Trip Report Thank Heaven for Little Girls.

A few years back my son and I took a trip out West and along the way spent a few estrogen free days in Disneyland. This year was the girl's turn, even if that wasn't part of our original plans.

Planning vacations as your children get older can be a difficult task. Demands from college, high-school, camps, activities, and even part time jobs end up leaving very few open spaces on the calendar. Lately it seems that mid July to mid August is our sweet spot for getting away and so it was again this year. Based on a great deal on a condo found by my wife Val, we came up with a somewhat last minute plan to visit Clearwater Beach Florida...and oh yeah, we decided to drive down from Pennsylvania. I also had an eye to sneak away to WDW for at least a day during our week stay.

My son Sterg had to bow out of the trip. He's starting college at Penn State this year and since he's on their swim team he needed to stay behind and train. See what I mean about other demand? Don't feel too bad for him however, he has had a few nice trips of his own over the last six months. It may have also saved his life as I'm sure having to deal with him for 18 hours in a car would have stirred some primal blood anger in me.

Without Sterg it would leave myself, my wife Val, my 21 year old daughter Alex (about to become a college senior) and my 13 year old daughter Toni. Not quite "little girls" anymore but as most Dads will attest to; they are always little girls. Anyone who has read my previous reports knows that Val is not the biggest Disney fan - but how could we be so close to WDW and not go? After much deliberations on the scale of the Yalta conference we hammered out an arrangement to make one day on our trip "Chris, Alex and Toni get to go to Walt Disney World" Day. Where there is a will...

The big day came - we departed on a Saturday at 3pm in the afternoon after loading up our trusty stead/Ford Explorer. Leaving Sterg home by himself for a week brought it's own set of issues but he was all smiles and willing to play photographer as we said our goodbyes...

At this point we had no idea what we were getting into...

Sterg's long arms came in handy here...

Alex and Toni settling in for a long voyage and adventure while Sterg makes sure we say our goodbyes to Prince our dog.

We were on our way to Florida!

 

[38053WDW]

More! More cowbell .. eh pictures!

 

[fractal]

Animal Kingdom was behind us. We managed 2 rides on Everest, Dinosaur, Primevel Whirl, Tough to be a Bug, lunch and photos by noon. Not too bad I thought as we left the park.

Despite being only about 1/4 mile, the walk back to the car was tough. The black macadam was blasting the sun's heat into us and my red shoulders felt on fire. That was the downside to driving to the parks. The upside was a less than 10 min drive to Hollywood Studios!

This time we took the tram to the entrance - and in no time we saw this!

and this!

Hello Hollywood Studios!

And what a view!

We made the turn and headed towards ToT and RRRC. If ToT is not my favorite, it's on my Mount Rushmore. Same with Toni.

Could not escape seeing Frozen almost everywhere.

We caught this act of misinterpreted phrases for a few minutes - it was genuinely entertaining!

Every trip I tell myself I need to slow down and appreciate the street performers more; unfortunately on this day that wasn't going to happen. Hopefully on our next extended visit.

ToT was first - and only a 20min standby!

Alex passed on ToT. Her favorite rides are SSE, Great Movie Ride, Living with the Land, Soaring - she will do some thrill rides but it's not "must do" for her. This would have been a good time to have Sterg and/or Val with us as I felt bad leaving Alex alone. She took the time to get a cold drink and find some shade as the heat was also starting to get to her.

Keep Out? We most certainly will not.

 

[DisSplash]

So far so good --- HS just after noon, and a good 12-13 hours left of park time, right?

 

[Bob]

I wish I can claim this as my idea, but I saw this type of shot on a Sony mirrorless forum. A photo of somebody holding an open lens in the street and inside the lens you could see a building. It was a great shot! It also managed to jump start some creaky old gears in my noggin which created the idea for this shot...

@wdwmagic needs to borrow this photo to use as one of his "Photo of the day" images on the front page of the website.

 

[KathyJetson]

Yea Toni kept her eyes open! I'm loving this tr I would love to do this if I only had 1 day at Disney.

 

[fractal]

No plans yet. Im confident though we will get to DL before WDW. My wife's brother lives in Phoenix and its an easy 5 hour drive (we made it twice) to Anaheim. We said 2017 before WDW again, but we may wait longer. Might try Universal again before then as well, but nothing is certain. So many other things I'd like to see, but anyting can change at any moment. I"m not going to lie, I do have the itch to go and it feels odd not having anyting WDW to plan.

DL will be tough to resist. I would like to get to Universal, plus so many other things to see.

From your last report, I can't believe how much older Toni looks!! She's so grown! Loving your report and all your pictures!! I hope you made it to all 4 parks! I did the same thing in 2009. We only had a day there, but we hit up every park except MK. We couldn't take part of EMH since we weren't staying on property. We hit up DtD too! Crazy but exhausting!

Yes, growing like a weed. She's now taller than Alex and Val. Thanks! All 4 + DTD - now that is an accomplishment!

I hear ya on this. We used to take our kids out of school for a week and a half and go mid-September. That all changed when our oldest started high school. Now between summer camps, sports and work, we're limited to the end of August. Looking forward to reading the rest of the report.

@gwhb75 - Sound like you are where we are - WDW either in the furnace of summer or the insanity of the Holidays. Thanks for following!

I couldnt help but hear Barry Manillow's 'Weekend in New England' when I read this, lol.

This is seriously a fun TR. Your pictures tell the story so well that you dont even need to use words, but Im glad you are because its chalk full of comedy. I purposely left the Disney Day part of your report for today so I could enjoy it with my morning coffee. Congratulations to Sterg. Amazing school and making the swim to boot. Neither could have been very easy. Cant wait for the next part of the Disney Day. Thanks for the awesome report and pictures!

@wdisney9000 haha - I was thinking...

Thanks! Just talked to Sterg yesterday - he loves it but is swamped! Thanks for following.

More! More cowbell .. eh pictures!

@38053WDW Could always use more cowbells!

So far so good --- HS just after noon, and a good 12-13 hours left of park time, right?

@DisSplash - we were right on schedule! Thanks for following!

@wdwmagic needs to borrow this photo to use as one of his "Photo of the day" images on the front page of the website.

Thanks @Bob!

Yea Toni kept her eyes open! I'm loving this tr I would love to do this if I only had 1 day at Disney.

@KathyJetson - yes she did! Thanks for following along!

 

[fractal]

Except for the heat, a reasonable wait for ToT in it's amazing queue line doesn't bother me much. Especially when I'm with one of my children - forced interaction with a teenager is not a common event. Toni and I talked and joked about all sorts of unimportant things, but the time together was important and as we went through the line I continued to recognize and appreciate moments like this. When you start having children you think that phase of your life will never end - then you wake up one day with 2 in college and your youngest with one foot in childhood and another moving towards high school.

Toni never was one wanting to grow up too fast. I've always tried to convey to my kids that childhood doesn't last forever and that it's a very special and important part of their lives that they shouldn't be quick to leave behind. They've all followed through on that, but especially so with Toni despite being the youngest. Of course, even when you move on to your next stages you can always be young at heart.

Right kid?

The amazing Tower of Terror queue; from the outside courtyard...

to inside the lobby...

I was still shooting with the Sony Zeiss 24mm 1.8 and was happy with the results I was seeing. Being in the standby line paid off by allowing me the time and the "inside position" to take these shots.

Up next was the receiving room - a place of increased anxiety for Toni.

 

[TheMouseFan]

Love the TOT pictures. It is my absolute favorite ride and I never get tired of seeing pics of it! I hear you about not enough quality time with the kids. I was lucky to get some one on one time in limes with my oldest on our trip last June since the younger ones don't like the thrill rides. Can't wait to see how the rest of your day plays out!

 

[fractal]

Inside the "receiving/staging" room. I love when the CM stays in character, as did ours that day. It made an already jittery Toni even more nervous. I managed a few shots there.

When we got to the boiler room and as we took our place in line I heard the CM in the front call out for a party of two.

"Party of 2? any party of 2?"

"Darn" I thought. If only we were further up the line. Surely somebody ahead of us will claim that.

"Party of 2?? Is there any party of 2" he continued to call.

I finally spoke up and raised my hand. He spotted me and told us to come up. He then instructed everybody in line ahead of us to step all the way to the right to make way. It was like the parting of the Red Sea. Then as Toni and I started to walk past the 30 or so people in front of us, everybody started clapping! It was a very cool moment and Toni got a big kick out of it.

"Wow- it was like we were celebrities or something" she said.

The ride was great as always. Toni LOVED IT again and wondered what would make Alex want to miss it - I managed this shot but put the camera away for the most part to enjoy.

"Back" of TOT while I waited for my Lemon-slushie drink. Can you imagine what Disney could charge if they ever put a real room or two in this place?

 

[Bob]

Can you imagine what Disney could charge if they ever put a real room or two in this place?

You're talking Poly Bungalow money per night!

 

[BJones82]

Can you imagine what Disney could charge if they ever put a real room or two in this place?

It'd be like the Dream Suite, they'd never actually let you pay to stay there Which I think would actually be really cool, just do it for Make A Wish families and for promotional giveaways

 

[coachwnh]

Excellent pics inside TOT!

 

[SleepyPuppy]

Fractal,

I am a fairly new member of these forums so I have not had the pleasure of following your previous TR as many others have. Your pictures are without a doubt some of the best I have ever had a chance to view. I originally read your TR on a Kindle Fire and the pics were so vibrant and the colors magnificent but now that I am on my PC the pics look even better if that is even possible.

I have recently been cleaning up and posting old photos from early days at WDW and the photo technology has definitely improved in the last four decades. After physical cleaning and computer enhancement of my old photos I am thrilled to have a visible image. My photos fail by comparison to your beautiful shots. I shot with basically a 35mm instamatic style camera with just some settings for film speed selection and a shutter exposure delay. Can you imagine what advancements will be made in photography tech in another forty years?

Enjoying your report and will follow along. Thanks for your efforts.

 

[cmon71]

Wow that shot through the open lens is amazing! All is good with the world when there's a new Fractal TR to read....my only complaint is that it's only a one day WDW visit. Looks like you guys made the most of it though for sure!

 

[KathyJetson]

that's awesome you got to go to the front of the line and that everyone was into it and clapping for you

 

[fractal]

Love the TOT pictures. It is my absolute favorite ride and I never get tired of seeing pics of it! I hear you about not enough quality time with the kids. I was lucky to get some one on one time in limes with my oldest on our trip last June since the younger ones don't like the thrill rides. Can't wait to see how the rest of your day plays out!

Thanks @TheMouseFan ! One of the things I love the most about WDW is spending time with family in an amazing environment.

You're talking Poly Bungalow money per night!

Definitely; but how cool would that be?

It'd be like the Dream Suite, they'd never actually let you pay to stay there Which I think would actually be really cool, just do it for Make A Wish families and for promotional giveaways

@BJones82 that would make more sense.

Excellent pics inside TOT!

Thanks @coachwnh !

Fractal,

I am a fairly new member of these forums so I have not had the pleasure of following your previous TR as many others have. Your pictures are without a doubt some of the best I have ever had a chance to view. I originally read your TR on a Kindle Fire and the pics were so vibrant and the colors magnificent but now that I am on my PC the pics look even better if that is even possible.

I have recently been cleaning up and posting old photos from early days at WDW and the photo technology has definitely improved in the last four decades. After physical cleaning and computer enhancement of my old photos I am thrilled to have a visible image. My photos fail by comparison to your beautiful shots. I shot with basically a 35mm instamatic style camera with just some settings for film speed selection and a shutter exposure delay. Can you imagine what advancements will be made in photography tech in another forty years?

Enjoying your report and will follow along. Thanks for your efforts.

Thanks @SleepyPuppy! I hope my photos looks as good as yours after 40 years, they certainly won't be as valuable. Glad you are here and sharing those photos and stories.

Wow that shot through the open lens is amazing! All is good with the world when there's a new Fractal TR to read....my only complaint is that it's only a one day WDW visit. Looks like you guys made the most of it though for sure!

Thanks @cmon71 ! That was also my complaint.

that's awesome you got to go to the front of the line and that everyone was into it and clapping for you

It was pretty neat!

 

[MinnieM123]

Absolutely, positively, spectacular pictures--once AGAIN!! For all the times I've been in the TOT, it's amazing to me how many details I have still missed. Your photos capture so many fine elements, and it's pleasant to take my time here, and savor these wonderful details.

As for Toni, I completely understand her wanting to stretch out her childhood a bit more. I was also the "baby" of the family (youngest of 4 children) and it was a place of security and joy for me, receiving that extra attention.

 

[fractal]

Alex was waiting for us and wanting to go on to RRRC - not that she had to twist our arm.

Toni with her slushie.

I swapped out the 24mm lens for the 10-18mm wide angle...

It was now early afternoon and the standby line stopped only a few yards from the door. At this point we had yet to use a FP. Our plan was to find a FP kiosk at the parks and book for later times in the day, but the kiosk were either out of the way or the line and confusion at the kiosk dissuaded us. I was surprised how short the standby times were at AK and now DHS. Touring Plans had each park at a "9" that day but so far it was not reflected on our wait times.

The girls.

In the shadow of ToT.

I can always count on Toni to get a good shot.
Alex and I.

Some kid was really abusing the marble door. I thought he might break it - parents didn't say a word but I was close.

make it a super stretch.

It was another exhilarating ride on RRRC. I noticed the songs were different than last trip, which used the same track all 5 times we road it.

Back into the Florida sun.

Exiting "thrill corner".

Alex requested Great Movie Ride next - the last time Toni rode it she was 6 years old and had no memory.

"Is it boring?" she asked.

"No, it's a cool ride, you'll like it". I said, with "cool" have a double meaning.

So off we went towards the Grauman replica.

 

[38053WDW]

Inside the "receiving/staging" room. I love when the CM stays in character, as did ours that day. It made an already jittery Toni even more nervous. I managed a few shots there.

When we got to the boiler room and as we took our place in line I heard the CM in the front call out for a party of two.

"Party of 2? any party of 2?"

"Darn" I thought. If only we were further up the line. Surely somebody ahead of us will claim that.

"Party of 2?? Is there any party of 2" he continued to call.

I finally spoke up and raised my hand. He spotted me and told us to come up. He then instructed everybody in line ahead of us to step all the way to the right to make way. It was like the parting of the Red Sea. Then as Toni and I started to walk past the 30 or so people in front of us, everybody started clapping! It was a very cool moment and Toni got a big kick out of it.

"Wow- it was like we were celebrities or something" she said.

The ride was great as always. Toni LOVED IT again and wondered what would make Alex want to miss it - I managed this shot but put the camera away for the most part to enjoy.

"Back" of TOT while I waited for my Lemon-slushie drink. Can you imagine what Disney could charge if they ever put a real room or two in this place?

I love the dust .. As were standing there I never thought the "dust" is added .. duh ! I just thought "overtime" but then you touch it and wa-lah it never moves ...

 

[Bob]

Definitely; but how cool would that be?

A couple of unique suites in the ToT and HM would be booked solid a year out......no matter what 4-figure number they would charge per night.