… Ready for it?
In two weeks, Taylor Swift will be making her way to Downtown New Orleans, and with her, she will bring what local tourism experts predict will be an unprecedented economic boom—both within the Downtown Development District and beyond.
Since the Taylor Swift Eras Tour first began in March 2023, it has significantly boosted the local economy in every city it has visited, and New Orleans hospitality leaders are expecting that the tour’s three-show run (October 25-27) in Caesars Superdome will inspire a similarly positive impact across the Greater New Orleans region.
With somewhere between 80-90% of Eras attendees coming from outside city limits, Downtown hotels will be one space in which this impact is most felt—welcome news for the Louisiana Stadium and Exposition District and Ernest N. Morial New Orleans Exhibition Hall Authority, which both add an additional layer of tax to nightly fees in Orleans Parish hotels.
However, the Swiftie stampede will likely generate an economic wave far outside hotels alone. Restaurants, bars, shops, and entertainment venues are also predicted to see significant spikes in activity and sales over the Eras weekend. In fact, restaurants within 2.5 miles of Swift’s American venues have seen a 68% increase in sales per show day.
Much like spending at hotels, these additional hospitality sales will also generate a local tax revenue boost, as the Exhibition Hall Authority levies a food and beverage tax on establishments with significant sales as well.
“Every visitor that comes in is bringing their dollars from somewhere else and leaving them behind,” said Walt Leger of New Orleans & Company. “These tax dollars are everybody’s favorite type of tax dollars: somebody else’s.”
Visit the article HERE to read more about this so-called “Swift Lift” and continue learning about the economic implications of the Eras Tour in Downtown New Orleans.