Two published clocks
Portola Music Festival ran Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 September 2026 at Pier 80 in San Francisco. Venue doors opened at 1 pm PT each day. Curfew fell at 11 pm PT. The organiser published a ten-hour programme for each day.
The gate was 21-plus. Entry required a valid physical government-issued photo ID. The organiser refused expired ID at the gate, and it refused mobile driver's licences. An AXS Mobile ID refreshes every 60 seconds, so a screenshot was not valid. Re-entry was not permitted. The event was cashless and ran rain or shine.
Arrival: the free shuttle from 24th St Mission
The free Portola shuttle ran on a loop between Pier 80 and the 24th St Mission BART station from 12:30 pm to 11:30 pm. That window opened thirty minutes before the gate and closed thirty minutes after the curfew.
The BART-side loading zone sat at the corner of Valencia St and 24th St, two blocks west of the station exit, with signs and staff directing the walk. The Pier 80 loading zone sat at the corner of Illinois St and 24th St. The organiser ran a limited number of accessible shuttles to the pier, and a request for one went by email.
All BART stations are accessible. Load a digital Clipper card before the trip. Google Pay and Apple Pay both load fare.
Arrival: Muni on the T Third
Muni ran late station hours during the festival. The T Third line stops at Third St and Marin St, one block from Pier 80. From Powell St BART, walk to the Union Square/Market St station and board the T Third toward Sunnydale.
Three bus routes reached the pier. Route 15 Bayview Hunters Point Express exits at Third and Marin, two blocks away. Route 48 Quintara exits at 23rd and Third St for a ten-minute walk. Route 19 Polk exits at Connecticut and Cesar Chavez for a ten-minute walk. Every Muni bus stop and T Third stop is accessible. Muni takes the Clipper card, a digital Clipper card, or the Muni Mobile app.
Exit: the closed platform and the late trains
Board the T Third home at Third St and 23rd St or at Third St and Evans. The platform at Third St and Marin St went out of service from 10 pm to 12 am.
Northbound trains stop at Union Square/Market St, where a rider can walk to Powell St BART, the Market St bus routes, or AC Transit Transbay service. Union Square/Market St, Chinatown and Yerba Buena/Moscone stations stayed open until 1 am.
Route 48 Quintara runs 24 hours a day and connects to the 24th/Mission St BART station. Board it at Third and 23rd St. Route 91 OWL runs overnight between Pier 80 and Ocean Avenue, West Portal and 19th St.
Caltrain: the 22nd Street mile and the 12:10 am train
Caltrain riders reached the pier from the 22nd Street station on foot. The festival gives the walk as approximately one mile. The last southbound train making all stops to San Jose departed 22nd Street station at 12:10 a.m.
The 22nd Street station is reached by stairs only, from 22nd Street for southbound service and from Iowa Street for northbound service. The station carries no ramps, elevators or escalators. The next accessible stop is San Francisco Caltrain Station, where a rider can transfer to the T Third. Every stop on the T Third between Chinatown and Sunnydale is accessible.
Parking at Caltrain stations cost $5.50 for the day. Caltrain enforces paid parking on weekends and holidays. Permits come from the ParkMobile app or an on-site ticket machine. Caltrain prohibits open alcoholic beverages on the trains from 9 p.m. on special event days and nights.
Rideshare, bike and scooter
The general rideshare drop-off and pick-up zone sat at Pier 70. The festival asked riders to schedule the trip in advance.
Bike Valet was not offered this year. Lyft Bike ran the code PORTOLA26 for a complimentary $5 ride credit, valid from Saturday 26 September until Monday 28 September. The station the page marks closest to the event entrance sits at Illinois St and Cesar Chavez St. A new ebike-only virtual station sits on Illinois St between 23rd and 24th St. Further stations sit at Indiana St and Cesar Chavez St, Evans Ave and Newhall St, Illinois St and 20th St, Iowa St and 22nd St, and Utah St and 25th St. Lime riders park and collect at Illinois St and 24th St.
The second door
The 5th Birthday Despacio Extravaganza was a separate 21-plus event with its own entrance at 401 Cesar Chavez St. The organiser states that this is not the main festival entrance. Doors opened at 5 pm and the party ended at 11 pm.
The second event ran no BART shuttles and published no designated rideshare pick-up or drop-off zone. Its box office, at 401 Cesar Chavez St, opened at 5 pm and ran to close for app and ticket troubleshooting. The route in was the T Third Muni Light Rail or a drop-off at 900 Marin St. Despacio passes were non-refundable and non-transferable, and the organiser required a whole group to arrive together.
The two fixed addresses
The main entrance and the box office sat at 900 Marin St, San Francisco, CA 94124. Box office hours ran 11 am to 9 pm on Saturday and Sunday. The box office took credit and debit cards and refused cash.
Festival parking was not available at Pier 80. The plan page states that in capitals and asks attendees not to drive. The pass page repeats the line for the box office.