Happy New Year to my fellow readers!
I am looking forward to a fresh start in 2025. Last year had been a whirlwind of challenges, from the heavy demands of work, to dealing with family health issues and other losses. Needless to say, traveling ended up taking a backseat. One bright spot I want to highlight was a trip I took to see Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour in Dublin. Funnily enough, the planning for the trip actually kicked off in the summer of 2023, when the Eras Tour was first announced.
Going to the Eras Tour in….Dublin?
I’ve long been a fan of Taylor Swift’s music, having attended several of her concerts including Fearless, Speak Now, Red. They were always a treat since I like how Taylor blended her music and storytelling together. Back then, prices were affordable. As she gained in popularity over the years, so did the demand for her concert tickets…along with soaring prices.
When the Eras Tour was announced, my brother expressed an interest in buying tickets for a show in the states for his birthday. I didn’t want to pay through the roof for nosebleed seats on the secondary markets. So instead…we flew over to Dublin to attend the Eras Tour, with a stopover to Reykjavík, Iceland (which is a bucket list destination)
Wait, how did you snag these tickets?
That’s a common question since a Eras Tour ticket was such a hot commodity. The answer? I threw my hat in the ring for a chance to buy them. One of my relatives thought I “won” the tickets, to which I had to clarify that I only won the chance to “buy” tickets. Going into it, I had little expectations. My preference was for a concert in the states, though I was willing to travel. If I “win”, great. If I don’t, I guess I won’t be going. One thing was certain: I had no desire to pay exorbitant prices for nosebleed seats.
Given that I had flexibility in where I want to see Taylor in concert, I registered for both the domestic and international drawings. Then, I waited like everyone else. When the results started rolling in, I wasn’t surprised that I was “not selected” or “wait-listed” for most of them.
…until I received an email for the Dublin draw. Apparently, I was selected!
The Longest Queue Ever Seen
I thought I’d have a shot at getting tickets; then came news about Ticketmaster website crashing under the weight of all the frenzy. Even my brother had some doubts that I can secure tickets, but I was more optimistic. I got selected, after all!
On the big day, I set my alarm just before 5am EST (10am Dublin time). Apparently, there were some 67,841 people ahead of me. Never have I seen (or been) in a queue this long. I thought to myself, “welp, at this rate, all the tickets will be gone by the time it’s my turn”.
VIP Packages Only Left for Sale?
I decided to wait it out and let the website refreshed, half expecting that the site will crash on me. Yet, lo and behold, it was finally my turn after 1+ hour later. The only tickets left were VIP packages. There were not what I wanted; I didn’t want “extra” things to jack up a concert ticket price.
For some reason, my brother is convinced that this will be the last big concert hurrah for Taylor before she “settles down”. On the one hand, it would be unique to hear Taylor’s discography live (through the Eras). It would also be an adventure to visit Dublin and Reykjavik.
It was game time decision.
I was already booted out once for trying to search seats so I didn’t want to push my luck. Since the ticket option were constantly pointing to Blk126, I bit the bullet and hit “Purchase”.
High Demand for Accommodation
Getting the tickets was only the first step, securing a place to stay was next. I can see the impact from the boon the concert brought to the host city, when I found that a majority of hotels near Aviva Stadium were in high demand. A good of number were selling ONLY non-refundable rooms.
Eventually, I found a hotel with cancel-able rates. For my part, I couldn’t commit to non-refundable rates given that we hadn’t booked our flights. Generally, I don’t recommend non-refundable bookings just because life happens. Plan changes.
Pre-Concert VIP Merchandise Pickup
Since I purchased a VIP package, it comes with a VIP merchandise that must be picked up in person at a designated location.
There was a merchandise location where any Swifties (even if you didn’t have tickets) can buy merch. Frankly, I find most of merch to be overpriced (especially since I do crafting as a hobby). A t-shirt at $50-$55 and a sweatshirt at $80-$85 is an overkill. In that regards, I think Taylor could take better care of her fans here — make pricing more accessible to fans which should drive up sales volume.
Concert Day
There were clear instructions to not arrive early on the day of concert so we took our time with…
Lunch
My brother and I walked to the Aviva Stadium and came across a local Japanese restaurant. The restaurant was bustling at near full capacity during a late lunch hour, which is another clear sign of the boom the concert brought to local businesses.
We inquired if a table is available. A staff was upfront and apologized that they didn’t, but he informed us that they had a reserved table/party that will be there in 45 minutes. They didn’t want to rush our dining experience but he can give that table to us if the timeframe works. We had no intention to taking our sweet time at the restaurant as we want to get to the stadium. We also knew that there weren’t many sit down places nearby that’s not booked so we happily agreed.
Lucikly, food came out very quickly and we enjoyed a full meal before the concert. They thanked us again for dining with them when we left (and on time). It worked out pretty well.
Vibe Near the stadium
The vibe was very positive and excited. You have friends hanging out and everyone were excited about the concert. Plenty of people exchanged friendship bracelets. Even for those who got single tickets, there was nothing to worry about.
Better seats than expected
Upon arriving at the seat block in the Stadium, I remembered thinking, “Wow, I think we actually got some great seats. I didn’t our seats are that close to the stage”. Our seats were in Row G, or 7 rows on the front section. It was a good feeling to see that our seats/views were better than what I had anticipated.
Of course, I think the best seats in the house are the ones facing the stage, even if they are in the middle section.
A Memorable Experience
Was the concert tickets a significant expense? Absolutely. The trip expenses also added up, but we also had a good trip visiting Reykjavik (I had to cut short my trip to Dublin, unfortunately).
Who knows if Taylor will continue to perform on a global scale, or scale back after such an epic tour?
What I do know is that the Eras Tour – which showcased her music and the evolution through the “Eras” with many well-known hits – would be hard to top.
I also know – all too well – that the memories created from this experience: Priceless.
Short Video of Taylor from the concert view
Here’s one short video of a clip I took at the concert:
How much did you end up paying for the tickets to the concert?