Portola
- Dates
- Expected September 2027
- Status
- Expected
- Venue
- Pier 80
- Price
- $269 to $399Payment plan available
- Camping
- None on site
- Last checked
- Oct 20, 2026
The last Portola was September 26 to 27, 2026, in San Francisco, CA. Its 2027 dates haven't been announced yet. Froligo tracks ticket prices, attendee feedback and travel details.
The experience
What's special
Portola is Goldenvoice's electronic-leaning festival staged on the industrial waterfront of Pier 80 in San Francisco, mixing house, techno and nostalgic dance acts with indie and pop across roughly four stages plus Despacio, the roving audiophile club tent. Set among the site's cranes, ships and a cavernous warehouse, it trades the desert-and-grass template of its Coachella siblings for raw concrete and metal. The draw is a sharply curated dance-music lineup in a distinctive, unglamorous urban setting.
What people love
Attendees single out the lineup curation and the Despacio tent as highlights, and note that the sprawling 60-acre pier rarely feels crowded, with recent editions praised for smooth entry, manageable lines and plentiful bathrooms. The most persistent complaints are inconsistent sound at the warehouse and pier stages, where thin metal walls scatter the bass, and a flat industrial setting short on greenery, art and shade. Recurring ticketing and presale problems are a further sore point.
Last time around (2025)
The 2025 edition, Portola's fourth, returned to Pier 80 under sunny, mild skies, with attendees noting markedly smoother logistics -- easy entry, manageable lines and plentiful bathrooms -- and standout sets from Christina Aguilera, Underworld and The Chemical Brothers. Sound remained uneven, praised at the Ship and Crane stages but still muddy in the Warehouse and at the Pier stage. A bungled presale and a later discount code left some early buyers feeling shortchanged, and a minority reported pushing crowds and even muggings, though the overall reception was positive.
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Listen
Tap an artist to play them right here.
No official playlist linked yet. Find Portola on Spotify.
Lineup
Here's who played in 2026:
Getting there
How do I get to Portola?
By car
Most people drive to Portola. Check current road and traffic conditions before you set off, and see parking below.
By train
No direct passenger rail to the venue was found. Drive, fly in, or use a shuttle instead.
By bus & public transit
From SFO, BART runs direct to San Francisco. For the venue-specific last mile: Portola runs a free shuttle from 24th St Mission BART Station to Pier 80 (confirmed on the official Caltrain guide page for the festival). Caltrain riders should use 22nd Street Station (not ADA accessible, use San Francisco 4th & King Station for accessibility) and walk east on 22nd St, south on 3rd St, then east on Cesar Chavez St to Pier 80.
Book / infoThe T Third line runs from Union Square/Market St. Station (or Chinatown/Yerba Buena-Moscone) to Third/Marin, two blocks from the Pier 80 entrance. SFMTA keeps those downtown stations open late (until 1am) on festival nights and stages extra T Third trains downtown from 9pm-12:30am for the exit crowd. Muni routes 48, 19, and 15 also stop within a 10-minute walk.
Book / infoTaxi & rideshare
Rideshare pickup/drop-off for Portola is a few blocks from the entrance at 23rd and Illinois Streets, a designated zone, not curbside at the gate. Waymo robotaxis cannot reach this pickup location per official reporting.
Book / infoTaxis and rideshare such as Uber and Lyft can be limited near the venue, especially late at night or in rural areas. Agree a pickup point and time in advance and keep a backup plan.
Affiliate Flying in? You can book an airport transfer in advance rather than joining the taxi queue on arrival. Transfer links may earn Froligo a commission; they never change the price you pay.
🅿 Parking
No festival parking exists at Pier 80 and the festival explicitly tells attendees not to drive. SFMTA's official page for the venue's neighborhood echoes this: parking will be extremely limited during the event, with enforcement focused on not blocking multi-unit-building driveways. Rideshare (Uber/Lyft only, not Waymo) picks up at a designated zone several blocks away (23rd & Illinois St), not at the gate.
🚙 Car hire
Compare car hire
If you are hiring a car, it is worth checking parking near the venue before you go.
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Where
Map shows the center of San Francisco. The venue's exact point is not confirmed yet.
Venue
The venue has its own page with capacity, accessibility and parking.
Camping & Accommodation
Where can I stay near Portola?
No on site camping. Here is where to stay nearby.
Mid-range hotels 1
Typically $120-220 a night off-peak guide, higher on festival dates
Check ratesTreat yourself 1
Typically $170-300 a night off-peak guide, higher on festival dates
Check ratesAirport hotels 3
1260 South Loop Road, Alameda, CA 94502
Typically $100-190 a night off-peak guide, higher on festival dates
Check rates1660;1700 Harbor Bay Parkway, Alameda, CA 94502
Typically $100-190 a night off-peak guide, higher on festival dates
Check rates10 Hegenberger Road, Oakland, CA 94621
Typically $100-190 a night off-peak guide, higher on festival dates
Check ratesMore hotels nearby 3
Airbnb & private camping
Late September in San Francisco coincides with a major citywide 2-day festival at a fixed downtown-adjacent venue, this pattern (large single-city ticketed festival, limited parking, transit-dependent) typically drives short-term-rental surge pricing near SoMa/Dogpatch/Mission during festival dates.
Search Airbnb21+ two-day urban waterfront festival with no camping component and no nearby rural land
Search HipcampSearch all hotels near Pier 80
Hotel links may earn Froligo a commission; they never change the price you pay.
Accessibility & comfort
What the organizer or venue publishes about getting around, and what they do not.
Portola publishes a full accessibility page at portolamusicfestival.com/ada, run by Goldenvoice. On terrain, the organizer states the event is held on primarily cement terrain at Pier 80 in San Francisco and that the venue is navigable for people with mobility disabilities, but there is no transport between stages, so you cross the site independently or with a companion.
Read the full notes
Wheelchairs, scooters, crutches, walkers and canes are permitted, and no mobility devices are rented onsite. Motorised mobility devices and medical equipment can be recharged at an Accessibility Services Hub or at the Pier and Crane stage accessible viewing areas, using your own cords, on a 110 volt 20 amp circuit.
On parking, the organizer says there is no designated festival parking at all for this event and strongly advises a rideshare service or a drop off and pick up; the rideshare and loading zone details and any offsite accessible shuttles are both listed as to be updated 30 days before the event, so recheck close to the date.
There is a designated accessible entry lane at the festival entrance. Accessible viewing areas are provided at designated stages for a guest and one companion, first come first served, with no spot saving and a one hour absence rule.
Access is managed through two Accessibility Services Hubs, one outside next to the Box Office before the scan lanes and one inside the venue, where you collect an accessibility wristband and register a service animal. There is no accessibility pre registration and no accessibility ticket to buy; one companion wristband is issued per guest with a disability.
All concessions are accessible and there is a central medical site. Service animals are permitted but must be credentialed at a Hub; emotional support and therapy animals are not allowed. Access contact is [email protected].
American Sign Language interpreters can be available for select performances on request. Closed captioning, braille or large font print, guided tours and other forms of effective communication can also be provided on request.
Read the full notes
Requests must be emailed at least 30 days before the event using the Effective Communication Request Form, and the organizer gives a deadline of 27 August 2026 for the 2026 festival. Check in at an Accessibility Services Hub onsite to be connected with the interpreting team.
Assisted Listening Device systems are available; contact [email protected] or ask at a Hub.
Confirm your specific needs with the organizer's access team before you travel.
Checked 2026-09-03 · source
Pricing
Price history and tiers
Your Portola fit
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While you're in San Francisco
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Quick answers
When is Portola 2027?
Not announced yet. The last festival was September 26 to 27, 2026. The next one is expected in September.
How much are Portola tickets?
$269 to $399 per person were the 2026 edition's prices. The next edition's prices will be confirmed when tickets go on sale.
Where is Portola held?
Pier 80, San Francisco, CA.