To make a private family reunion website, use a platform that keeps your family’s content behind a login and lets you control who gets in. Add your family name, logo, and colors, write a welcome message, post your event details, and share one join link with your relatives. You approve each person before they can see anything inside.
A reunion website gives your family one place to find the latest news. No more digging through a 300-message group chat to find the hotel code. Here is how to build one that stays private.
Why your family reunion website should be private
A reunion site holds a lot of personal information: names, photos of kids, the cities where relatives live, travel dates, and sometimes payment details. On a public site, anyone can see that. A private site means:
- Only family members you approve can see photos, names, and plans.
- Search engines do not show your family’s content.
- Relatives feel safe sharing photos and stories.
What to put on your family reunion website
- A welcome message with the reunion dates, location, and theme
- The event schedule, like the Friday meet-and-greet, Saturday picnic, and Sunday church service
- Registration and payment with clear prices and deadlines
- Hotel and travel info, including booking links and group codes
- Announcements for updates and reminders
- A family directory so relatives can reconnect
- A photo and memory space for old pictures and new ones
- A tribute space to honor family members who have passed
- Helpful links, like your family tree or the family Facebook group
Your options for building one
Free website builders
Tools like Google Sites are free, but they are not built for reunions. Making the site private, collecting payments, and managing who can see what all take extra work.
General website builders
Paid website builders look nice, but you build and maintain everything yourself. Logins, registration, and payments usually require add-ons.
A reunion platform
A platform made for reunions gives you a private site with reunion features already built in. You fill in your details instead of building from scratch. This is what I built Gettagether to do.
How to set up a private reunion website with Gettagether
You can finish the basics in an afternoon.
- Create your account and start your 7-day free trial.
- Name your community and choose your web address. Pick something simple, like your family name. Choose carefully, because the address is permanent.
- Add your branding. Upload a logo or family crest, choose your family color, and add a banner photo.
- Pick a template. Classic has a big banner and a traditional reunion-site feel. Hub puts upcoming events and the countdown front and center. You can switch anytime.
- Write your welcome message. Say who you are, when and where the reunion is, and what people should do first.
- Turn on the features you need. Events, the Memory Board, Lodging, Registration, the Shop, and the Legacy Wall can each be turned on or off.
- Add your events and hotel info.
- Invite your family. Share your join link by text or email, or print the QR code on a flyer. You can also send email invitations that let people in automatically.
- Approve join requests. When someone uses the public link, you or another admin approve them before they can see anything inside.
How privacy works on Gettagether
Every community is private from the start. Your family’s posts, photos, directory, and events are only visible to approved members. The join page that people see before they are approved shows only your family name, branding, welcome message, and the next event date. It is not listed in search engines, so people can only reach it with your link.
Tips to get relatives to actually use it
- Post the site link everywhere you already talk: the group chat, Facebook, and church announcements.
- Put the important stuff only on the site, like the hotel code and registration. That gives people a reason to join.
- Ask a tech-savvy cousin to help older relatives sign up.
- Post a few old family photos early. They get people talking.
Frequently asked questions
Can I make a family reunion website for free?
Yes, but free tools usually lack privacy controls, registration, and payments. Most families end up adding other tools to fill the gaps.
Can people find our reunion website on Google?
Not on Gettagether. Community content is private, and the join page is not indexed by search engines. Relatives get in through your link or QR code.
Can I use my own domain name?
You can point a domain you already own to your Gettagether community using a standard redirect from your domain provider.
What happens to the website after the reunion?
As long as your subscription is active, your community stays in place for the next reunion. Photos, members, and memories are all still there when you start planning again.
Build your family’s site
Start your 7-day free trial of Gettagether and give your family a private home for your reunion.