CHOC Walk

I am a huge lover of Disney and even more when I can help a cause!
My boyfriend and I did our first CHOC Walk this year and I loved the experience!
However I only give it 4stars because I feel that it could have been better organized, knowing that it is a very large event and tons of people go there should have been more of an organized pattern to it.
For the initial entrance (before the ticket booths, where they check bags) it was chaos with people pushing and butting wanting to get in; it would have gone a lot smoother if they were able to separate people that have strollers, bags or aren’t caring anything. Reason I suggest this is because many people didn’t go with bags and still had to wait in line behind people that needed to be checked or even had multiple bags to be checked, and when it came to their turn they just walked through.
Second, (this is my personal complaint) was that if you checked in at the park one didn’t get their T-​shirt. If one wanted their t-​shirt they had to drive to the organization to pick it up, it make sense check-​in before the day of the race, however people like myself I was unable to make it, I work till 6 in the evening and traffic to get the 5FWY at that time I wouldn’t have made it by 8pm (their closing time). This kind of annoyed me that I had made my donation and then some and was unable to get my shirt. Not only that at the end of the race they had last years shirts selling for $ 2, meaning they usually have left overs. In that case why don’t they bring the box of shirts to the booth where one checks-​in at the park and they can give their shirts to the people who were unable to check-​in at the foundations office.
Third, I would have recommended opening more entrance gates to the park. Having over 500people get in through only 6(I think) gates had a lot of butting and pushing and people bumping into strollers.
Either way. I would go again. (I do hope some changes could be made for next time)

I know this walk is for charity and all, so 5 stars for that, but it is a total cluster! Arrived at the Mickey & Friends lot just before 6 AM and thought that would be plenty of time to get inside the park for the 6:30 AM start. WRONG! First there was a huge crowd of people waiting to have their bags searched and once we made it past there, it was just a mass of people waiting outside the park gates. Just to give you an idea, it was solid people from the gates to the ticket booths and the start is supposed to be at main street! The fireworks went off at 6:30 (I’m assuming to signal the start of the walk??), but no one was moving. I don’t know if it started late or they were just controlling the crowd, but we didn’t get inside the gates until nearly 7 AM. From then on it was just a sea of people moving at a snail’s pace. I didn’t want to spend three hours inching along for three miles, so my mom and I just walked right along the curb and were able to pass a bunch of people.
I don’t think it was very clear where the end was (far end of Downtown Disney) because a lot of people started bailing before they reach the official finish. I wanted to go back to buy the discounted Disney tickets, but by the time we got back there, again, there was a huge line for bag inspection and the wait for tickets was nearly an hour. Forget that! Look, this is a great cause, but it’s just not worth the hassle. Just donate money and don’t bother with the actual walk.

I been doing CHOC walk for two years in a row and I cannot express how much you feel after the walk. It’s amazing how much love and gratitude you feel for the children that need it most. I also volunteer for CHOC before the walk and I absolutely love it. I’ve also fundraised for them this past year and realized that it’s a great benefit for the hospital. The walk itself is great because you get to walk through both Disneyland and California Adventure. You also get to take pictures with the characters of Disneyland and spend time cruising through areas you haven’t seen before. It’s overall, a great time that is for a great cause. I plan on doing it every year.

It was a SUPER DUPER fun and early Sunday Morning for the 2014 CHOC Walk at Disneyland and California Adventures. Walkers can park for free at the Mickey’s and Friends parking structure, but there is no tram running around at the time to take anyone to the park (so walking time here we go!). Also, be aware that there maybe a lot of traffic getting into the area. Many of the Walkers arrived between 5 am to 6 am to meet up with their awesome teams at Downtown Disney or in front of the two parks. It was neat to see so many people at this amazing event.
How to Participate? What do we get?
Just go onto the CHOC Walk website, pick a team to join, and help raise at least $ 50 to support Children’s Hospital Orange County. There are also fundraising incentives/​prizes when you hit different milestones. Once you hit $ 50, then you are able to walk the 5K, receive a wristband, and a CHOC Walk T-​shirt. The CHOC wristband allows you to also get discounted park tickets ($ 78 for a park hopper and $ 50 for a single park), Boomers Free Round of Mini Golf, Irvine Lanes of one free game and one free shoe rental, and a milk shake at Chik-​Fil-​A.
What team was Super Girl on?
The boy friend and I were on Team Unilocal OC!!! Woot woot! It’s time to help out and save the world! It was also great meeting some new Unilocal faces! I met Shawna C., Steven C., Trina D., Jaime P., Sherry K., Clarissa S, and many others who I have missed. It was fun walking together with you guys! Also, it was great that we raised over $ 1,300! Yay! Go us!
Also, big thanks to Ryan C. and the Unilocal crew for organizing this event and picking up our CHOC Walk items! Can’t wait for next year!

Great event, a lot of people and a lot of fun! This is a awesome opportunity to help others while getting to see Disneyland and California Adventure before dawn! Way before dawn that is, but there’s nothing that a little more coffee can’t fix! Once you exit 5 Fwy the turn left lanes are very long, so just go straight and make a U-​turn, there, I just saved you 15 minutes. Then chose the left-​most lanes when entering the Mickey and Friends parking lot, there, I saved you another 15 minutes! You will walk a lot all over both parks so make sure you have good shoes, this is more important than we thought and found out the hard way. Absolutely a lot of fun, got to meet other Unilocalers and make new friends, but I didn’t get to do much the rest of the day besides sleeping! Which is good thing!

The 2014 CHOC Walk was a huge success. To participate, each walker must raise at least $ 50 for Children’s Hospital Orange County. This can easily be done by asking friends or family for small donations. There are incentives for those who raise a lot of money. Our Unilocal OC team raised $ 1300! I’m responsible for 10% of that. =)
We all woke up before dawn and arrived at Disneyland, bright and early for our 5K walk. Parking at Mickey & Friends was free. The lot opens at 5 am but people were able to arrive earlier. We made our way down to DTD to meet Ryan C. at the House of Blues.
There were so many different teams there. It was fun to be in the park early but at least the crowds were going in the same direction as you. Each participant’s wristband allowed them to purchase CHOC-​tober Disneyland Resort tickets at a discount on the day of the walk: $ 78 for a park hopper and $ 50 for single park. The tickets can be used the day of or until the first week of November. Pretty awesome deal since Disneyland tickets are RARELY discounted. As part of the Unilocal team, we each received Unilocal shirts, snacks, water, totes, and Unilocal water bottles. It was a great walk during a cool morning. Thank you to all the participants for raising money for CHOC. It is truly a worthy cause.

Update for 2014 CHOC Walk!
An awesome event! 100% of the proceeds go to benefit the Children’s Hospital of Orange County.
It takes a lot to wake up at 3am on a Sunday morning — but once you get here and see all the other early birds meeting up — the energy and positive vibes just gets you going.
It’s awesome to see all the «In Support of…» and «In Memory of… (tear)» groups that are walking to raise funds for their loved one. I love seeing the team banners that are celebrating XX years strong — and their namesake walking alongside the team with them. It’s always great to see what a difference CHOC makes in these little people’s lives. At the same time though, it’s touching to see all the «In Memory of» groups that *STILL* walk to raise funds and help make a difference — despite losing their loved one.
CHOC really does make a difference in the community. It will treat a patient regardless of their family’s ability to pay.
The walk itself is a great event — and although you need a minimum of $ 50 to walk — that’s something that’s easily attainable because the Walker’s site gives you plenty of tools and marketing widgets (like a Facebook link) to help raise your funds. Donors can donate directly from their credit card to the site, in your name — leaving you without the need to handle cash/​checks/​etc.
Tip: The parking structure is noted on the event page to «open» at 5am. In reality, if you get here earlier, the better. The structure was open when I was there at a little after 4:30am. I always tell people — if you’re stuck in backed up traffic on the 5 — you arrived too late.
See you in 2015 — CHOC!

The CHOC Walk was fun & very uplifting. Nice to be doing a fun activity & helping children at the same time. I recommend this walk for people who also love Disneyland. You get to see the park before it opens to the public & you also get to take pics with characters along the way. Loved it & will do it again! I raised $ 350 for CHOC & had a great time too!

It was packed. Very… slow motion. But that made it great. We were all put there strolling, taking the sights for a great cause.

GO TEAM Unilocal! =)
A GREAT EVENT that I’m PROUD to be a part of 4 a even GREATER CAUSE– to benefit Kids!
Choc Walk is a 5K route that makes its way through both Disney California Adventure and Disneyland.
This year the walk raised over $ 1.8 million dollars to benefit CHOC (Children’s Hospital of Orange County).
There were over 16,000 participants who arrived before sunrise to take part in the event & the opening ceremony started at 6:40 am.
Since it started, the walk has raised more than $ 19 million.
This year, for the first time the course started off inside Disney CA then went to Disneyland and ended in Downtown Disney. YAY! =)
We made our way down the parade route and turned onto Route 66.
Along the way, there were cast members and characters out for photos and to cheer us on.
We walked down on Route 66 and turned right at Cross Street & then walked out toward the Wharf area.
The course then roped back by Ghirardelli’s and to the parade route where it continued on toward the Pier.
We returned from their loop around the Pier, walking past Little Mermaid then turning to go around Grizzly River Run and into Condor Flats.
Along the way there were cast members with signs cheering us on.
There were also some signs to let us know what areas we were passing by and some fun stats.
We exited backstage and made their way through Downtown Disney.
The finish line featured all four Disneyland Ambassadors as well as the DJ announcing groups and congratulating everyone who finished. =)
After crossing the finish line, there were several participant tables set up going out toward the Rain Forest Café and ESPN.
Everyone who participated in the walk received a CHOC WALK T-​shirt.
I can’t wait for NEXT YEAR’s EVENT! =) Yay!

I’ve done quite a few 5k and ½ marathon events and must say that this was my first 5k walk event for a great cause! Getting up super early was a challenge itself but there’s nothing like starting out the event before the bright sun shines on your eyes! :) I’ve done volunteered work at CHOC few years ago so this was a no-​brainer to come out and show my support! Super crowded but team OC Unilocal stayed in the back and we were able to have many group photo opportunities as we walk through CA Adventure, Disneyland & Downtown Disney! This was also an extra treat for me. Why!?! I haven’t been to Disney for almost a year, got to see Cars Land first time, and brought my precious baby to experience it all! Thanks to Ryan C. and Dean W. for putting the event together! I look forward to next year’s CHOC Walk :)

Fun times for a great cause. The path was very congested. But that should not stop you from walking for the Children’s Hospital. Tips: Come early so you can be one of the first to walk, so you do not get caught behind slow walkers and strollers. Enjoy the opportunity to take pictures, everywhere! Finally, grab friends and have fun. See you next year!

Fun event and a good cause

This was my first time walking and I was the team captain for our work team. I really love that CHOC created this really awesome way for people to participate in a walk to raise money to help the children’s hospital. I know it’s tough to get up that early on a Sunday (I only get up early on Sundays for Mimosas and football), but to know it’s benefitting the children made it all worth it.
My takeaways for next yr:
Avoid the structure and park in the Pumbaa lot
Arrive super early to walk first so you’re not stuck behind the lolly gaggers
My tips for the crew:
Create sections for people that actually want to attempt to get a good pace going. The stand still made everyone cranky, especially the kids in strollers because they wanted to keep the action going.
I’d definitely do this walk again. Why not? It’s for a good cause and it was a lot of fun. Now, to ice my calves.

Those who know me understand that I’m all about helping out and giving back — I’ve been blessed with so much, so why not, right? Oh, I don’t mean money — if I win the lotto ever, that’ll be the icing on the cake though!
I raised the cash (and a bit more) after registering through the CHOC Walk site, and dragged my buns out of bed a bit after 4am the day of. Got there pretty early and there were already plenty of serious walkers there parking in the Daisy lot at Disneyland, which was free to participants.
We met up in front of the House of Blues where Ryan C. was already busy setting up the Unilocal!booth in preparation for the day. Others on the Unilocal team made their way in as the dawn drew closer and checked in to get our cool new Unilocaly shirts and sunglasses.
After the team had pretty much assembled we made our way to the CA entrance and shuffled our way in. I say shuffled because it was crazy crowded with so many supporters of this great cause!
We took pictures galore at the Cars exhibits and made our way hrough to DL and took more pictures haha. I was pretty tired by this time, but made it through with a teeny bit of energy to get me home after.
It was awesome to meet a few new Unilocalers and an honor to have participated in the walk with them! Thank you Dean W and Ryan C for organizing this event and picking up our wristbands and t-​shirts for the walk :)

First time walking and it was really cool to meet feelow Unilocalers and walkers. Awesome to raise money for a good cause and get a couple of tshirts too ^_​^ It was a little crowded but not that bad. Parking was easy since the gf made me get up really early.

First time participating in a charity walk or race! It was a really interesting experience, Kinda chaotic with so many people all concentrated in one area of disneyland. Still it was a great experience participating with fellow Unilocalers. I would definitely recommend it for families who want to participate together since its very kid friendly. Parking can get a little crazy too but if you get thre early its not so bad.