# Unlock hidden tickets with an access code | Ticket Fairy Guides 1. [Ticket Fairy](https://www.ticketfairy.com/) 2. [Guides](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides) 3. Unlock hidden tickets with an access code Setting up an event # Unlock hidden tickets with an access code Keep your event page visible while every ticket stays hidden until a no-discount promotion code reveals it. For: Sharing a private ticket sale through one reusable access code Takes: 12 minutes - [Hide the first ticket until a code reveals it](#step-1) - [Repeat the hidden setting for every public ticket type](#step-2) - [Create a promotion for the access code](#step-3) - [Attach every hidden ticket and choose No Discount](#step-4) - [Leave automatic application empty](#step-5) - [Add a time window or the right kind of code limit](#step-6) - [Save the promotion and share the code](#step-7) - [Test the event without the code and then with it](#step-8) - [Add and test a replacement access code](#step-9) - [Remove the old access code and save](#step-10) - [Delete the promotion to close every access code](#step-11) ## What you need before you start - You can edit every ticket type and manage **Promotions** for the event. - You have chosen the code people will enter and the tickets it should reveal. 1. ## Hide the first ticket until a code reveals it Open the ticket type, turn on **Hidden**, choose **Always hidden**, and save the ticket. **Always hidden** keeps scheduled releases and sold-out rules from exposing it before the code is used. Keep the ticket active and on sale when you want the code to reveal it now. Hidden controls visibility; active and sale dates still control whether the revealed ticket can be bought. ![Ticket Fairy ticket options with Hidden enabled and Always hidden selected](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-tickets--hidden-until-access-code.png) Tickets, Edit Ticket Type, Options. 2. ## Repeat the hidden setting for every public ticket type Open each ticket type that should be private and give it the same **Hidden** and **Always hidden** settings. Leave no public ticket visible when the code is meant to unlock the whole sale. A ticket you leave visible remains available without the code. A ticket you hide but do not attach to the promotion remains hidden after the code. 3. ## Create a promotion for the access code Open **Marketing**, select **Promotions**, and create a promotion. Give it a name that explains the audience, such as Guest list access, then add the code you plan to share. The promotion name is for your team. The promo code is the value someone enters, so keep it short enough to type from a message. 4. ## Attach every hidden ticket and choose No Discount Select **Add tickets**, choose every hidden ticket type the code should reveal, and choose **No Discount** for each one. Leave the discount value empty because the code is granting visibility, not changing the ticket price. If the selected ticket types need the same per-code cap, enter it before you finish adding them. Add ticket types separately when they need different caps. A no-discount code preserves the ticket's normal price, fees, allocation and sale dates. It only reveals the attached hidden ticket types. ![Ticket Fairy promotion editor with code GUESTLIST, No Discount, two hidden ticket types and a shared limit of 25](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-promotions--hidden-ticket-access-code.png) Marketing, Promotions, Edit Promotion. 5. ## Leave automatic application empty Leave **Auto-apply when cart reaches this many tickets (optional)** empty. An automatic promotion needs no code, which would reveal these tickets during an ordinary visit. 6. ## Add a time window or the right kind of code limit Set the promotion start and end when the code should work only during a private on-sale window. A **Quantity limit per code per ticket type (optional)** entered while you add tickets applies separately to each attached ticket type. When all attached ticket types should share one total, turn on **Promo codes have a set number of uses across all ticket types**, then enter **Quantity limit per code across all ticket types**. The shared total takes precedence over the individual caps while it is on. Promotion limits do not add stock. The ticket allocation remains the final limit, even when a per-ticket or shared code limit is higher. 7. ## Save the promotion and share the code Save the promotion, then send the normal event link and the access code to the intended group. Tell them to enter the code on the event page before choosing tickets. Anyone with the code can use the remaining allocation while the promotion is enabled and within its date and quantity limits. 8. ## Test the event without the code and then with it Open the event in a private browser window. Confirm that no private ticket appears before you enter the code, then enter it and check every attached ticket, price and purchase limit. Add one revealed ticket to the basket. A ticket that appears but cannot be added is usually outside its sale dates, inactive or out of allocation. 9. ## Add and test a replacement access code Open the promotion, enter the replacement under **Promo codes**, select **Add code**, then select **Save**. Keep the old code in place while you open the event in a fresh private window and confirm that the replacement reveals every intended ticket at the correct price. Testing before removal avoids a gap where neither code works. Use a fresh private window so a code accepted during an earlier test does not affect the result. 10. ## Remove the old access code and save Open the promotion, select the × beside the old code under **Promo codes**, then select **Save**. Open the event in another fresh private window and confirm that the old code no longer reveals tickets while the replacement still works. Leave at least one tested code on the promotion. The promotion cannot be saved without a promo code. 11. ## Delete the promotion to close every access code Return to **Promotions**, select the promotion's trash button, confirm **Delete promotion**, then select **Delete**. Open the event in a fresh private window and confirm that none of the deleted promotion's codes reveal the hidden tickets. ![Ticket Fairy Delete promotion confirmation for Guest list access with Cancel and Delete actions](https://www.ticketfairy.com/embeds/posters/marketing-promotions--delete-promotion.png) Marketing, Promotions, Delete promotion. ## Or have it done for you Fai, the assistant inside your dashboard, can hide the tickets, create a no-discount access code and close the promotion later. She shows you each change and asks you to approve it before she makes it. You can also complete the whole workflow in the dashboard. ### In your dashboard, with Fai Find my event by name. Keep \ active, hide them from the public with Always hidden, then create a promotion called \ with access code \, No Discount, no automatic application, and only those tickets attached. Use \ and \. Show me the exact tickets, normal prices, schedule and limit, then ask me to approve the ticket changes and promotion separately ## Questions you might have Does an access code have to give a discount?: No. Choose **No Discount**. The code can reveal hidden tickets at their normal price without reducing what you charge. Can people see the event before they have the code?: Yes. This method keeps the event page visible and hides the attached ticket types. Use an event password when the page itself must stay private. Can one code unlock several hidden ticket types?: Yes. Attach every ticket it should reveal to the same promotion and choose **No Discount** for each one. Can I create different access codes for different groups?: Yes. Add several codes to one promotion when they should reveal the same tickets and follow the same limits, or create separate promotions when each group needs different tickets, dates or quantities. What happens if someone forwards the code?: The recipient can use it while the promotion remains active and tickets remain. Replace or remove the code and save the promotion when shared access reaches the wrong group. Why did my hidden ticket not appear after I entered the code?: Check that the ticket is attached to the promotion, the promotion is enabled and inside its dates, and the ticket is active, on sale and still has allocation. **Always hidden** is correct; the code is what overrides it. ## Where to go from here - [What else you can do with Ticket Fairy](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing/features) - [Make your event invitation-only](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/make-an-event-invitation-only) - [Password-protect your event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/password-protect-your-event) - [Require an invitation before someone can buy tickets](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/require-an-invitation-to-buy) - [Approve orders before buyers receive tickets](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/approve-orders-before-buyers-receive-tickets) - [Schedule when your event goes live](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/schedule-when-your-event-goes-live) - [Share an event setup as a reusable template](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/share-your-event-as-a-template) - [Set up ticketing for a multi-day festival](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sell-a-multi-day-festival) - [Sell parking, camping and merchandise with your tickets](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sell-add-ons-with-your-tickets) - [Group ticket types under headings buyers understand](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/group-your-tickets-into-categories) - [Issue reusable event passes to crew and artists](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/issue-entry-passes-to-your-crew) - [Every Ticket Fairy guide](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides) ## Do this on your own event Create your account, build your event and follow the steps in your own dashboard. You do not need to book a sales call. [Create a free account](https://manage.ticketfairy.com/welcome) [Book a demo](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing/book-a-demo) --- This page is on Ticket Fairy, a ticketing, marketing and operations platform for live events and the venues that host them: festivals, club nights, concerts, conferences and tours, and night clubs, beach clubs and concert venues. It grows revenue with fan rewards that turn an audience into a sales channel, and runs the money side with payments and payouts, Vault business banking, and working capital advanced against ticket sales. [How Ticket Fairy ticketing works](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing) · [Ticket Fairy for AI assistants](https://www.ticketfairy.com/llms.txt)