FAQ About Event Hosting and Course Creation
This page collects short questions about hosting events and creating courses. If you want the full flow of preparation and event-day operations, see the Operations Guide.
Can I host an event with the app?
Yes. Anyone can create and publish an event for free after registering an account and logging in.
- Up to 10 plays per day can be run for free
- Plays are counted per "participant x category". Even if the same participant replays the same category, the play count does not increase
- Courses where the number of spots (controls excluding start and finish) is 1 or 2 and the time limit is 60 minutes or less (or with no time limit) are treated as trial courses and do not count toward play limits
- A "participant" here means a smartphone (account) used for play, not a team. In Team Play, if one team uses three smartphones, that counts as 3 plays. A play is counted when it starts, so the slot is not given back even if the play is aborted partway. Plays from Test Play on a standard event's dashboard are not counted
For the list of plans, see Available plans on the NaviTabi website. If you would like to leave planning, preparation, and event-day operations to us, see Paid support for event operations (in Japanese).
From September 1, 2026, the daily play quota for events held outside Japan depends on the organizer's plan (for example, 30 plays with the Organizer Plan). See the Pricing and Billing FAQ for details.
There is no function to duplicate an entire event to create another event. For reuse of past events, see How can I reuse an existing event?.
That said, there is a function to copy a single course within the same event (useful for quickly creating courses that differ only in scoring). For details, see Can I copy a course?.
What is the basic structure for creating a course?
Use the following structure.
- Create an Event
- Create Categories inside the event
- Create a Course for each category
One event can have multiple categories, each with different course rules such as time limit or punch method.
For detailed settings, see Create an event and set the basics and Course and spot settings.
How do I hold an event that exceeds the free daily play limit (10 plays)?
If the number of daily plays exceeds 10, you can use the following methods.
Purchase additional play slots
When 10 free plays are not enough, you can add play slots by in-app purchase. You can buy them on the spot on the event day, and they take effect immediately.
How to buy
- Open the event management screen (dashboard)
- Choose Purchase Play Slots in the Operate group
- Choose how many slots to add (1, 5, 20, or 50) and complete the purchase in the store
| Item | Details |
|---|---|
| How it applies | For as long as they are valid, the slots you bought are added to that day's limit (they are not a one-off pool of plays that runs out). You can buy as many times as you like, and purchases add up |
| Valid until | 23:59 on the 7th day after the purchase (bought on April 1 → valid until 23:59 on April 8). The dashboard header also shows Extra Play Slots until ◯/◯ |
| Scope | They apply only to the event you bought them for, not to other events |
| Permanent events | Permanent (no time limit) events have no play limit, so there is nothing to buy |
Play slots can be bought not only by the organizer and the operating members but also by participants. Either way, the purchase raises the limit for that event; it does not create slots reserved for the buyer. There is no difference depending on who buys them (who paid is recorded, and you can check it in Slot Purchases in the Manage group).
The payment is charged to the App Store or Google Play account of the person who made the purchase.
Purchases require login (you cannot buy while using the app without logging in). For how the limit is counted and when it resets, see the Pricing and Billing FAQ.
Use trial courses
Courses where the number of spots (controls excluding start and finish) is 1 or 2 and the time limit is 60 minutes or less (or with no time limit) do not count toward the play limit, so short trial courses can be used without that limit.
How can I limit who can join an event?
Normally, anyone can play a public event. If you create an event that requires participation approval, only approved people can play.
Create an approval-based event
When creating a new event, turn on Participation approval required for play. You can also change this setting after creating the event.
Creating approval-based events requires the Organizer Plan.
Flow of participation requests
- The participant taps Apply to Join for the desired category
- The organizer checks the request from the Player List card on the event management screen (dashboard)
- The organizer taps the user and chooses Approve or Reject
- After approval, the participant can play the course
How to make the records visible to everyone after the event
In approval-based events, participants can see records only for the categories they were approved for. To make them available to everyone after the event:
- Change each category visibility to View Only
- Change the event so that approval is no longer required
See Application and approval management and Category settings for details.
Is there a limit on the number of applications or approvals?
No. There is no limit on the number of participation requests or on how many people you can approve. The limit applies to the number of plays per day that can be played for free (How do I hold an event that exceeds the free daily play limit (10 plays)?).
If you approve more people than the day's play slots, even approved participants cannot start playing once the slots are used up. For events with many participants, purchase additional play slots in advance.
How can I manage Entry Numbers? (Duplicates and number of digits?)
An Entry Number can have up to 9 digits (maximum value 999,999,999). Numbers outside this range are not accepted.
You can manage them with the following settings:
- Allow duplicates: You can assign the same number to multiple participants
- Sequential auto-numbering with a Roster: Following the Roster, Entry Numbers can be assigned by sequential auto-numbering
See Application and approval management for details.
A finished record does not appear on the leaderboard, and a DNF record appears instead
Check whether one account has played several times with different Entry Numbers. The leaderboard first narrows records down to the best record for each account, and only then groups records that share an Entry Number. If the same account has a better record under another number, its finished record under this number is not shown, and a record from another account that used the same number appears instead, even if it is a DNF.
This often happens when staff check the setup in the event's actual categories. From the results list menu, apply Change from Finished to DNF to that account's records that are better than the one you want to show, and that record will appear on the leaderboard. You can undo this with Change from DNF to Finished.
If you don't need to keep these check records in the results, use Test Play on the dashboard (not available for permanent events). Its records are included in neither the results list nor the leaderboard. For how this works, see When multiple results use the same Entry Number.
The Reception QR (check-in QR code) does not appear or cannot be selected. Why?
The Reception QR can be generated only for events whose approval settings are configured for reception.
- Standard event: Turn on both Require approval (participation approval) and Require Entry Number
- Safety Tracking Event: Turn on Require Entry Number
Once the conditions are met, the Reception QR card appears in the Participants group on the dashboard. The check-in QR must be scanned online and cannot be used for permanent (no time limit), private, or ended events.
For details, see Application and approval management - Requirements for using the check-in QR.
Can I set a start date and time?
Yes. You can set a start date and time in the category settings.
If participants keep the play screen open, play starts automatically at the specified time.
A simultaneous start (specifying a start date and time) requires the Organizer Plan.
Can I create a course without a time limit (permanent course)?
You cannot create one from the app or the Web. When creating a new event, you can choose only between a normal event and a safety tracking event. In a normal event's category, the time limit cannot be 0 or empty. If you want to set up a permanent (no time limit) course, contact NaviTabi (How can I contact support?). Setting up a permanent course is not free; the price depends on how long it stays in place and how many participants you expect.
Permanent events have the following restrictions.
- They cannot be paid courses. Playing a permanent event does not ask for a purchase, so setting a price on a category does not make it paid
- They cannot require participation approval. The event management screen of a permanent event has no Player List, so participation requests cannot be approved
- Playing requires logging in. There is no daily play slot limit
- Check-in QR, Play QR, Bonus QR, QR code punching, Team Play, and Test Play are not available
Can I delete a category I created?
- You can delete a category if nobody has played it yet
- If play records already exist, it cannot be deleted, but you can change it to Invisible
For how to think about post-event visibility and cleanup, see Operations Guide - After the Event.
How do I delete an event?
You can delete an event that nobody has played yet. An event with even one play record cannot be deleted. A deleted event cannot be restored. Only the event owner and event managers can delete an event.
- Smartphone app — Open Event Setup from the event management screen (dashboard) and tap the trash can icon at the top right. Two confirmations appear, "Do you want to delete this event?" and "Are you sure you want to delete this?"; choose Delete in both
- Web — In the Manage Events list, open Edit for the event, then click Delete at the top of the overview page (in the same row as Edit info). The confirmation is shown twice; choose Delete both times. There is no delete button on the list screen
When the event has play records, "You can't delete events that users have already played." is shown (on the Web, "This event cannot be deleted because it already has play records."). To take such an event off your list, unpublish it and then Archive it. Archiving hides the event from your list of managed events while keeping its records, and you can restore it later. You do it from Manage on the smartphone app's dashboard (Event management screen — Management and operation cards).
How can I reuse an existing event?
There is no function to copy an event and create a separate event from it. If you want to reuse a past event, consider one of the following methods.
Method 1: Reuse the existing event itself
- Rename the existing event and use it again
- Keep the existing spots and create new courses and categories
- Change unnecessary old categories to Invisible or View Only
Method 2: Export and import spot data
- Export spot data as CSV from All Spots in the old event
- Create a new event and import the spot data as CSV
Only the name, description, and location, latitude and longitude, are included. Photos need to be registered manually.
Method 3: Save to My Spots and import (saving requires the Organizer Plan)
- In the past event's "All Spots", tap a spot and choose Save to My Spots (the photo is saved too)
- In the new event's "All Spots", choose Import from My Spots
See My Spots and Public Spots for details.
For how to think about reuse and visibility settings, also see Operations Guide - After the Event.
I found a place while out and want to use it in an event later
Even before you create an event, you can record it as a spot in My Spots. Save the name, description, photo, and location on the spot, and when you create an event, select and import it with Import from My Spots in "All Spots". You can also save spots other users have published from Public Spots and use them. Sign-in is required. See My Spots and Public Spots for details.
Can I copy a course?
Yes, within the same event (Organizer Plan required; not available for Rogaining Camera records or Safety Tracking events). In the app, use Copy Course from the "…" menu on the course edit screen; on the Web, use Duplicate on the event overview page.
The copied course has its own name, points, type, and KML, but the spots themselves (position, name, photos) are shared with the original course. Editing a spot in the original course changes it in the copy as well. There is no feature to copy a whole event (Can I host an event with the app?).
For the steps and the list of shared versus independent settings, see Course and Spot Settings — Copy a course.
Can I create a course that uses quizzes?
Yes. You can create courses that use the quiz feature for free.
How do I set up bonus points (QR & combo)?
On score-based courses (Score / Score (Free Start and Finish)), you can set up two types of bonus points. Both are set up from the smartphone app (iOS / Android); they cannot be set up in the web version.
- Bonus QR — A QR code that awards points when a participant scans it during play. Create it from the Bonus QR card under Prepare (Android: Prepare for distribution) on the event management screen (dashboard). You can create up to 50 per event, each worth 1 to 999 points, and the same QR is added only once per play. It currently supports individual play only and cannot be used in team events or in permanent (no time limit) events. For details, see Event dashboard - Bonus QR.
- Combo Bonus — A rule that automatically awards points when a participant visits a set number of the specified checkpoints (no participant action is required; no notification or badge appears on achievement, and the points are reflected in the score automatically). Within a single rule, only the points of the highest threshold reached are awarded (they are not cumulative). Set it up from the "…" / "︙" (Options / More) menu on the course editing screen. Unlike Bonus QR, it can also be used in team events. For details, see Course and spot settings - Combo Bonus.
For events where either Bonus QR or Combo Bonus is set, participation from older versions of the app that do not support the feature is blocked until they update. Make sure you can guide participants to update the app.
Deleting all Bonus QR codes lifts the block, but once a Combo Bonus has been set even once, deleting all of its rules does not lift the block.
Is test play necessary before publishing a course?
It is not strictly mandatory, but test play is strongly recommended to confirm safety and checkpoint settings in advance.
Preparation including test play is summarized in Preparation Before the Event.
Can event operators use Photo Check?
Yes. You open Photo Check from the "..." menu for a participant in the results list, and review punch photos one by one with Accept / Pending / Reject. When you reject a photo, you can also choose whether to deduct that spot's points. There is no permission restriction for event operators (it appears in the menu only for categories that punch with the camera).
Score adjustment, force-ending a play, and switching between Finished and DNF can also be performed by event operators. Only Set alias name and Update Entry Number depend not on the role but on whether the account of the person performing the operation is subscribed to the Organizer Plan.
For details, see Staff Roles and Permissions - Results list and Results and data export.
Who can I delegate reception to?
Almost all of reception on the event day can be delegated to event operators. They can approve and reject applications, record absences, change a participant's category, send individual messages, switch the accepting-applications toggle, export the Player List as CSV, and display and share the Reception QR.
Only the following two require an event manager or above.
- Import participants (importing a CSV roster)
- Clear request & approval records (in the "..." menu at the top right of the Player List)
For details, see Staff Roles and Permissions - What event operators can do at "reception".