This 3-year-old just set a Disney world record. Her mom shares 6 tips for taking toddlers to the parks.

Taking your kids to Disney can be a magical experience for everyone in the family — though not one without its stressors and potential hiccups. But Part Time Tourists writer and mom Jess Darrington (who also documents her family's travels on her TikTok, @Where.Is.Briggs ) didn't just take her toddler on one Disney trip.

Today, Darrington's 3-year-old daughter, Bootsie, holds the Guinness World Record for being the youngest person to visit all 12 Disney theme parks worldwide . 

Darrington began her travel blogging journey a decade ago, turning it from a hobby into a part-time job and, eventually, a full-time one. When she and her husband, Steve, decided to have kids, they didn't see any reason to stop traveling. Instead, they chose to bring them along. 

"Our very first time going to Disney was actually with our kids," Darrington, who is also mom to 5-year-old Briggs, tells Yahoo Travel. "It's been such a fun and unique way to experience Disney as a first time for all of us."

Bootsie's first trip to a Disney theme park was in March 2024, when she was 11 months old, and the family visited Tokyo DisneySea in Japan. The following month, she visited Disneyland Paris. A little less than a year later, it was Hong Kong Disneyland. 

But it wasn't until their flight to Shanghai in March 2025 that Darrington considered Bootsie might soon hold a world record. And with more trips ahead, it made sense to see if Bootsie could achieve this, which she did in September. 

"The 12th park was Disney Adventure World, in Paris," Darrington says, explaining that Bootsie ultimately received her Guinness certificate in front of the castle at Disneyland Paris. 

While Bootsie may be the record holder in the family, it's her parents who helped her successfully navigate all 12 parks — including the international travel to get there. Here are the tips Darrington swears by for travelers planning their own Disney adventures with little ones in tow. 

1. Make a plan before arrival 

Darrington says some parents like to take a laid-back approach to their Disney trips, whether that's popping into the shortest line they see or maneuvering around the park without a clear strategy. But she says things tend to go more smoothly when she has an idea of how the day will look, adding, "I find that we have much more success as a family." 

"We're able to get on more rides. We're able to see more of the characters just by having a plan in place." 

Planning a Disney trip can mean hitting the rides with the longest lines as early in the day as possible, making reservations for popular restaurants in advance and ensuring you arrive early enough for parades and shows to secure a viewing spot. 

2. Weigh the cost of skip-the-line passes

No matter which Disney park you visit, waiting in lines (typically long ones) for rides is part of the experience. But Disney does offer the option to join shorter lines — for a fee. Darrington says if it's in your budget, these passes can "save the day." She notes that she's found these passes particularly helpful at the Walt Disney World Resort and Disneyland in Anaheim. 

At Disneyland in Anaheim and the Walt Disney World Resort in Orlando, there are several Lightning Lane options, while the international parks have Disney Premier Access.

Exactly what you'll pay to skip some or all of the lines varies widely. 

At Disneyland, for example, a Lightning Lane Multi Pass (which allows you to skip the line for multiple rides) starts at $34 per person, per day. But in Tokyo's two parks, you buy individual passes for each attraction, priced from 1,000 to 2,500 yen (approximately $6 to $16). In Hong Kong, passes typically start around HK$199 for three attractions or HK$429 for eight (about $26 or $55, respectively).

In the four parks in Orlando, pass prices can vary by park and date. A Lightning Lane Multi Pass, for example, can range from roughly $15 to $45 per day, per guest, while a Lightning Lane Premier Pass, which allows you one-time access to shorter Lightning Lane lines at eligible rides, might cost between $119 and $449 per person. 

All that's to say, there's a pretty wide range. 

Since these passes are add-ons to park tickets, it's worth seeing whether the extra cost makes sense for your family. Check each park's age rules before calculating the cost for your family, as at some parks, younger children may not need a pass to ride with their parents. 

3. Or, make the wait more manageable

"If Lightning Lanes aren't in the budget for the trip, an easy fix is to pack some fun, easy-to-carry travel toys," Darrington says. "We've had some really fun times just waiting in line at Disney and having different travel toys available to play with while we wait for our turn on the ride."

4. Find the special things your family loves

For Bootsie, it's the Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. The kid-friendly salons, which exist at Magic Kingdom Park in Orlando and Disneyland in Anaheim, plus Hong Kong Disneyland, Tokyo Disneyland and Shanghai Disneyland, are where guests can receive fairytale-esque makeovers, complete with a healthy heap of pixie dust. 

"That, for my daughter, is worth the splurge because she still talks about it to this day," Darrington says. 

5. Consider your kid's age when choosing parks

While all Disney theme parks are family-friendly, Darrington says some may be better suited for younger kids like Bootsie and Briggs. 

If it's important for your kids to enjoy most of the attractions, she recommends choosing parks modeled after the original Disneyland in Anaheim. These parks, which have a central castle, include Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom, as well as the other Disneylands around the world in Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo and Paris. 

These parks are where you'll find the most rides suitable for younger children who aren't yet tall enough for bigger rollercoasters or other more intense attractions. 

"They have all of those quintessential kid rides, like the Dumbo ride or the teacup ride," she explains. One particular favorite? The boat ride "It's a Small World," which features dolls that represent children from around the globe and is at Magic Kingdom and all Disneyland parks except for Shanghai.

"My kids love 'It's a Small World,' and so we've made sure to hit that at every single park that has it." 

6. Embrace the jet lag 

If you're taking your kids to an international Disney park, it comes with extra challenges. Darrington says even if your kids sleep on the plane, it doesn't mean jet lag won't hit, leaving them sleepy during the day when they're at the park and wired at night. But there are some advantages to these varying energy levels. 

"While jet lag can be quite annoying, just because you'll be awake at random hours, it actually provides a really cool opportunity to do things that you might not have been able to experience with the kids because they typically would be sleeping," she says. 

On their trips to different Disney parks, Darrington says the kids were able to do things while awake at night, including seeing the Eiffel Tower twinkle in Paris and visiting night markets in Hong Kong.