If you’ve been on TikTok in the last few months, you probably witnessed the Euro Summer. A glitzy, glamorous daily update of your favorite microinfluencer’s PTO, the Euro Summer showcases the Pinterest board aesthetic of travel. But unlike previous summers, thousands of videos have showcased a surprise guest on the creator’s trip—Taylor Swift.

Ticketmaster left U.S. fans disappointed

The American Ticketmaster debacle that left fans without tickets and bots with front row seats was bad news for U.S. fans, but good news for those looking for an excuse to book their own Euro trip, as fans realized that seeing Swift abroad could be more attainable — and even cheaper — than seeing her in the United States.

At the time of writing this article, the least expensive StubHub ticket for Friday, October 25th in New Orleans, LA was a cool $1977 USD, while a comparable ticket in Warsaw, Poland was listed for just $127 USD. For many American Swifties who wanted to catch The Eras Tour, a round-trip ticket to Europe plus concert tickets still ended up being cheaper than buying resold tickets in the United States. For others, price wasn’t the deciding factor — it was possibility.

Leah Phillips, a longtime Swiftie, tried every method possible to see Swift in the U.S.

“[My friends and I] failed miserably in the presale, the Capital One presale, and the general onsale. We entered giveaways, called into radio stations, scouted Twitter and Facebook, everything for months,” Leah said.

She and her friends were committed to seeing The Eras Tour, even dressing up and traveling to Gillette Stadium without any tickets in hand for the chance to see Taylor’s landmark tour.

Leah said, “We had the intention of buying last minute tickets, and we almost each spent $1500 on a nosebleed behind the stage ticket… but we didn’t. There were lots of tears but we danced in the rain with the crowd outside the stadium for a bit which was still a wholesome experience.”

When Leah and her friends realized they wouldn’t be able to see Swift in her home country, they decided to fully commit to a European trip — and they weren’t alone in that decision. Reuters found that flights to Warsaw, Poland increased 339% in the days surrounding The Eras Tour, and who could forget the report that Americans bought 20% of the Paris Eras Tour tickets?

A Swiftie Euro Summer

But for many Swifties, Tayism goes further than a memorable stop during a Euro Summer. Taylor Swift fans are nothing if not extremely dedicated. And where fervent religiosity has a thick wallet, tourism thrives.

Last September, the U.S. Travel Association estimated that Swifties spent over $10 billion across the country in spending related to The Eras tour. The organization noted that the figure “includes indirect spending as well as spending by others who came to join the action around the events but did not actually attend the shows.”

Following the first U.S. leg, Swift has toured four additional continents, with fans coming from across the globe to see her perform — fans like Leah.

Leah said, “When Taylor announced her European tour dates, we said we were going to sign up for every show and whichever one we got a code to, we were going for, and that ended up being Amsterdam! […] We got floor [tickets] in the presale for only $200, and I’ll proudly say I was at work when it happened and I fully started sobbing [because] it was so surreal.”

Swifties flocked to London destinations

The fervor that surrounds Tayism can only be described as religious pilgrimage. Swifties not only want to see Taylor herself in concert, but travel to the places she’s been. Everything Taylor touches turns to gold. Historically, fans flocked to the site of a Nashville mural because it contained things she liked — they’d correctly guessed that Taylor was behind the piece.

More recently, London, commonly featured in Swift’s songs, has seen Swiftie fever pop up across its cultural offerings. Pop into ball pit-themed Shoreditch bar Ballie Ballerson on a Saturday afternoon, and you’ll see groups of birthday girls, bachelorettes, and everyday fanatics dancing along to Taylor’s greatest hits, alongside performers impersonating Taylor and her boyfriend, Travis Kelce.

Other options for your Eras Tour week included: a Taylor-themed afterparty “five minutes away from Wembley Stadium”, a Taylor-themed silent disco at chain bookstore Waterstones, or any of the multi-city Swiftogeddon club nights, designed so you can “worship at the altar of Taylor Swift.”

While groupies aren’t a new concept, Tayism shifts the concertgoer from simply enjoying a fun show to experiencing the gift of being in Taylor’s presence, a place she has been, or a place she’s written about in one of her songs.

One such place in London is the pub The Black Dog, mentioned in recent release The Tortured Poets Department. Swift sings, “I watch as you walk / Into some bar called The Black Dog / And pierce new holes in my heart”.

The Vauxhall establishment, which until this spring was a quiet neighborhood pub, now boasts 9K Instagram followers and has an entire merchandise shop dedicated to the song. 

Following the release of Swift’s eleventh studio album, marketing director Amy Crowley told People, “We’ve had people […] from the States, Spain, Germany and Australia. It’s been far-reaching.”

Along with the variety of fans, The Black Dog saw an influx of the number of visitors.

Crowley added, “Every single day since the album has been released we’ve had to turn people away as we’re at max capacity, so that shows the levels that we’re talking about.”

The future of Tayism

It’s been a staggering five hundred and change days for The Eras Tour, and every city it’s touched has seen Taylor fans take over their streets. Kicking off March 17, 2023, the international tour has gone to 17 states and 21 countries at the time of this article, with Swift on track to make eight additional stops before the tour concludes at the end of the year.

While The Eras Tour may be nearing its end, Tayism isn’t likely to end anytime soon. With Americans returning from Euro Summer, they may return to Cornelia Street, hit the beach in Rhode Island, or perhaps even book a timeshare in Destin, Florida. Whatever is next for Taylor Swift, it’s fair to say her disciples will be right behind her, swiping credit cards as they go.