---
title: "Beer festival ticketing questions answered"
description: "Get straight answers to 20 questions beer festival organizers ask, from what your buyers pay and when your ticket money reaches you to how your team runs the day."
canonical: "https://www.ticketfairy.com/solutions/beer-festivals/questions"
---

1. [Ticket Fairy](https://www.ticketfairy.com/)
2. [Solutions](https://www.ticketfairy.com/solutions)
3. [Beer festivals](https://www.ticketfairy.com/solutions/beer-festivals)
4. Beer festival ticketing: your questions answered

# Beer festival ticketing: your questions answered

  [Get started free](https://manage.ticketfairy.com/welcome?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=solutions-beer-festivals-questions) [Book a demo](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-ticketing/book-a-demo)

- **20** questions answered
- **19** pages that show you how

Here you can find out what beer festival ticketing costs you and your drinkers, how capped sessions, glasses and token cards sell in one checkout, and when your ticket money reaches you. You can also see how you check ages once at the gate, choose and pay your breweries, and staff every bar with volunteers, all on the same event where you sell your tickets.

1. [Who pays the booking fee on my beer festival tickets?](#who-pays-the-booking-fee-on-my-beer-festival-tickets)
2. [How soon do I get my ticket money?](#how-soon-do-i-get-my-ticket-money)
3. [Does Ticket Fairy suit a small beer festival?](#does-ticket-fairy-suit-a-small-beer-festival)
4. [Can each session have its own capacity?](#can-each-session-have-its-own-capacity)
5. [Can I sell souvenir glasses and beer tokens with the session ticket?](#can-i-sell-souvenir-glasses-and-beer-tokens-with-the-session-ticket)
6. [How do I sell a designated driver ticket?](#how-do-i-sell-a-designated-driver-ticket)
7. [Can I check every drinker's age once, at the gate?](#can-i-check-every-drinker-s-age-once-at-the-gate)
8. [Can bar staff record the drinkers they refuse?](#can-bar-staff-record-the-drinkers-they-refuse)
9. [Can I run a trade session for licensees that the public cannot see?](#can-i-run-a-trade-session-for-licensees-that-the-public-cannot-see)
10. [Does Fai choose the breweries?](#does-fai-choose-the-breweries)
11. [Can drinkers see which breweries are pouring before they arrive?](#can-drinkers-see-which-breweries-are-pouring-before-they-arrive)
12. [How do I invoice a brewery for a share of its bar takings?](#how-do-i-invoice-a-brewery-for-a-share-of-its-bar-takings)
13. [Can I pay the breweries I buy beer from out of my ticket money?](#can-i-pay-the-breweries-i-buy-beer-from-out-of-my-ticket-money)
14. [Can a sponsoring brewery hand out tickets to its own customers?](#can-a-sponsoring-brewery-hand-out-tickets-to-its-own-customers)
15. [Can my drinkers earn money back for bringing friends to a session?](#can-my-drinkers-earn-money-back-for-bringing-friends-to-a-session)
16. [How do I recruit volunteers for my bars?](#how-do-i-recruit-volunteers-for-my-bars)
17. [Can volunteers pick their own bar shifts?](#can-volunteers-pick-their-own-bar-shifts)
18. [How do I approve volunteers' hours and give their rewards?](#how-do-i-approve-volunteers-hours-and-give-their-rewards)
19. [Can my gate team scan tickets without a phone signal?](#can-my-gate-team-scan-tickets-without-a-phone-signal)
20. [Can a brewery sell its own tastings and tours?](#can-a-brewery-sell-its-own-tastings-and-tours)

## Who pays the booking fee on my beer festival tickets?

You choose, once for each event, before you create your first ticket type. With Added, drinkers pay the fee on top and you receive the full ticket price. With Absorbed, drinkers pay exactly the price on your poster and the fee comes out of what you receive.

On your event, you select Tickets and choose a card under Booking Fees on the Inventory tab. Added is the default on a new event. Added Later shows the ticket price on your event page and the fee at checkout, and is not offered for events in Australia, the United Kingdom or the United States.

The fee falls as a percentage as your prices rise, with a small minimum on low prices, and free tickets carry none. The same choice covers every ticket type and add-on on the event, so your glass and token card follow it too.

[Choose who pays the booking fee on your event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/set-who-pays-the-fees)

## How soon do I get my ticket money?

You can take payouts every day as sessions sell, or after the festival. Daily payouts need your own Stripe account in a supported Stripe country, or your own Xendit account in Indonesia.

You choose how you are paid when you set up your brand. With Before your event, as tickets sell, drinkers pay into your own payment processing account, which has to be Active before your sessions go on sale. That suits a festival paying for beer, glasses and the hall before the doors open.

With Paid out after your event, you have nothing to set up before you publish: Ticket Fairy takes the card payments and pays you 10 to 15 business days after the festival finishes. Pending refund requests and chargebacks extend the wait.

[Choose how and when you get paid](https://www.ticketfairy.com/features/payments-and-payouts/payment-accounts-fees-and-payouts)

## Does Ticket Fairy suit a small beer festival?

Yes. A one-hall festival with two sessions sells the same way as a city-wide beer week, and free events cost nothing.

You sign up as an event organizer, enter your brand name and choose how you get paid. The One-day festival template lays out your ticket tiers, a VIP ticket and a parking add-on for you to price, and Multi-day festival covers a long weekend.

You can start core ticketing without a credit card, setup fee or required monthly fee. The tiers, add-ons and settings any template builds are yours to rename and reprice.

[Create your Ticket Fairy account and brand](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/create-your-account-and-first-brand)

## Can each session have its own capacity?

Yes. The session ticket can have time slots, each with the number of drinkers it takes. A full session greys out on your event page while the others stay on sale.

Ticket Fairy can turn on time slots for the festival. You then create your session ticket, turn on This ticket type has time slots and select Generate time slots. You choose the dates, the first and last entry time, the slot length, the price and Max sales per slot, which is the number of drinkers your hall holds.

Edit Time Slot on a slot prices Friday evening above Saturday afternoon. Sales by Time Slot on Performance lists sales and revenue for every session, and the Ticket Type tab on Check-In groups arrivals by session.

[Each session sold to its own capacity](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sell-timed-entry-tickets)

## Can I sell souvenir glasses and beer tokens with the session ticket?

Yes. Each one sells as an add-on beside the entry ticket with its own price and stock, and you choose the ticket types it goes with.

Under Tickets, in Add-Ons, you select Create Add-On for the glass and for the token card. You enter each one's name, price and stock. With Limit to Certain Ticket Types Only on and your session tickets picked, your designated driver ticket is never offered either.

When the glasses run out, the glass shows as sold out in checkout and your sessions stay on sale. When a second delivery arrives, you raise the stock and it goes straight back on sale. At the glass stand, your team scans the add-on's own code, so the drinker's ticket stays ready for entry.

[Sell glasses and token cards with your tickets](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/sell-add-ons-with-your-tickets)

## How do I sell a designated driver ticket?

It can be its own ticket type, left out of the glass and token add-ons. With its own wristband, bar staff can see it.

Under Credentials on the event, you select Create Credential for each band. You enter the name your door team uses, such as Designated driver, choose Wristband as the type, select the ticket types that get it and add the band's artwork. Your door team then sees the right band for each ticket as it scans.

Before doors, one ticket of each type sent to yourself from Guest Tickets and scanned confirms the band. Then undo the test scans and cancel the test tickets, so your counts start at zero.

[Assign a wristband to each ticket type](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/issue-wristbands-by-ticket-type)

## Can I check every drinker's age once, at the gate?

Yes. You set the youngest age you admit, and checkout asks each buyer for their date of birth and turns away anyone too young before they pay. At the gate, your door team sees each drinker's age status as they scan the ticket and marks ID checked on the wristband.

The age goes in Minimum age on the event's Details page. Checkout works out the buyer's age on the day your festival starts, so a buyer who turns 18 before the session can buy for an 18+ festival.

Checkout checks the buyer's age, not each friend on their order, which is why the check at the gate matters. Once your door team marks the wristband ID checked, bar staff serve the drinker without asking again, so the queues move faster.

[Check ages once at the gate](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-operating-system/front-of-house/box-office-and-door)

## Can bar staff record the drinkers they refuse?

Yes. When bar staff turn someone away, they log the refusal there and then. Each bar keeps its own log, so your license holder has a record of every refusal for the licensing debrief.

Bar staff serve anyone whose wristband is marked ID checked without asking again. When a wristband has no check and bar staff refuse to serve, they record the refusal in that bar's log.

At the gate, Refused scans on Check-In counts the tickets turned away by reason, entrance and hour, and Shown again after check-in shows when one ticket is being passed round as a screenshot.

[Keep a record of every refusal](https://www.ticketfairy.com/event-operating-system/front-of-house/box-office-and-door)

## Can I run a trade session for licensees that the public cannot see?

Yes. You can hide the trade ticket type and attach it to a promotion with an access code and no discount. Licensees who enter the code on your event page see the trade ticket at its normal price, and nobody else does.

On the trade ticket type, you turn on Hidden and choose Always hidden, so a scheduled release never shows it. Under Marketing, Promotions, you then create a promotion with the code, select Add tickets, pick the trade ticket and choose No Discount. Auto-apply stays empty.

You set the dates the code works and how many times it can be used. A private browser window shows you that the trade ticket appears only after you enter the code.

[Open a hidden trade ticket with an access code](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/unlock-hidden-tickets-with-an-access-code)

## Does Fai choose the breweries?

No. Fai ranks applications against the mix you describe, with her reasons, and your team approves, waitlists or declines each brewery.

On the event, you select Operations, then Traders, and select Set up. You enter The mix you want, such as local breweries first and one cider bar, and add your bar fees and extras such as power and water. With Rank with Fai, she marks each application Strong fit, Possible fit or Weak fit with her reasons.

On a brewery, you choose its pitch and fee, then select Approve, Waiting list or Decline and check the email before you confirm. Approving raises its invoice and can email it with a link to pay by card. When a brewery drops out, you approve the next one on your waiting list.

[Take brewery applications for your festival](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/take-trader-applications-for-your-event)

## Can drinkers see which breweries are pouring before they arrive?

Yes. Each approved brewery enters its own listing for the directory on your website, with the words drinkers filter by, such as IPA, stout or gluten free. You check and publish each listing before it shows.

Under Traders, you select Directory. On a listing, you change it if you need to and select Publish, or select Ask for changes to send it back to the brewery. Copy embed code gives you the code to paste into the page of your website where the list goes.

A listing shows only the name, what they sell, the kind of brewery, the filter words, a website and an Instagram name, so contact details never reach the public page.

[Show your breweries in a directory on your website](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/show-your-traders-in-a-directory-on-your-website)

## How do I invoice a brewery for a share of its bar takings?

Its bar fee can carry a share of sales, with a minimum and a maximum if you want them. After the festival, the brewery enters its takings with its till reports on its own page, Fai checks the reports against the figure, and you raise the invoice for your share.

Under Traders, Takings, you open a brewery. Fai says Reports match, Reports differ or Reports unclear. When you select Accept, then Raise the share-of-sales invoice, the brewery gets an invoice by email with a link to pay.

When a figure does not add up, you select Ask about it, and the brewery enters it again. The old figure stays on its panel marked Replaced, so if a brewery questions a figure weeks later, you both start from the same numbers.

[Check brewery takings and invoice your share](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/check-trader-takings-and-invoice-a-share-of-sales)

## Can I pay the breweries I buy beer from out of my ticket money?

Yes. With Vault on your brand, you open Vault, select Transfers and select New transfer. You choose the brewery, enter the amount and the reference it will see, and send the payment straight from the ticket money your events have taken.

It can go Now, or On a date up to a year ahead. You see each payment's reference, reason and status in Transfer activity, and so does your treasurer: who was paid, what for and when.

With payment approvals on, a second owner sends each payment that another owner prepares. Ticket Fairy support can switch Vault on if it is not in your brand's menu.

[Pay your breweries and suppliers from Vault](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/pay-suppliers-from-your-vault)

## Can a sponsoring brewery hand out tickets to its own customers?

Yes. You create a delegation for the brewery with the ticket types and the number it can hand out. It opens one access link and adds its own guests up to your limit, and never sees your sales or your buyers.

On the event, you open Delegations and select Create Delegation. You name it after the brewery, select Add Ticket for each ticket type with its quantity, and add the person who holds it with Add User. When you save, Ticket Fairy emails them their invitation once your event is published.

A separate delegation for each partner shows you who took what.

[Let a partner hand out their own tickets](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/let-a-partner-hand-out-their-own-tickets)

## Can my drinkers earn money back for bringing friends to a session?

Yes. Everyone who buys an eligible paid ticket gets their own referral link by email and on their order page, and earns back part of their ticket price as friends buy through it. A new event starts at 10% back after 2 referred sales, 30% after 5 and the full price after 8.

On your event, under Tickets, then Settings, Disable Rewards System stays turned off under Rewards System. You set each of the three targets from 1 to 10 referred sales and the share of the ticket price each one earns back. With Show referral rewards upsell on, drinkers see what they can earn before they check out.

The targets are best set before your first sale, because the terms drinkers saw when they bought stay fixed. The Influencers report lists each person's link clicks, referred sales, revenue and the reward they earned, so you can weigh what the rewards cost against the tickets they brought in.

[Reward buyers who bring friends to your event](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/reward-buyers-for-referrals)

## How do I recruit volunteers for my bars?

A volunteer application form lists the roles you need, such as bar staff, cellar and glass wash, and people apply from their phone with no account. Fai gives you her reading of each person, and you accept, waitlist or decline them.

Under Operations, you select Volunteers, then Open applications. You add the Roles you need and your own questions, and set the Minimum age. The form asks an applicant under 18 for a parent or guardian's name, phone number and agreement.

Copy application link gives you a link to share on your website and social pages. When you invite last year's volunteers back, their answers come already filled in.

[Recruit volunteers for your beer festival](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/recruit-volunteers-for-your-event)

## Can volunteers pick their own bar shifts?

Yes. Each volunteer you accept gets a private page to pick shifts, ask to swap or drop one, and read their day sheet.

In Volunteers, Send page links shows you the email before it goes. Each volunteer's page shows the shifts they are on, the open shifts they can pick and their day sheet with key times and team leads. A volunteer cannot pick a shift whose minimum age nobody has confirmed for them, so cellar shifts go only to people old enough to serve.

When a volunteer asks to change a shift, you select Review, then Approve or Decline. With Volunteers pick their own shifts turned off in the settings, you give out the shifts yourself.

[Give volunteers their own page for their shifts](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/give-volunteers-their-own-page-and-track-hours)

## How do I approve volunteers' hours and give their rewards?

Hours on Shifts shows each volunteer's hours from their shift check-in and check-out. Fai flags anything odd, such as a missing check-out, and you approve the lines with nothing odd in one go.

On a flagged line, you select Change the hours if they are wrong and enter why, then select Approve. The line keeps your name and the time.

In Volunteers, Hours shows the hours each person gave against the hours they worked. The button named after the reward, such as Give "Free weekend ticket", shows who earned it before you give the tickets.

[Approve the hours your volunteers worked](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/approve-the-hours-your-crew-and-volunteers-worked)

## Can my gate team scan tickets without a phone signal?

No. The Entry Fairy app needs an internet connection to scan tickets, so check the connection at each gate before you open.

Before doors, a test ticket scanned on every phone confirms each one is ready. The first phone admits it, and every other phone shows it as already checked in with the time and who scanned it. A phone that shows neither is not signed in or has no connection.

Everyone who scans joins as Door Staff, so each person has their own login and opens the scanning app and nothing else in your dashboard.

[Prepare your gate team for the festival](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/prepare-your-door-team)

## Can a brewery sell its own tastings and tours?

Yes. For a brewery tasting or bottle share, you sell capped sessions with a glass and tokens the same way as a festival, from one evening to a weekend of sessions. A brewery tour can be its own ticket type with time slots, so you sell your beer tastings and tours from one event page.

Your tasting ticket can have time slots, each with the number of places in your taproom, with the glass and tokens as add-ons. With the tour as its own ticket type with its own time slots, a full tour never closes the tastings.

You then sell each tasting and tour from the same event page, and the Ticket Type tab on Check-In shows each one's arrivals.

[Run ticketing for a food or drink festival](https://www.ticketfairy.com/guides/run-a-food-or-drink-festival)

[Ticket Fairy for beer festivals](https://www.ticketfairy.com/solutions/beer-festivals)

**You choose the tools to start with** You can start with event management or marketing alongside your current ticketing provider. If you decide to move ticketing, your account manager helps with setup, customer-data imports and training.

## Start Selling Tickets Online

Sign up without a credit card and build a test event before you commit. Go on sale in minutes when you are ready.

    No monthly subscription required for ticketing    Start selling tickets immediately    Ticketing tools included in the service fee   [Get Started](https://manage.ticketfairy.com/welcome?utm_source=compare&utm_campaign=solutions-beer-festivals-questions)

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---

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)