SEATTLE — The Taylor Swift Eras Tour is landing in Seattle this weekend and the Emerald City is preparing to host massive crowds of fans from across the globe.
With two sold-out shows at Lumen Field, Seattle is expected to see more than 140,000 ticketed guests and many thousands more in the SODO area. KING 5 has even prepared a guide for what fans need to know about traffic and navigating the city. Seattle appears to be a popular destination for travelers who are crossing the state line and even international borders.
KING 5 connected with fans from far and wide who are coming to Seattle to see Taylor in concert.
A trio from Peace River, Alberta is making the 18-hour drive and say they’re equally excited to take in the American food and shopping they don’t have. “Like fast food and even Target!” said Myah Hills. Fans got the opportunity to buy tickets based of a lottery system, and their choices came down to Seattle and Denver.
Amelia from Costa Rica says her parents are originally from Oregon before they started a non-profit in Costa Rica.
“I was born in Costa Rica but we still have a lot of family in the northwest,” said Amelia.
When she got pre-sale for Seattle she called on her Aunt Kathleen and alerted her the family would be coming.
“I’ve been a fan of Taylor since the beginning and she’s literally been there in all of my moments so we had to see the tour.”
Caitlyn from Melbourne, Australia, felt a similar pull to the concert.
“I just had to get a ticket. Had to happen.” Caitlyn says she’s been to every single Melbourne show and can’t believe she’s crossing the globe by herself to see Swift perform in Seattle. “To get to see her in America is crazy!”
Sisters Patty and Maria bonded over a long haul trip to be a part of the tour in Seattle. Patty drove from Everett to El Paso Texas where she met up with her sister Maria who drove up from Mexico.
“I was at work and screamed, 'I got em!'” said Patty. The sisters met in the middle and drove all the way back to Everett together where they’re preparing to live their “Wildest Dreams” at the concert this weekend.
Nadia and her daughter Ines say they are coming to Seattle for the first time and couldn’t be more excited. “It would have been easier for us to got to Mexico, it’s closer, but my husband surprised us with Seattle.” Nadia is from Guatemala and says she couldn’t believe she and her daughter had the elusive Taylor Swift tickets. “I cried for like a week!”
Some cross-country fans are also headed to Seattle this week.
Megan and her fiancé Nate from Alexandria, Va., say they’re making it a family affair. Megan is originally from western Washington and Nate is from Pennsylvania.
“We actually chose Seattle for our wedding far before the Eras Tour was ever announced,” Megan said.
The perfect “Cruel Summer” started to unfold as Taylor announced she would be in Seattle the weekend before the wedding. “It felt like it was a star-aligning moment even though we are across the country.”
Erin is a busy middle school principal in Buffalo New York and admits she was juggling school duties and Taylor Swift fan anxiety as the lottery for tickets unfolded.
“I got this notification that I was IN!” Erin says a confirmation text message went to her husband's phone and that’s how he found out about the tickets to see Swift in Seattle. “He was like, 'Cool!' and I was like, 'I know!'”
A mom and her daughters are coming from Utah and say they’re most excited to make new friends with the bracelets they’re making. “We’re actually running out of some letters!”
Taylor Swift performs two shows at Seattle's Lumen Field July 22 and 23.
Tickets are sold-out with resellers starting at more than $1,000.