Frequently asked questions

General

What is Family-Friendly Events?

Family-Friendly Events is a vendor directory where families and event planners discover and book vendors — DJs, photographers, venues, entertainers, face painters, photo booths, and more — who are committed to creating welcoming, family-friendly experiences.

Is it free to browse?

Yes. Searching the directory, viewing vendor profiles, and submitting a quote request are all free and do not require an account.

Do I need to create an account?

Not to browse. An account is required to save favorite vendors, leave reviews, send messages to vendors, and submit event planning requests.

What kinds of events does the directory cover?

All kinds — birthday parties, school and church events, corporate family days, quinceañeras, weddings, graduations, community festivals, and more. If families are invited, the vendors in this directory are ready. Four occasions have their own starting pages: Weddings, Kids’ parties, Company events, and Schools & churches.

What does "Early Access" mean?

Early Access is our founding period. The site is fully public and we're adding vendors and events every week, so the directory is still filling in market by market. Listing a business is free — and a free listing will always be available; that’s a commitment. Founding vendors keep a founding rate when paid plans launch later. Browsing, reviews, and quote requests are free for families the whole time. See our About page for more.

Who runs Family-Friendly Events?

Family-Friendly Events is operated by Family-Friendly Events LLC, a Virginia company. See our About page for more.

For families & event planners

How do I know a vendor is actually family-friendly?

Every vendor answers at least one specific prompt about their approach to family-friendly service during registration. Those answers are published on the vendor's profile — in their own words — so you can see exactly how they describe their approach. We also review all profiles before they go live. That said, we are a directory, not a booking guarantee. We encourage you to read profiles carefully, check reviews, and verify credentials directly with the vendor before hiring.

What does a "Verified" badge mean?

Verified badges are independently checked by our team — they are not self-reported. Available badges: Insured (certificate of liability insurance on file), Business Registered (active business entity confirmed via state records), and Background Checked (personal background check via a certified third-party service). Each badge shows the date it was last confirmed and greys out when it expires.

How do I contact a vendor?

Every published vendor profile has a "Request a quote" contact form. You can submit it without an account. The vendor receives your message by email and as an in-app notification and will follow up directly.

Can I search by location?

Yes, and the most useful way is Serves my area: type a ZIP code (or a town, or "city, ST") and you'll see the vendors whose service area covers that place — however far they travel. There is no distance to pick, because the vendor's own service radius is the answer: someone fifty miles away who covers a hundred will gladly come to you, and someone in the next town who only works their own will not. If your browser offers, "Use my location" does the same without typing; we round your location to about a mile, use it for that search, and don’t save it to your account. You can also browse by state or region, or toggle filters for vendors who serve clients anywhere (nationwide) or work online (virtual).

Is my contact information shared when I submit a quote request?

Your name and email address are included in the message delivered to the vendor. No other users see this information. See our Privacy Policy for full details.

I submitted a quote request but haven't heard back. What should I do?

Response time is up to the vendor — we deliver your message but cannot guarantee a reply. If you do not hear back within a few business days, try contacting the vendor through the website or phone number listed on their profile (if shown), or search for another vendor in the same category.

How do I find events near me?

On the events calendar, type a ZIP code (or a town, or "city, ST") and pick a distance — 5 to 100 miles. The radius crosses state lines, which matters if you live near one. "Use my location" does the same without typing, if your browser offers it; we round your location to about a mile, use it for that search, and don’t save it to your account. You can also filter by who an event is for, whether it is free, and the date — "This weekend" is one tap. Online events have no location, so they are not in a radius result; the "online only" filter finds those.

Where do the events on the calendar come from?

Three places: organizers who submit their own events, our team, and public community calendars we subscribe to — a tourism office, a library system, a parks department. Everything from a subscribed calendar is filtered down to the events that make sense for families, reviewed before it appears, and credited to its source with a link back to the original listing, so you can always check the details with the organizer. You can see every calendar we list from, and each one has a page showing everything we currently carry from it. From a calendar we haven't spoken to we publish only the facts — what, when and where — and never their own descriptions, which we ask for first. Not everything here is aimed at children. Family-friendly describes the character of an event rather than who is in the room: clean, wholesome things to do stay family-friendly even where children are not part of them — a library's adults-only book group, a museum's grown-ups evening. Almost everything on the calendar is built for children or happy to have them along, and each listing says who it is for. More on the difference. You can also subscribe to the whole calendar — or one state's — in Google Calendar, Apple Calendar or Outlook, and it stays up to date. Run a calendar for your community or organization? Here's how syndication works — there's no cost for community calendars, and anything of yours comes down on request.

For vendors — free listings

Is it free to list my business?

Yes — and it always will be. You can create a profile, publish it, and receive quote requests from potential clients at no cost. Paid plans, when they launch, add promotional placement and extra features on top of the free listing; they never replace it.

What does "family-friendly" mean for my business?

During registration, you answer at least one of our family-friendly prompts, which cover things like: what you love about serving families, what accommodations you make for different ages, why your service is appropriate for a family audience, a story about a memorable family event you worked, what you commit to not doing at a family event (e.g., no explicit lyrics, no surprise effects), and what hiring you looks like step by step. Your answers are published on your profile. This is a commitment to your audience — not a third-party certification or license.

How long does it take for my profile to go live?

Profiles are reviewed by our team before appearing publicly. Most profiles are reviewed within one to two business days. You'll receive an email when your profile is approved, needs changes, or is declined with a reason.

What can I do with a free profile?

With a free profile you can: publish your business details and family-friendly story, upload a profile photo, list your service area (regional, nationwide, or virtual), add social media links and a website, and receive quote requests from potential clients.

Can I hide my profile temporarily?

Yes. You control your profile's visibility. Toggle it between Published and Hidden from your vendor dashboard at any time. A hidden profile is only visible to you and to admins — it does not appear in search results or category pages.

What happens if I edit my profile after it's approved?

Minor edits (contact details, formatting) do not trigger a re-review. Substantive changes to your business description or family-friendly answers reset your profile to Pending and it is re-reviewed before the changes go live. Your profile remains publicly visible during re-review with the previous approved content.

Can I have more than one vendor profile?

One profile per business. If you operate multiple distinct businesses, contact support to discuss your situation.

For vendors — paid plans

What paid plans are available?

Paid subscription details — including plan features and pricing — will be published when our paid tiers launch. Create a free profile now and you will be notified when paid plans become available.

Trust & safety

How do I report a vendor or content that seems inappropriate?

Use the "Report" option on any published profile, review, or listing. Logged-in users can submit a report with a reason; our moderation team reviews all reports. For urgent concerns, contact support directly.

My profile or content was blocked. What can I do?

You will receive a notification explaining the decision and a link to submit an appeal through our support channel. If you did not receive the notification, contact support and include your account email address and the content in question.

A review about my business seems inaccurate. Can I dispute it?

Submit a report via the Report option on the review, or contact support with the review details. Our moderation team will review the report. Vendors may also post one public reply to each review on their profile.

My account was restricted. What do I do?

Your restriction notice includes a pre-filled support link with your account details. Use that link to submit an appeal. If you no longer have the notice, contact support with your account email address.

How is my personal data used?

We do not sell personal data to third parties. See our Privacy Policy for full details on what we collect, how we use it, and your rights.

Can I have my account and data deleted?

Yes. Submit a deletion request from your Account Settings page. After a 30-day hold period — during which you can cancel the request — your personal data is anonymized or deleted. Financial records are retained as required by law. See Deleting your account for step-by-step instructions.