13.1 Miles of Magic: My Disney Princess Half Marathon Experience
Running the Disney Princess Half Marathon had been on my bucket list for years. What started as a casual comment after finishing my very first 5K eventually turned into a goal I couldn’t ignore. Seven years after that 5K, I found myself standing in a starting corral outside EPCOT at 5:00am, dressed as Moana and ready to run 13.1 miles through Walt Disney World.
The 5K That Started It All
Seven years ago, I ran a 5K with my friend Emily. Before training for that race, I couldn’t even run a mile and would never have dared to call myself a runner. I even joined the outdoor track team in high school on a trial basis, but after two weeks I had to end that trial because my knees and shins hurt so badly.
But Emily and I committed to training for the 5K. We worked hard, showed up for our runs, and gave it everything we had on race day. To our surprise, we ended up finishing third in our age group. Crossing that finish line was such an incredible feeling!
After that race, people started asking if I would ever run anything longer than a 5K. My answer was: If I ever run more than a 5K, it will be the Disney Princess Half Marathon.
Fast forward to now, and that dream has officially come true.
Getting Into the Race (Not as Easy as You’d Think)
Registering for a runDisney race is an event all by itself.
For the 2026 Disney Princess Half Marathon Weekend, registration opened on Monday, June 24th at 10:00am. I was ready right on time, refreshing my screen and waiting in the virtual queue with thousands of other hopeful runners.
After sitting in the queue for over an hour, the race sold out before I ever had the chance to register. What a letdown!
Later that day, my friend Jes and I discovered there was still another way to get into the race: running with a charity team. Many charities receive race bibs for runDisney events and runners can secure a spot by fundraising for the organization.
We ended up joining the waitlist for Girls on the Run, an organization we were both really excited to support. Girls on the Run is a nonprofit that helps young girls build confidence, strength, and leadership skills through running.
It took a few weeks to hear back, but on July 15th we received the email we had been hoping for — Girls on the Run had secured additional bibs for the half marathon and we could officially join the team. We signed up immediately and began fundraising.
Thanks to many generous donations from friends and family, we reached our fundraising goal and suddenly the race that felt out of reach just weeks earlier was becoming very real.
Training for 13.1 Miles
My training officially started on October 27th, 2025. I followed the Jeff Galloway half marathon training plan, which is popular among runDisney runners and focuses on a run/walk method.
I ran three times a week, and every other weekend the distance gradually increased. By two weeks before race day, I had completed my longest training run: 14 miles.
From October through December, I was able to run outside. I learned what gear felt the best for running in cold, snowy weather and I faced all sorts of conditions on the roads. Once the temperature was consistently below freezing, the roads became icy and snow started taking over the shoulders, so I had to switch to indoor treadmill running. I don’t love running on a treadmill, but that wasn’t going to stop me from completing my training. Watching the Taylor Swift Eras Tour and Bridgerton got me through my two longest runs.
There was one moment during training that had me worried. In January I came down with bronchitis and had to skip an entire week of training, including my scheduled 11-mile run. At the time it felt like a huge setback. But looking back on it now, it really wasn’t. Once I recovered, I got right back into training and realized that missing one week didn’t derail the progress I had already made.
By the time race weekend arrived, I felt ready — and incredibly excited.
Kicking Off Princess Half Marathon Weekend
Jes and I flew out of Buffalo on Friday, February 27 and landed in Orlando around 5:30pm. After dropping our bags at Disney’s Port Orleans Riverside, we headed to the Polynesian Resort for dinner at ‘Ohana.
Dinner was incredible — delicious food, a lively atmosphere, and one very special surprise. While we were eating, the fireworks from Magic Kingdom started, and the music from the show was piped right into the restaurant. Watching fireworks from our table while eating dinner felt like the perfect way to kick off race weekend.
To get back to our resort, we took the monorail and then hopped on a Disney bus — one of those simple Disney transportation moments that always makes the trip feel extra magical.
Expo Day: Bibs, Merch, and Meeting the Beast
Saturday morning started with a grocery delivery from Target that arrived around 9am — perfect timing before heading out for the day.
Today’s mission: the runDisney Expo at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex.
The Expo ran Thursday through Saturday, and Saturday’s hours were 11am–3pm. We aimed to get there right when it opened, but even arriving right at 11 meant our first of many long lines. Thankfully, the excitement of race weekend made the waits part of the fun.
Our first stop was picking up our race bibs. After that, we hopped into another line to meet the Beast — because how often do you get to meet a Disney character at a race expo?
Race Shirts and Princess Outfit Inspiration
Next we headed to another building to pick up our race shirts. This building was packed with booths and vendors selling all kinds of running gear, Disney merchandise, and race-day outfits.
One thing we quickly realized: you absolutely don’t need to come to race weekend with a costume already planned. You could easily create an entire princess running outfit right there at the Expo.
The Merchandise Building (and the Best Running Shoes)
By this point we were getting hungry, so we grabbed a churro and checked out the baseball stadium on our way to the final building — the official merchandise area.
Before shopping, we made a stop at the charity welcome center to visit the Girls on the Run table.
One of the shopping highlights was finding the Brooks princess running sneakers. I grabbed the Moana pair, and Jes picked the Belle version.
Dinner at Disney Springs
After dropping our Expo haul back at the hotel, we headed to Disney Springs for dinner at The Boathouse.
We originally planned to take the boat from Port Orleans Riverside, but the line was too long and we would have missed our reservation, so we took the bus instead.
Dinner was fantastic — we both ordered lobster rolls and spent some time shopping around Disney Springs afterward. I also found something I had been searching for for months: a magnetic shoulder Hei Hei to go with my Moana running outfit.
Race Morning: 2:00am Wake-Up Call
Race day started very early.
Our alarms went off at 2:00am, though I actually woke up at 1:59 convinced I had missed it. I guess I was just really ready to go!
Jes dressed as Belle and I dressed as Moana, though we stuck with the running shoes we had trained in rather than the new Brooks pairs we bought at the Expo. I drank my usual pre-run protein shake, and by 2:30am we were heading to the buses with coffee in hand.
The buses dropped us off near EPCOT, and we walked past the iconic EPCOT ball on our way to the starting corrals.
Corrals and the Start Line
I was assigned to corral G and Jes was in corral F, but she came back to corral G so we could run together.
One thing I learned through this whole experience: corrals are assigned based on the finish time you estimate when registering. If I had known more about how that worked when I signed up, I definitely would have chosen differently — but now I know for next time!
We had to be in our corrals by 4:00am.
The race officially started at 5:00am with corral A, and each corral had several waves of runners. By the time we crossed the start line, it was about 5:50am.
One small disaster at the starting line: as I threw my arms up in celebration, I knocked Hei Hei right off my shoulder. There was no stopping to get him without getting trampled, so I had to let him go.
Getting Started
The first mile flew by.
During mile two, we saw the first place runners already looping back toward the finish — which was wild to see. There were nearly 20,000 runners in the race, and at times it was hard to even run because the course was so packed.
Along the route there were high school and college bands as well as Disney characters for photos. We didn’t stop for character photos, but it was still fun seeing them and hearing all the music along the course.
Running Through Magic Kingdom
One of the highlights of the race was running through Magic Kingdom.
We made a quick stop for a bathroom break at the real restrooms near the park entrance before continuing through the park.
We ran past the spectators on Main Street and then stopped for a quick photo in front of the castle before taking off through Adventureland, Fantasyland and Tomorrowland. The course took us right through the castle which was very cool.
The Tough Miles (and the Best Final Mile)
The second half of the race was definitely harder. My legs were feeling it, but there was plenty of water along the route and we grabbed some energy chews along the way.
The final mile of the race brought us through EPCOT — and it was my favorite mile of the entire run. The spectators cheering as runners entered the park were amazing. The energy of the crowd made it feel like the finish line was pulling us forward. Running through EPCOT also made me think about being there with my family last fall, which made the moment even more special.
Crossing the Finish Line
Jes and I crossed the finish line together in 2 hours and 47 minutes, and I couldn’t stop smiling — all the months of training, excitement, and nerves had led to this moment.
After finishing we received our race medals, a cooling towel, water, Powerade, and an underwhelming snack box. There was also a post-race celebration with music, characters, and food.
Recovery: Coffee, Sun, and Epsom Salt
We stayed at the post-race party briefly before catching a bus back to our resort.
One nice surprise about the race was that the sun never came out while we were running, which kept us from overheating. However, once we stopped moving we got very cold. Thankfully by the time we got back to the resort the sun had come out, so we grabbed coffee and sat outside warming up in the sunshine. That moment felt incredible.
After soaking in the sun, we headed to our room for some much-needed Epsom salt baths.
A Second Chance for Hei Hei
Later that morning we headed back to Disney Springs (by boat this time) for brunch and to see if I could replace the Hei Hei I lost at the start line. The Disney magic came through — they gave me another one!
We celebrated our race with brunch at City Works Eatery & Pour House where we shared a bacon cheeseburger and bananas foster pancakes.
Ending the Perfect Race Day
After brunch, our legs were sore and we were exhausted, so we spent some time reading by the pool. That night we attempted to watch the live-action Snow White movie, but we only made it halfway before falling asleep around 8pm. After a 2:00am wake-up call and 13.1 miles through Walt Disney World, sleep came pretty easily.
Running the Disney Princess Half Marathon was an experience I will never forget, and getting to do it all alongside Jes made it even more special. Race weekend had been everything I could’ve imagined and more, and the trip wasn’t even over yet! The next day Jes and I were headed to Magic Kingdom for a full park day. I will provide all the details of that epic adventure in another blog post!
