Portola Festival Outfits: What to Wear

The dominant aesthetics at Portola Festival are techno black, house, urban and underground. That is the visual language of the site, the stages, the merch, the crowd photos, and outfits that speak it look intentional rather than borrowed.

This is a function-first crowd. Black, utility and good shoes read as insider; heavy glitter and fancy dress read as tourist. Nobody is stopping you, but you will feel it.

What people actually wear: one good layer over a light base, because the temperature halves after sunset.

Best option here: Cushioned trainers or a low boot. You are on concrete for ten hours.

Avoid: brand-new shoes, heels, and anything you have not walked 10 kilometres in.

You will walk between 15.000 and 30.000 steps a day at a festival of this size. Footwear is the only part of a festival outfit that can genuinely end your weekend, so it is the one place to spend money and break things in beforehand.

Once the sun goes down it drops to 14°C (57°F). The standard solution is a layer that lives in your bag all day: an oversized shirt, a light puffer or a fleece. If you are travelling back into town, factor in standing at a shuttle stop or station in that temperature for half an hour.

• Bag size. Most festivals of this size cap bags at roughly A4 or require a clear bag at the main stages. A belt bag plus a small crossbody clears almost every policy. Check the official rules before you buy anything bigger.
• Chains and studs. Long chains, spikes and metal-heavy accessories are refused at some gates. If a piece is central to the look, have a backup.
• Glitter. Biodegradable only at a growing number of festivals; plastic glitter is banned outright at several. It is also, practically, the hardest thing to remove from a tent.
• No camping. You are travelling in and out each day, so the outfit has to survive public transport at both ends, and a cloakroom is not guaranteed.

• Heels of any kind. Grass, gravel and crowd crush. Platform boots give the height with a surface area that works.
• Brand-new shoes. Ten hours on concrete in unbroken-in soles is the most reliable way to leave early.
• Your good bag. Beer, mud, being sat on. Take the one you would not mind losing, with a zip.

• Two tops per day (one gets ruined)
• One layer for the night
• Earplugs
• Refillable water bottle
• Portable charger
• Sun cream or SPF stick
• Baby wipes
• A bag with a zip