneyland too) although your child may not have autism stimulation overload can be a problem there. All the articles have great tips for any child! Hope that helps!!
Thanks, Danielle! That’s a great idea for a post. I have one on my blog regarding our ADHD / ODD child on our Disney cruise last summer and lots of hints from our experience! Think I can convince the Financial Manager that we have to take a family trip to Disney just so I can blog about it?!?!
That’s exactly how I like to do it! A race-cation has different rules :)
Great post Amy! I think your plan is BRILLIANT! That’s got to be the lowest cost runDisney trip I’ve ever seen- the Financial Manager must be proud! :) Have a great run with your BRF!
this will be my third year in running the Disney Half Marathon at Disneyland. and I must say it’s expensive!
We just received the discounted tickets list, and wow I paid 187 for 4 day hopper last year, and this year with the pricing going up it is now 230!! The only good thing is, hotel is my timeshare. and with the Disneyworld trip that I went in April, i ended up with a Travel fund From Southwest that took care of one way to Disneyland, and then the points I received from Southwest took care of my one way home. All I had to pay is $2.50!!
I’m not sure if I will run next year. My goal for 2015 is coast to coast…so I may just save big to go big!