# Creating a Gathering

Gatherings are multi-day residential events; the heart of the Radical Faeries community. They're more complex than simple events and come with a full suite of planning tools.

### Before you start

- Have the basic details ready: name, type, dates, and expected capacity
- Optionally, set up a venue first (see Managing Venues and Organisers)

### Steps

1. Navigate to **Admin > Gatherings**
2. Click **+ New Gathering** in the top-right corner
3. Fill in the gathering details:
   - **Name**: the gathering title (e.g. "The Rekindling (Beltane 2026)")
   - **Type**: select the gathering type:
     - **SEASONAL** for gatherings tied to the wheel of the year
     - **REGIONAL** for location-based gatherings
     - **HEART_CIRCLE** for heart circle events
     - **WORKSHOP** for workshop-focused events
   - **Start date** and **End date**: the full duration
   - **Visibility**: PUBLIC or PRIVATE
   - **Optimal capacity** and **Max capacity**: expected and maximum participant numbers
   - **Venue**: select a venue (optional; can be added later)
   - **Description**: a description of the gathering (supports markdown)
4. Click **Save**

The gathering is created in **Draft** status. You can start setting up forms, kanban boards, checklists, and wiki pages before publishing it.

### What happens next

Once saved, you'll land on the gathering's **Overview** tab. From here you can:

- Set up registration forms
- Create planning boards
- Add wiki pages
- Manage the organiser team
- Change the gathering's status when you're ready to go live

### Tips

- Start in Draft status and work through the planning tools before publishing
- The optimal/max capacity split is useful for gatherings that can stretch a bit; the overview dashboard shows both numbers
- You can link a gathering to a public event listing using the **Manage Event Listing** quick action