Taylor Swift lands in Sydney: Luxury penthouse, Kelce catch-up touted before Sydney sellouts
Shaking off a fierce storm which delayed her private jet landing, Tay Tay has hit Sydney for four sequined sellout Sydney concerts. Where will she stay and will Travis join her?
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The wildest dreams of thousands of fans have come true: Taylor Swift has jetted into Sydney, shaking off a delay thanks to a monster storm, then pulling a swifty on her Sydney supporters.
Wide-eyed fans, eager to meet or even catch a glimpse of the superstar performer as she landed were left disappointed and soaking wet after waiting hours at the airport for a glimpse of the singer, to no avail.
Not even the pilot on the plane was able to see more than Swift’s leg on board the jet, let alone the pack of supporters braving the torrential rain, lightening and thunder behind closed gates.
After three sellout concerts in front of a total of 260,000 adoring fans the American singer — wearing a red top and white hat — boarded her private before midday in Melbourne.
The jet landed in the private jet base in Sydney — but not before a few issues with a Sydney summer storm.
But the jet ran into some issues on its journey to Sydney, according to those tracking her flight, as wild storms lashed the city.
The superstar departed Melbourne about midday on Monday ahead of her next four-day run of shows in her Eras Tour, and landed at Kingsford Smith Airport just before 1.30pm.
The flight was delayed by at least 20 minutes, with more than 3000 fans watching on a FlightRadar24.
Swift joined a convoy of cars to take up residence in the double level penthouse at Crown in Barangaroo.
But it’s understood that Swift’s security team has also booked secure private accommodation elsewhere because of the rising hysteria of fans.
The eastern suburbs mansion, with private tennis court and pool, is not overlooked and will allow her time for a “dead day” to recover from performing in front of the largest crowds in her career.
Businesses in Sydney are gearing up for a week of Swift-mania that is expected to provide a $130 million economic bump.
WHISKED AWAY
At the airport, an armed Australian Federal Police presence in high-vis parked outside the entrance to the ExecuJet runway where Swift landed, as a lively group of fans stood with their handpainted signs, Chiefs NFL jerseys, Swift-like outfits, posters and even their dogs.
Despite best efforts to spot the Lover singer, fans were informed about an hour after the jet landed that Swift had been whisked away under umbrellas to her accommodation and had left the terminal.
Taylor Swift super-fan, 8-year-old Vivienne Garrett and mother Brooke were among the group, standing with a pink bedazzled guitar.
“I’m here to see Taylor Swift,” Vivienne said.
The pair were unable to secure tickets to the singer’s sellout tour shows in Sydney.
“This (seeing Swift in person) was the deal for not being able to get tickets,” Brooke said.
Zoe Dick and Beatrice Nancarrow-Abbas stood in puddles with no jackets or umbrellas for Swift to arrive.
“We found out Taylor was coming (today) and we were literally freaking out,” Ms Dick said.
“We are big fans.
“We couldn’t get tickets so this is literally like everything to us,” Ms Nancarrow – Abbas said.
SHIELDED
Back in Melbourne as the flight was boarded, footage from Channel 7, posted to social media platform X showed Swift’s entourage raising umbrellas in a bid to shield the superstar from view as she boarded the plane.
WHAT HAS TAYLOR GOT PLANNED?
Ready for it? Taylor Swift has finished her Victorian warm up and is on her way to Sydney for four sequined sellout concerts this weekend.
More than 320,000 fans have tickets to the concerts at Accor Stadium with thousands more desperate to get a glimpse of their idol.
Security has been stepped up at the Crown in Barangaroo with many fans speculating she will stay in the luxury two level $25,000 a night penthouse which boasts its own open air hot tub and infinity pool.
Taylor Swift has farewelled Melbourne after three sold-out MCG shows to nearly 300,000 adoring fans.
— 7NEWS Melbourne (@7NewsMelbourne) February 19, 2024
The pop megastar has just boarded a flight believed to be headed to Sydney, ahead of four more blockbuster performances at Accor Stadium. https://t.co/5zYfOfGqUb#7NEWSpic.twitter.com/dbvla3dY2X
The speculation has been fuelled by reports that Swift stayed in the Presidential Villa at the six-star hotel’s sister property, Crown Towers in Melbourne.
However The Daily Telegraph understands that Swift’s security team has also booked secure private accommodation elsewhere because of the rising hysteria of fans.
A Crown spokesperson refused to confirm or deny if or when the Cruel Summer singer would be arriving.
“Because of our guest privacy policy, we can’t discuss if anyone is staying at Crown for privacy reasons,” she said.
But there is no guarantee Swift will come straight to Sydney after finishing the third and final Melbourne concert in her global Eras tour last night.
In-between tour legs, Swift told Time she recovers with a ‘dead day’.
“I do not leave my bed except to get food and take it back to my bed and eat it there,” she said. “It’s a dream scenario. I can barely speak because I’ve been singing for three shows straight. Every time I take a step my feet go crunch, crunch, crunch from dancing in heels. But it’s the most fulfilled I’ve ever felt.”
That still leaves three days before she pulls on the cowboy boots in Sydney for the first of four concerts on Friday night. After her last Japan concert she jetted to Las Vegas to watch boyfriend Travis Kelce and his Kansas City Chiefs win the NFL Superbowl before jetting into Melbourne to perform the first show on Friday.
Now Kelce has fuelled speculation he is coming to Australia on his podcast saying he was “about to go f***ing venture myself over to an island here soon”. Asked where that island might be he said the best ones are “south”.
That could mean Australia or more specifically one of the Barrier Reef islands in Queensland which are just a short hop when your girlfriend has a private jet ticking away on the tarmac.
In 2015 after her 1989 tour Swift stayed at Qualia on Hamilton Island which has a secluded beach house designed to keep prying eyes at bay.
That is more likely than some of her stops during her earlier years in Australia in 2009 when she played The Factory Theatre in front of 400 people in Marrickville and the Friday Flat Bar and Bistro in Thredbo.
However Kelce appears to be in no rush, on Saturday he was spotted driving his Rolls Royce to get lunch with a friend in Kansas City.
Wherever Swift chooses to go it will send bookings and tourism revenue skyrocketing. The star’s Swift effect on economies has even been noted by the US Federal Reserve and is expected to pump $130 million into the NSW economy.
NSW Tourism Minister John Graham said the arrival of one of the world’s biggest star’s was setting Sydney alight.
“We are ready to welcome more than 100,000 visitors to Sydney for Taylor Swift. I know that they will remember her spectacular show, and their time in Sydney, All Too Well,” Mr Graham said.
“Taylor Swift is a Mastermind of entertainment, an absolute phenomenon, and four straight sold-out stadium shows is going to see audiences Enchanted as the Love Story between Taylor and Australia continues.”
Mr Graham is clearly a Swiftie himself, incorporating names of her songs into his statement.
“We want to show Taylor that Everything Has Changed, in a good way, since she was last here,” he said. “With the recent vibrancy reforms the NSW Government has said ‘Shake It Off’ to the lock out laws, and is focused on supercharging night-life and events and bringing back live music in venues big and small by providing the incentive of extra trading hours for hosting live performance. Welcome, Taylor and all her Swifties – let’s show them why Sydney has the best Style.”
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Originally published as Taylor Swift lands in Sydney: Luxury penthouse, Kelce catch-up touted before Sydney sellouts
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