What Taylor Swift's Eras Tour Says About 'Passion Tourism'

Taylor Swift European tour was Nikita Rao's main concern when she was planning where to go for her family's annual summer vacation.

Rao, her husband and two children, who live in Bethesda, Md., went abroad last weekend; they have tickets to the pop star's concert in Amsterdam on Thursday.

The family planned a weeklong itinerary around The Eras Tour, spending a few days in London before heading to the Netherlands for the show. They likely would have visited both cities at some point in the future, but Swift’s concert accelerated their schedule, said Rao, 43, who also attended a concert in Cincinnati last year with her daughter.

“I thought we should do this in London and Amsterdam because she’s going to be there,” Rao said. “If I can get tickets, it’ll just make the vacation amazing,” she said of her thought process.

Passion tourism revolves (unsurprisingly) around people's passions. While location is also usually important, these trips are usually guide for personal interest, hobby or cultural event, experts said.

This is not a new concept. In fact, there are many recent and upcoming examples: the annual carnival in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in February; the total solar eclipse in April in North America; the 2024 Paris Olympics that begin this month; and the UEFA European Football Championship (known as the Euro Cup) underway in Germany.

“Memorable events drive travel trends, whether it’s concerts or sporting events,” says Mastercard written recently in its annual travel trends report.

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However, what sets Taylor Swift's concerts apart in the realm of passion tourism is the broad interest and enthusiasm of Americans who want to travel abroad, travel agents say.

“I’ve never seen such enthusiasm for traveling to see an artist,” said Jessica Griscavage, travel advisor and founder of Runway Travel.

The most recent example that might come close is a Spice Girls concert in the 1990s, she said.

Griscavage, who put together the Rao family itinerary, also organized a separate Swift-centric trip to Paris for a daughter, mother and grandmother.

More than half of Americans, or 53%, identify as fans Taylor Swift fans, according to a survey by Morning Consult. About 16% of them consider themselves “avid” fans.

“Beyoncé is also a big star, but we don’t usually get requests like, ‘I have tickets to Beyoncé in Europe and we want to plan a trip around that,’” said Sofia Markovich, a travel advisor and founder of Sofia’s Travel.

She arranged trips for two American clients who had tickets to Taylor Swift shows in England and Switzerland, respectively.

“Just as Grateful Dead fans were known for following the band from city to city to be part of a unique community, Swift fans, often accompanied by friends and family, have made traveling to her concerts part of their experience,” said Joshua Friedlander, vice president of research at the U.S. Travel Association. written recently about the so-called “Swift Lift”.

According to a recent analysis by Barclays, around 1.2 million fans will attend a Taylor Swift concert this summer in four UK cities (Edinburgh, Liverpool, Cardiff and London). spend an average of £848 (about $1,073) in tickets, travel, accommodation, clothing and other expenses, totaling £997 million (about $1.3 billion), according to Barclays estimates.

According to Barclays analysis, accommodation is the largest expense after airfare, followed by travel.

Airbnb searches in European cities during Taylor Swift's The Eras tour dates are up about 70% compared to the same period in 2023, according to a recent analysis.

Rome and Paris are traditionally among Americans' favorite destinations abroad. However, it's “inevitable” that Swift fans will find themselves in a city they may have overlooked until now, like Edinburgh, said Christopher Nulty, Airbnb's global head of corporate communications and public affairs.

When tickets went on sale last year for the Edinburgh concert dates, searches for accommodation in the city by Americans jumped by 500 per cent, Nulty said.

A concert “combines the opportunity to travel to an incredible place with the opportunity to see an artist they love,” he said.

The economics of ticket sales also play a role, experts say. Some Swifties who have been priced out of the U.S. market may find it cheaper (or comparable) overall to buy a ticket and add the associated travel costs for a concert abroad.

“Resale tickets in Europe are much more reasonable than in the United States,” said Griscavage, the travel advisor.

Plus, “I think there’s something really exciting about seeing it in a non-American city,” she added. “It’s a fun opportunity and people are willing to pay to see it.”