Fall is the busiest rave season of the year: two Halloween festivals on the same weekend, EDC Orlando a week later, and Dreamstate before Thanksgiving. Each one has its own mood, and each one publishes its own dress rules. Get the look right and the rules wrong, and you will be changing in the parking lot. Here is both, festival by festival. Escape Psycho Circus, 30-31 October, San Bernardino. The mood: a haunted circus. Escape's own invitation is "Be a freak. Be beautiful. Be your most creative self," and its world is full of fortune-tellers, contortionists and freaks. Think ringmaster jackets over a bodysuit, a creepy-cute clown with a ruffled collar, a fortune-teller in velvet and gold coins, or a tightrope walker in stripes and a tiny top hat. Anything that glows is welcome: glowing costumes and jewelry, LED hoops and poi are allowed. The rules: no costumes that resemble police, fire, security or medical uniforms in any way (hi-vis vests included), no handcuffs, no glass or ceramic masks, no chains, ropes, whips or sharp metal spikes, and nothing that looks like a weapon, real or fake. Full-face makeup is fine only if you are still recognizable from your ID photo. Escape also asks that costumes do not misrepresent race, religion or cultural heritage, and it bans red light-up wands. Freaky Deaky, 30-31 October, Austin. The mood: this year's edition is called The Revival, "an unnatural Halloween weekend of screams, bass, and chaos." Horror is the brief: a zombie prom queen, a possessed porcelain doll (in fabric, not porcelain), a vampire in velvet, or a slasher-movie final girl. The official advice is "party attire" and to "wear your festival colors loud and proud." The rules: your whole costume must come off easily, you must be recognizable from your ID, and batteries must be AA or smaller. No police, fire, military or security costumes, no handcuffs, chains, ropes, whips or metal spikes, no glass or ceramic masks, and no gas masks. Makeup must be dry: liquid makeup is not allowed, but lipstick and gloss are. Good news for light shows: LED gloves and microlights are allowed here. Fanny packs up to 10 by 9 inches and bags up to 12 by 12 inches are fine. EDC Orlando, 6-8 November, Tinker Field. The mood: Under the Electric Sky, with glow-in-the-dark worlds and LED flora. This is where your brightest look belongs: iridescent two-pieces, holographic skirts, a sheer layer over neon, wings, and plenty of glow jewelry. EDC's own philosophy is simple: "However you choose to express yourself, just be you." The rules that catch people out: LED gloves and microlights used for light shows are not allowed at EDC Orlando, and neither is liquid makeup, so switch to powder. Large chains, spiked jewelry and red light-up wands are out too. Sunglasses, hats, sunscreen lotion and small umbrellas (under 10 inches collapsed) are allowed. The festival runs from 1PM to midnight on grass and concrete, so plan for afternoon sun and an evening breeze. Dreamstate SoCal, 20-21 November, Queen Mary, Long Beach. The mood: trance, and Dreamstate describes itself as "a realm of light, feeling, and flow" full of time travelers and space walkers. Go celestial: silver and holographic fabrics, star prints, a sheer cape, chrome makeup, iridescent hair. Long Beach in November can be cool by the water at night, so a statement jacket or faux-fur layer earns its place. The rules: no public-safety or staff-style costumes, no gas masks, no weapons or toy guns, no red light-up wands. Glowing costumes, jewelry, LED poi and hoops are allowed. The rules every one of them shares. Shoes: Escape and EDC both put it plainly, "Comfortable sneakers are the best way to go." Sandals and flip-flops mean sore feet by midnight, and every venue here is concrete, asphalt or grass. Bags: at the Insomniac festivals (Escape, EDC Orlando, Dreamstate) your bag must be clear and no bigger than 12 by 6 by 12 inches, or a clutch no bigger than 6 by 9 inches. Hydration packs are allowed with no more than two main pockets and one small one, and they must be empty at the gate. Free water refill stations are inside. Fabrics: dress for the weather in layers. If you wear heavy fabric or faux fur, drink more water. Sunscreen: lotion, not spray. Aerosols are banned everywhere. ID: bring a physical, government-issued photo ID. Escape, EDC Orlando and Dreamstate do not accept digital IDs, school IDs or photocopies. All four festivals are 18+, and 21+ to drink. Re-entry: there is none at Escape or Freaky Deaky, so whatever you walk in wearing is your look for the night. Photo: a festival main stage at night (Tomorrowland, Belgium) by Adkoby, via Wikimedia Commons, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0).