I am in the waitlist for Wikimania. (I pre-registered on April 2nd; I had no idea there was a risk of it being sold out in a day.)
I heard different rumours and speculation on whether Wikimania is "really" sold out or significantly more seats will be freed once people have to pay for the registration.
Can we give some basic information for (aspiring) attendees, such as * how many people are going to be accepted in total (beyond "pre-approved" participants like scholars), * how many were already accepted and have paid for it, * how the waitlist is managed and * when one needs to start worrying about their registration not succeeding?
For example, the registration form said a background check would be conducted but I have no idea how that's possible when I only provided an email address. What if I chose the "wrong" email address? I assumed someone would contact me to confirm if they can't find out whose address it is, but maybe I'm wrong.
Speaking of scholarships, personally I did not apply because I am happy to pay for my own costs and I prefer if scholarships go to first-time attendees, but I probably would have applied had I known it was the only chance to get in. People are probably making decisions right now about their attendance (including booking or not booking accommodation) which may turn out to be wrong later due to a lack of correct information.
Best, Federico
Hello,
I would like to second Nemo's request for timely updates. Unless I missed something (which is very possible), I haven't seen any official news since the announcement weeks ago that the in-person event was sold out.
I imagine I am not the only one about to finalize my summer travel based on the current assumption that I can't attend Wikimania (something I am very disappointed about, but I can accept).
If, by some twist of good fortune, some of us currently on the waitlist ended up getting an invitation to attend, learning about it after our other travel arrangements are made would be adding insult to injury.
As Wikimedians, we are all aware of how harmful lack of reliable information can be. Something as simple as "if you haven't heard from us by April 30, you can be certain you won't be able to attend" would go a long way to reduce uncertainty.
Thanks,
On Sat, Apr 18, 2026 at 7:25 PM Federico Leva (Nemo) via Wikimania-l < wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org> wrote:
I am in the waitlist for Wikimania. (I pre-registered on April 2nd; I had no idea there was a risk of it being sold out in a day.)
I heard different rumours and speculation on whether Wikimania is "really" sold out or significantly more seats will be freed once people have to pay for the registration.
Can we give some basic information for (aspiring) attendees, such as
- how many people are going to be accepted in total (beyond
"pre-approved" participants like scholars),
- how many were already accepted and have paid for it,
- how the waitlist is managed and
- when one needs to start worrying about their registration not succeeding?
For example, the registration form said a background check would be conducted but I have no idea how that's possible when I only provided an email address. What if I chose the "wrong" email address? I assumed someone would contact me to confirm if they can't find out whose address it is, but maybe I'm wrong.
Speaking of scholarships, personally I did not apply because I am happy to pay for my own costs and I prefer if scholarships go to first-time attendees, but I probably would have applied had I known it was the only chance to get in. People are probably making decisions right now about their attendance (including booking or not booking accommodation) which may turn out to be wrong later due to a lack of correct information.
Best, Federico _______________________________________________ Wikimania-l mailing list -- wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org To unsubscribe send an email to wikimania-l-leave@lists.wikimedia.org
Indeed, just knowing a date when I should definitely cancel my bookings would help.
Meanwhile I've noticed that there were some numbers published by Bernadette Meehan and others on https://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Talk:2026_open_letter_regarding_Wikimania. I'm not sure the alleged number of seats available through the general registration (less than 350) was officially confirmed.
Reposting Bernadette's message:
«Thank you for raising these concerns, and for the vital work you do as an Admin. I don’t take that work for granted. The Wikimedia projects only exist because of editors like you, and supporting and growing this community is one of my most important priorities as the new CEO of the Wikimedia Foundation.
I know how much Wikimania means to so many of you, and I understand the disappointment you’re feeling. It’s frustrating to want to be there and not be able to attend.
Wikimania Paris sold out faster than anyone imagined. Even with a 30% increase in in-person capacity from last year (2025) and similar capacity to 2023 and 2024, tickets sold out quickly. While it’s encouraging to see such strong interest from the community in coming together, not being able to welcome everyone who wants to attend is not the outcome we want, and we are sorry.
After receiving your letter, I spoke directly with Foundation colleagues working closely with the Wikimania Paris organizers to understand if more can be done. In the near term, the team is working to keep the waitlist moving by removing duplicates and processing cancellations. That work is ongoing.
They’re also exploring realistic ways to expand capacity, including overflow spaces for plenary sessions and additional breakout rooms. These options aren’t quick or simple, but conversations with the venue and vendors are in progress to see what might be possible.
At the same time, we will explore potential modifications to better prioritize members of the editing community who wish to participate in person at future Wikimanias.
I also want to share that the current group of registrants for this year reflects a strong mix of people. Roughly one third of registrants are users with extended rights. A similar proportion have edit counts above 50,000, and 80% have more than 1,000 edits.
I know this doesn’t erase your disappointment. But I hope it helps provide some clarity, and reassures you that we hear you and take your feedback seriously. The team is working hard to make Wikimania Paris and future Wikimanias as inclusive and accessible as possible.
Thank you again for your note, and for the work you continue to do. BMeehan-WMF (talk) 16:54, 6 April 2026 (UTC)»
Best, Federico
Il 20/04/26 11:38, Guillaume Paumier ha scritto:
Hello,
I would like to second Nemo's request for timely updates. Unless I missed something (which is very possible), I haven't seen any official news since the announcement weeks ago that the in-person event was sold out.
I imagine I am not the only one about to finalize my summer travel based on the current assumption that I can't attend Wikimania (something I am very disappointed about, but I can accept).
If, by some twist of good fortune, some of us currently on the waitlist ended up getting an invitation to attend, learning about it after our other travel arrangements are made would be adding insult to injury.
As Wikimedians, we are all aware of how harmful lack of reliable information can be. Something as simple as "if you haven't heard from us by April 30, you can be certain you won't be able to attend" would go a long way to reduce uncertainty.
Thanks,
On Sat, Apr 18, 2026 at 7:25 PM Federico Leva (Nemo) via Wikimania-l < wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org> wrote:
I am in the waitlist for Wikimania. (I pre-registered on April 2nd; I had no idea there was a risk of it being sold out in a day.)
I heard different rumours and speculation on whether Wikimania is "really" sold out or significantly more seats will be freed once people have to pay for the registration.
Can we give some basic information for (aspiring) attendees, such as
- how many people are going to be accepted in total (beyond
"pre-approved" participants like scholars),
- how many were already accepted and have paid for it,
- how the waitlist is managed and
- when one needs to start worrying about their registration not succeeding?
For example, the registration form said a background check would be conducted but I have no idea how that's possible when I only provided an email address. What if I chose the "wrong" email address? I assumed someone would contact me to confirm if they can't find out whose address it is, but maybe I'm wrong.
Speaking of scholarships, personally I did not apply because I am happy to pay for my own costs and I prefer if scholarships go to first-time attendees, but I probably would have applied had I known it was the only chance to get in. People are probably making decisions right now about their attendance (including booking or not booking accommodation) which may turn out to be wrong later due to a lack of correct information.
Best, Federico _______________________________________________ Wikimania-l mailing list -- wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org To unsubscribe send an email to wikimania-l-leave@lists.wikimedia.org
To unsubscribe send an email to wikimania-l-leave@lists.wikimedia.org
On Tue, 21 Apr 2026 at 21:41, A A via Wikimania-l < wikimania-l@lists.wikimedia.org> wrote:
PLEASE GET ME OUT OF THIS LIST.
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