Trip Report Yia-Yia, Yetis and Epcotonians. A sweltering Summer of '22 adventure!

It was the night before our Disney trip and I found myself scrambling. So much to do besides "Disney but "Disney" needed to get done. Where are my SD cards? Where are all my Star Wars shirts? Where is my camera bag? We had just moved after-all and things were not where they should be because well we were in a different house. Toni was scrambling too. She is spending the Summer waitressing in Bethany Beach Delaware and came home THAT DAY to get everything ready for Disney. Her Mom however also wanted her to help get her "crap" ready for college (leaving in a few weeks). Tensions were running high and the early morning flight out of Baltimore was like lighting a fuse to a stick of dynamite. Time was ticking away!

This was going to be a different trip for us. Just three of the five in the family as my wife Val decided to sit this one out and my daughter Alex couldn't get her schedule to work. So Val will be going to New Mexico to visit Alex in a month as the final three, the triumvirate headed to Walt Disney World to meet up with my sister Marina's family and my mom (Yia-Yia).

The Triumvirate -

Toni (center), Sterg and yours truly.

As you may or may not know, one of the things I love about going to Disney is honing my photography skills. For this trip I decided to rent two fantastic (and expensive) lenses. The Sony GM 50mm f/ 1.2 and the Sony GM 14mm f/1.8 lenses to be exact. The cost to buy both of those lenses would be as much as the cost of the entire trip. Additionally I rented a lens adaptor to pair with my old Minolta 70-210 "beercan" lens that I wanted to try out on the Safari.

I've been crazy after the 14mm lens due to it's wide angle nature. It's actually so wide it's referred to as an "ultra-wide angle" lens. Wide angle lenses have wonderful applications at WDW and I was going to see how this baby was going to work for me. The 50mm 1.2 is a lens with a great reputation. Very fast, very sharp and producing beautiful bokeh as your sharp subject stands in front of a background that literally melts into a dreamy blur of photographic delight.

By 11pm all that was packed, what was left of my Star Wars shirts was packed - "Chris, aren't we just getting a bit too old for Star Wars shirts?" Val quipped - and everything else on my list was packed.



Toni was also packed and had full-filled her "getting ready for college" obligations.

Val said her goodbyes and goodnights..

and went to bed.


It was soon time for me to lay down for 3 hours of sleep. The hardest thing left for me to do was wake up with my alarm. I think I'll have a glass on wine (or two?). After-all, what could go wrong?

 

[LisaBelle]

I finally made it! Gran Destino looks beautiful! We were originally going to book at Gran Destino, but couldn’t pass up staying at Wilderness Lodge.
As always, I am in awe of your photos! Love the unique views with the new lenses.

 

[stevedisney]

great TR as always!! Gran Destiny does look incredible. We are going in two weeks but are staying at WL/AKL combo. Kids voted and won

 

[fractal]

Of course I forgot to take photos of the room; more first day rust. But they are spacious and decorated in a pleasant, non-Disney contemporary theme. The bathrooms have two sinks and make use of sliding "barn doors". The shower is behind a glass door and gives you the option of a large "rain fall" overhead shower head or hand-held adjustable head. The TV is mounted on the wall and welcomed us by last name as we entered the room. The biggest downside it the lack of balcony which is a shame because we had a nice view over the lake.

Sterg had made a pit stop that morning before picking us up from the airport. He bought 6 cases of water, fruit and other snacks for us and my sister's crew. After unpacking all of that and our luggage Toni wanted to take some "selfies" and of course I followed with my camera.

She wore a top made by Val and decided the lake and fountain made an appealing background.

Before long it became a photo shoot.

The bright mid-day sun wasn't ideal but we made it work.

I took a few photos of the grounds...

Coronado Springs is a beautiful sprawling resort. Later in the trip I would explore it more and found the rooms outside the "tower" were broken up in different sections, each typically surrounding a small and pleasant courtyard with a water fountain center. There were also sections of sanded beach for lounging, volleyball courts and other activities. The size of the resort reminded me a bit of Port Orleans Riverside despite the very different theme.
It was missing the visual "wow" that you find at Beach & Yacht Club and across Crescent Lake at the Boardwalk. I wasn't compelled at all to come down at night and take long exposure photos here.

Inside I was drawn to the lower lobby again...

My crew however was getting antsy so after a quick portrait...

We hopped a bus and ended up here...

 

[fractal]

We quickly made our way across the galaxy to Pandora and hopped in line for a trip down the beautiful Navi River. The standby wait by the way was well over 100 minutes! I really enjoy this ride but if I ever would wait for over an hour, that wait would ruin it for me. On this day we quickly zipped through the Lightning Lane and were boarded almost immediately.

With my camera I started to get the sense of "why am I taking the same photos again?" as I've already have in our 2017 and 2020 trip. But as the boat travelled I started to get into it. Besides, I was using a different (50mm) lens afterall.

Navi River is a ride you can ride over and over and is the perfect dark-ride to escape the Florida heat and recharge your batteries.

Our Shaman of Song was in perfectly operating "A-mode".

Up next...We have our first "Yeti" encounter.

 

[lindawdw]

Great photos of your daughter around the lake area! I agree the grounds aren't like the Crescent Lake of Beach and Yacht Club but the lobby of this hotel is truly stunning. OMG, your pictures of Navi River Journey are incredible!!!

 

[RememberWhen]

Love the Navi pictures! My 5yo loves this ride. It’s a walk on at rope drop and we usually do it 2-3 times before dragging her off to other things.

 

[cgersic]

Truly be best (and definitely the clearest) photo of the Shaman I've seen!

 

[fractal]

The last time we ate at Yak&Yeti was in 2009. Everyone loved it! Alex was 13, Sterg was 10 and Toni was 7. The big "inside" joke at the time amongst these little monsters was something they called "bean dipping". Yours truly
was their favorite target and Sterg was the main protagonist. The act of "bean dipping" was taking you finger underneath someone's booby and flicking up. My "Dad bod" chest was the perfect target. At least a half dozen times during that trip I had Sterg locked in a Cobra Clutch until his head turned beet red after his bean dip attack. Didn't seem to deter him that much. And if he happen to get both sides of my chest it was labeled a "BD squared".

Here is a video in front of Yak & Yeti circa 2009 discussing bean dipping and a potential bean dip attack on Mickey.



Despite this family dysfunctional episode, I wanted to return to Yak&Yeti for this trip. @ajrwdwgirl and @senor_jorge gave me some tips which included joining Landry's Select Club (Landry owns Y&Y). It cost me $25 for the card which was then sent to me and loaded with a $25 credit. But even better, it allowed me to make a reservation at Y&Y when there was none to be found on the Disney reservation system.

After we departed from our trip down Navi river we hustled back to Earth to make our 5PM reservation. On the way we caught a glimpse of Kevin!

Made it right on time!

I put our name in and was told it was about a 10 minute wait. OK - time for some pics.

I was using the 50mm lens.

Neat artifacts inside the restaurant...

Smile little devil from 2009!

The bean dipper. looks so innocent.

Our table was upstairs, which is what I was hoping for, and we had a great view...

Back to the 14mm to get a shot of the calamari and yes, my children.

We ordered three additional plates that we shared. Toni was on the ball and took a pic.

The food and service was great and really hit the spot!

I took a few more photos as we made our way out.

With one "Yeti" encounter down, we heading to another that promising to be much more intense.

 

[erstwo]

Loving this - your photos are beautifully composed! And your kids are so photogenic. Thanks for sharing!

 

[ajrwdwgirl]

I see you got the Korean fried chicken, good choice.

 

[fractal]

With full bellies we ventured into the mountainous regions of Asia.

Shots of Everest with some different angles.

The great thing about wide angles is how much you can fit in the frame. The challenge is dealing with how the foreground appears larger than life while the background is smaller plus there can be some weird distortions on the edge of the frame. Proper use of an ultra-wide can leave the viewer either stunned with appreciation or scratching their heads.

Sterg and Toni were generally patient with my photography throughout the trip but I also didn't want them waiting too long for their old man.

The stand-bye line was basically a walk on.

More photos to add to my collection of the EE queue line...

Toni was ready! Sterg and I took the front row while she rode right behind me.

I videoed from the front row back in 2017 but wasn't happy with my constant ISO setting. Too many overexposed shots. This time I set it for AUTO ISO so the camera would adjust exposure when going from dark to light as one does constantly through out the ride. I was much happier with this video with the exception of a couple sensor spots I didn't notice until after viewing!



With no wait and some time until our next Lightning Lane, we rode again...

closer to the back this time...

After surviving two encounters with the Yeti it was back to Pandora to engage with another creature...

 

[fractal]

Back on Pandora...

and ready to ride a Banshee!

When using Lightning Lane on Flight of Passage you miss out on the excellent queue line which we got to see several times in July 2020. There is actually a bathroom area in the middle of the queue line and as unbelievable as it may sound, in July 2020 while waiting for both Toni and Val to use the one-person ladies room, not one other person passed us or was seen in the queue line. But things are different now and the ride was packed.

This guy bugs me.

After another wonderful flight through the landscape of Pandora we made our way back to Africa one last time.

Everyone was in the mood for ice-cream to top off the day.

Making our way out...

As we passed Flame Tree BBQ the lights in the pavilion caught my eye. This is one of my favorite areas in all of WDW and we've eaten back here numerous times but this is the first time I saw the area with the overhead lights on. I decided to explore just a little and take some photos.

One last shot. Still struggling a little with the 14mm as I missed focus on Simba.

Our first day was coming to a close and we were all exhausted but filled with much satisfaction and appreciation of being back.

Sterg had a rough go of it lately with relationships and a few other things so the timing of the trip couldn't be any better for him. He has a true love of Walt Disney World and it was helping him clear his mind. It was also great for him and Toni and I to all spend time together as Sterg is now living in Florida and Toni has been waitressing in Bethany Beach, Delaware for the summer.

Sterg and I did our barefoot walk in the hallway and despite how great Gran Destino Tower looks, it's carpets are way behind the Yacht Club and Contemporary as far as plushness and foot massage effectiveness.

We unwound and laid our heads down to rest after a long, long but very fun day. The next day would start a new and much different stage of this trip with the arrival of Marina, her entire family and of course my Mom (Yia-Yia).
But first we had a morning date with Magic Kingdom!

 

[Dory71]

Loving all of your photos and the flashbacks. Reminds me of trips when my 2 were little.

 

[joshsprincess921]

The Yak n Yeti food looks so good! Loving all the pictures and flashbacks. Seeing all the pictures of Sterg smiling and enjoying the trip so much made me think of one of your old reports from the father/son trip to Disneyland when he didn't want to take pictures. It really is so fun watching all of our kids grow up through the reports.

 

[Billy6]

Sorry for random post, but I had to...

 

[lindawdw]

What an incredible day at AK and it's so nice to see you all having such a great time together. I am definitely going to try and get a reservation for Yak & Yeti after seeing your photos as we haven't eaten there in at least 10 years.

 

[ceecee101]

With full bellies we ventured into the mountainous regions of Asia.

Shots of Everest with some different angles.

The great thing about wide angles is how much you can fit in the frame. The challenge is dealing with how the foreground appears larger than life while the background is smaller plus there can be some weird distortions on the edge of the frame. Proper use of an ultra-wide can leave the viewer either stunned with appreciation or scratching their heads.

Sterg and Toni were generally patient with my photography throughout the trip but I also didn't want them waiting too long for their old man.

The stand-bye line was basically a walk on.

More photos to add to my collection of the EE queue line...

Toni was ready! Sterg and I took the front row while she rode right behind me.

I videoed from the front row back in 2017 but wasn't happy with my constant ISO setting. Too many overexposed shots. This time I set it for AUTO ISO so the camera would adjust exposure when going from dark to light as one does constantly through out the ride. I was much happier with this video with the exception of a couple sensor spots I didn't notice until after viewing!



With no wait and some time until our next Lightning Lane, we rode again...

closer to the back this time...

After surviving two encounters with the Yeti it was back to Pandora to engage with another creature...

Seems like there should be a hidden Mickey in those queue pics but I can’t find one.

 

[fractal]

Well, we hit the jackpot and were given a one bedroom suite at the riviera. The pool at Coronado is significantly better than the Riviera. I love Coronado, especially the tower, but if I had a choice and I could pick either, I’d probably pick Riviera.

Plus you get the gondolas at Riveria although I must say the bus service was excellent this trip.

How fun that you got to see the Indy show after all these years and especially happy to see the kids smiling afterwards! Star Tours is such a classic for us that it is a must do every trip. The wait times for that ride are pretty erratic at times but it generally moves quickly. Coronado lobby and grounds are truly beautiful!

I love the shows and really missed them in 2020. Agree on Coronado!

YES!! I have been following along for awhile! LOL! Long time lurker of the boards since 04. You and Tuvala are my favs to read.

I finally made it! Gran Destino looks beautiful! We were originally going to book at Gran Destino, but couldn’t pass up staying at Wilderness Lodge.
As always, I am in awe of your photos! Love the unique views with the new lenses.

Thanks @LisaBelle! I hope you had a great trip!

great TR as always!! Gran Destiny does look incredible. We are going in two weeks but are staying at WL/AKL combo. Kids voted and won

Somehow they always do. Lol!

yes it's a great resort!

 

[fractal]

Great photos of your daughter around the lake area! I agree the grounds aren't like the Crescent Lake of Beach and Yacht Club but the lobby of this hotel is truly stunning. OMG, your pictures of Navi River Journey are incredible!!!

Thanks! She had fun. Thanks on Navi River - the 50mm lens was perfect for that ride.

Love the Navi pictures! My 5yo loves this ride. It’s a walk on at rope drop and we usually do it 2-3 times before dragging her off to other things.

Thanks! Hitting it early is key!

Truly be best (and definitely the clearest) photo of the Shaman I've seen!

Thanks @cgersic ! I was very happy with them!

Loving this - your photos are beautifully composed! And your kids are so photogenic. Thanks for sharing!

Thank you @erswto!

I see you got the Korean fried chicken, good choice.

Yes! It was delicious!

Loving all of your photos and the flashbacks. Reminds me of trips when my 2 were little.

Thanks, I was having a good number of flashbacks during this trip!

The Yak n Yeti food looks so good! Loving all the pictures and flashbacks. Seeing all the pictures of Sterg smiling and enjoying the trip so much made me think of one of your old reports from the father/son trip to Disneyland when he didn't want to take pictures. It really is so fun watching all of our kids grow up through the reports.

Y&Y was great! Thanks @joshsprincess921 ! Yes - I was thinking the same thing about how much he's changed since that "too cool for Dad" teenager trip to Disneyland. He recently read that report and sent me a text thanking me for it.

Sorry for random post, but I had to...

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What an incredible day at AK and it's so nice to see you all having such a great time together. I am definitely going to try and get a reservation for Yak & Yeti after seeing your photos as we haven't eaten there in at least 10 years.

We did have a great time and no major complaining! Yes on Y&Y - Landry's Select Club is definitely worth it.

 

[fractal]

Despite having an overall great time, our first day of the trip was a bit of a struggle for me. Among the other issues I just wasn't "feeling it" with my photography. In 2020 I used a 24mm lens as my primary lens and I loved it. It is the perfect carry around focal length for travel in general and WDW specifically. I regret having sold that lens. The 14mm was like an untamed beast and I felt many times on the first day that it kept throwing me off its back.

"Come back when you know how to use me" I imagined it taunted me as I viewed my photos in the viewfinder and hit the delete button far too many times.

By the end of Day 2 I would feel much different.

Toni woke up not feeling great. She had a bad migraine; something she's been dealing with for the last couple years. Unfortunately she forget her Excedrin so before we headed out we made our way to the Resort "stop and go". Along the way I took some pics with my Pixel 6...

The Pixel 6 has a great camera and was generally happy with the shots I took with it. Phone cameras have come a long way in the last 5 years or so; I can see the improvement in photo quality while reading other trip reports. I had considered using the Pixel 6 exclusively for one day in a park but in the end decided not to. As happy as I was with it's images I still can see the gap between those vs. my Sony camera. They sure are much more convenient and easier to carry though and for most people that want to document and take general photos the new cameras on smart phones are just about perfect.

Speaking of "real cameras" I was actively looking for someone else like me that was lugging around a dedicated mirrorless camera or DSLR. Day 1 I saw exactly zero other people. Day 2 just one and for the rest of the trip only 2 others. This is in stark contrast to when i bought my first mirrorless camera for our 2011 trip. It seemed that at least every other "group" had at least one person with a "real" camera.

With Toni medicated and hydrated we grabbed a bus to Magic Kingdom; our reservation for the day. As I commented to @coachwnh , the bus service at Coronado Springs was excellent through out the trip. Both picking up at the resort and the parks. I never had that moment where we seemed to be waiting forever for a bus. The drivers were all very helpful and pleasant especially when dealing with Yia-Yia and her scooter.

Once through the gate we headed straight to TomorrowLand.

Sterg and I decided to get this baby rolling...

Then took a selfie.

People Mover was ready for the day...

And so was Space Mountain!

Up next; Space, Buzz, @Longers favorite ride and I finally did something I've been trying to do for literally decades!