Swiftmania hits Warsaw with Eras Tour concerts expected to bring city €44 million

Poland’s capital of Warsaw is bracing for the impact of “Swiftmania” this week, as superstar singer Taylor Swift prepares to play three concerts in the city as part of her Eras Tour. It is the first time she will perform in Poland.

As with other cities that have hosted the tour, Warsaw is experiencing an economic boost from the arrival of “Swifties”, as the star’s fans are known, with accommodation prices soaring this week.

However, there are also concerns over potential disruption, especially as the first concert takes place on the anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising, which is a major commemoration in the city. The mayor has called a crisis team to prepare for potential difficulties.

Swift will appear for three consecutive nights, starting on Thursday 1 August, at PGE Narodowy, Poland’s national stadium, which has a capacity of around 73,000 for the concerts. Over 600,000 people registered for tickets, with prices ranging from 199 zloty (€46) to 2,250 zloty (€525).

Polish broadcaster TVN reports that up to a fifth of tickets at Swift’s concerts in Europe have been bought by Americans, and that Warsaw will be no exception.

The city’s chamber of commerce estimates that around a quarter of those attending the three shows will be from outside Poland and that they will spend around 190 million zloty (€44 million) during their stay in the country.

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Last month, Euronews reported that European cities hosting Swift concerts will see an average 44% rise in hotel prices on those dates but that Warsaw, with a rise of 154%, had the continent’s biggest increase.

Polish news website Onet notes that Booking.com, a popular global accommodation website, shows no vacancies at any hotels and hostels near the venue on the nights of the concerts and that 80% of accommodation across the city as a whole is booked up.

Wirtualna Polska, another news website, reports that the price on Airbnb of apartments near the venue are around five times higher at the time of the concerts than a week later.

The arrivals of tens of thousands of Swifties this week has also, however, raised concern, particularly as the first of the three concerts coincides with the 80th anniversary of the Warsaw Uprising on 1 August.

That is one of the largest annual commemorations in Warsaw, with sirens sounding around the city at 5 p.m. and people gathering to wave flags and light red flares. There are fears that this could clash with fans travelling to the concert.

“The mayor has called a crisis team on this matter,” city hall’s spokeswoman, Monika Beuth, told the Super Express newspaper. “We are thinking about how to ensure safe transport for thousands of guests.”

The municipal authorities have also asked the concert’s main organiser, PGE Narodowy, to send information to all ticket holders warning them about the sounding of sirens and gathering of crowds to mark the anniversary.

Main image credit: Paolo V/Wikimedia Commons (under CC BY 2.0)

Daniel Tilles

Daniel Tilles is editor-in-chief of Notes from Poland. He has written on Polish affairs for a wide range of publications, including Foreign Policy, POLITICO Europe, EUobserver and Dziennik Gazeta Prawna.