A woman in Louisiana booked 191 hotel rooms for Taylor Swift’s three-weekend concerts in New Orleans. (Source: WVUE)
NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – Good luck to anybody trying to find a hotel in New Orleans this weekend. The vast majority of rooms are booked by attendees of Taylor Swift’s three weekend concerts at Caesars Superdome.
When Swift announced her New Orleans tour stop, Metairie native Rebecca Fox jumped to book hotel rooms. Initially, she asked for 20. But Fox eventually blocked and booked 191 rooms at the Holiday Inn on Loyola Avenue.
“They were extremely apprehensive,” Fox said. “But I think once their marketing and sales person said, ‘I don’t think y’all understand what Taylor can do and will bring to our property,’ they changed their minds. And it’s been exciting ever since.”
Fox attended one of Swift’s concerts in Arizona. She noted the high cost of hotel rooms and saw that in some cases hotels would charge people double after they already booked. Fox said she did not want Swifties in New Orleans to have the same problem. So, she paid nearly $500 per room and managed hundreds of Facebook inquiries for one of her rooms. Fox maintains that she did not upcharge for the rooms and is not making a profit off the bookings.
“We want to make sure that New Orleans is the best and is the most welcoming, the safest, and that they have the best time here,” Fox said.
Tourism leaders say “The Eras Tour” will bring a major economic boost to the city. Hotels are at full occupancy Friday and Saturday nights, and 80 percent full on Sunday.
“This is more than just New Orleans, and more than just the Downtown and French Quarter area,” said Mark Romig with New Orleans & Company. “It’s Uptown, Mid-City, the North Shore, Jefferson Parish, St. Bernard Parish and the surrounding area. Once they get here, they use New Orleans as a base camp and they get out and spend money all around.”
Tourism leaders say it is hard to predict the economic impact of The Eras Tour, but say the boost will ripple across the state.
“They become ambassadors for the city and they’re spending their time on social media, sharing photos and great stories,” Romig said. “It means more and more people will be in the city, and New Orleans does it better than any other city.”
Candice Wright is not a Swiftie, but said she is noticing the build-up ahead of Swift’s three sold-out shows. She said she is looking forward this weekend to seeing the Eras-themed outfits.
“One thing New Orleans is going to do is, you’re going to get a costume, you’ll have some creativity and everyone is going to have a good time,” Wright said.
