It’s been a long time coming.
Taylor Swift is set to play the first of six sold out Toronto shows on Thursday at the Rogers Centre.
Tens of thousands of Swifties are expected to flood the streets over the course of her concerts — part of her record-breaking Eras Tour, the first tour in history to gross over $1 billion.
Resale nosebleed tickets for Swift’s opening Toronto show were selling for upwards of $2,000 on Wednesday, though police have warned fans to be wary of scammers.
Swift will go on to perform at the Rogers Centre on Friday and Saturday, then on Nov. 21, 22 and 23. The city said it’s expecting up to 500,000 visitors over the course of her shows.
Excited fans started gathering outside the Rogers Centre early Thursday afternoon. With hours still left before the concert, they’re already singing along to Swift’s discography blasting from loud speakers.
Taylor Swift plays her first of six sold out shows in Toronto Thursday. Fans are gathering downtown to buy merch, trade friendship bracelets, and as CBC’s Chris Glover found out, some are looking to cross the Eras Tour off their bucket list.
The concerts are expected to generate about $282 million for the city, according to Destination Toronto, a non-profit that represents the city’s tourism sector.
Earlier this month, the city revealed signs designating the route from Rogers Centre to Nathan Phillips Square as Taylor Swift Way.
The 22 signs will be auctioned off to raise funds for the Daily Bread Food Bank.
Workshops, fan events planned across city
Fan events planned at venues across Toronto on show dates, such as Taylgate ’24 at the Metro Convention Centre, are expected to bring even more people to the city.
Tay BoBo, a Taylor Swift drag artist, is hosting an Eras Tour drag brunch at O’Grady’s on Church Street this Saturday and again on Nov. 23. She says demand for Taylor Swift drag queens has spiked for these two weeks.
BoBo performed her own three-and-a-half hour Eras-inspired show on Wednesday night — about the same length as Swift’s concert.
“It’s just wanting to provide people with that experience and for myself to live that fantasy as well,” BoBo told CBC’s Metro Morning.
Kara Marie, who is going to Swift’s shows on Thursday and Friday, is hosting friendship bracelet-making workshops at Taylgate ’24 and at The Well this week.
“It brings us together as a community and it’s our symbol to show each other, we’re all Swifties, we’re all in this together,” she said in an interview with Metro Morning.
Marie started an Instagram account, @soloswiftieca, where fans can connect online.
“We’ve all connected so wonderfully, we’re all best friends,” she said. “A lot are going to the shows together that had no friends to go with originally.”
Swiftie Tanya Todd is dressing up as a friendship bracelet for Thursday’s concert, which she’s attending with her family.
She’s also hosting a friendship bracelet-making workshop for One of a Kind Winter Show at Exhibition Place on Nov. 22.
Todd said she watched her two daughters grow up listening to Swift’s music.
“Someone asked me what song am I looking forward to hearing, and I’m actually really looking forward to hearing my kids sing,” she said.
Other fans are hoping they can snag last minute tickets outside the Rogers Centre.
Marsha Stagg stood outside the stadium Thursday holding a sign reading, “We need tickets.”
She flew into Toronto from Halifax in hopes of getting tickets for her and her best friend, who is flying in from Calgary this afternoon and has Stage 4 cancer.
Going to Swift’s show is on her friend’s bucket list, Stheg said.
If Stagg doesn’t get tickets on Thursday, “I’m going to come back tomorrow and hold my little sign up,” she said.
The TTC says it will have extra service on subway lines downtown in the hours before and after the concerts, with no planned closures.
It is also adding extra service to these streetcar routes: 19 Bay, 509 Harbourfront, 510D Spadina and 511 Bathurst.
A full list of transit information and road closures can be found here.
What you need to know about attending the concert
Rogers Centre gates will open at 4:30 p.m, with the show starting at 6:45 p.m. Rising singer-songwriter Gracie Abrams will open all Swift’s Toronto shows.
Ticketholders are not allowed to arrive or line up before 3:30 p.m. on show dates, the stadium says.
“Non-ticketholders should not travel to Rogers Centre and will not be permitted to stand outside the stadium,” the stadium website says.
Ticketholders are allowed to bring one bag, either a clear plastic, vinyl, or PVC tote with maximum dimensions of 12 inches by six inches by 12 inches, or a non-clear bag with maximum dimensions of 4.5 inches by 6.5 inches.
Oversized bags carrying medical devices and breast pumps are allowed.
Outside food and drink are not allowed in the stadium. Fans are allowed to bring one 500-millilitre or less, factory-sealed, soft-sided clear plastic water bottle.
Tens of thousands of Taylor Swift fans are expected to spend a lot of cash throughout six concerts in Toronto. Tourism and hospitality businesses could see an economic boost of almost $300 million.
Other Swiftie events happening in the city:
- Taylgate ’24, Metro Convention Centre, on show dates tickets cost $55.
- A Splash of Swift, Ripley’s Aquarium, included with general admission on show dates.
- T.O. Poets Department, on show dates, free poetry programming by the city along Taylor Swift Way.
- Taylor Swift Trivia, Nov. 15, Glad Day Bookshop, tickets start at $5.
- Taylor Swift Karaoke, Nov. 16, Glad Day Bookshop, admission is free.
- Taylor Swift Drag Brunch, Nov. 16 and Nov. 23, O’Grady’s on Church Street, tickets cost $15.
- One Of A Kind Winter Show (Taylor’s Version), Nov. 22, tickets cost between $13 and $20.