Hi, Jonathan! Thanks for bringing your question to us at the Disney Parks Moms Panel.
How exciting that you’re just a few short weeks away from the Disney Princess Half Marathon Weekend! I’ll be there with my husband and daughter, too, as we embark upon our first
runDisney race together as a family. My husband and I have both run the
Disney Princess Half Marathon before, though: I in 2017 and he in 2018.
Although the official race start time is 5:30 a.m., the time you actually cross the start line will depend on your corral placement. From there, the time it takes you to cross the finish line will not only depend upon your pace but also how often you choose to stop for Character photos along the course. Looking at the time stamp on our photos, I see that my husband and I were back at our Resort hotel in the Magic Kingdom area by 10:30 a.m. (To provide a point of reference, his pace was just over 11 minutes, and mine was just over 12. This included several Character photo stops, too.) Neither of us had to wait long for a bus from the finish line area, but our bus did make multiple stops before we arrived at our hotel.
I do think it’s possible to meet your family at
Disney’s Animal Kingdom Theme Park by 10:30 a.m. on race day, but there will be several factors at play (most notably your corral placement and number of stops along the course). I would advise having a secondary plan for meeting your family later in the morning just in case you’re pressed for time.
Here’s wishing you all the best on race day!
Amy