Spanning nearly two years, 51 cities and 21 countries, the biggest tour in history officially came to an end this past weekend in Vancouver.
As the semester draws to a close, emotions are running high. While some are overwhelmed by finals and the weight of impending deadlines, others, like myself, spent the last weekend before Christmas break tuned into a grainy livestream for the final time, watching Taylor Swift perform “Long Live” at her last show of The Eras Tour.
The significance of this moment wasn’t just personal—it felt like the entire world of Swifties was holding its breath and wiping tears, thus marking the end of something unforgettable.
Spanning two years, 51 cities and 21 countries, Taylor Swift’s The Eras Tour brought over 10 billion fans together across 149 shows, from March 2023 to December 2024.
It was Swift’s first tour since 2018’s Reputation Stadium Tour—though she had originally planned to tour in 2020 following the release of Lover before the pandemic hit. Since then, she’s released three new albums and two rerecorded albums, each of which added to the anticipation and legacy of The Eras Tour.
Prior to the Tour, Swift said that people would often and jokingly ask if she was just planning to mash all her recently released albums into one tour and she said “that’s exactly what I’m going to do” as she took her fans on a journey through not only those four years since she last toured, but rather a rollercoaster through her last 18 years in the music industry, which birthed her idea for the beloved Eras Tour; a journey through the joys, the heartbreak, and the healing across her illustrious career.
Even as the Tour came to a close this year, it continued to evolve, adding new twists and turns. Since starting the Tour, the pop star released three more albums — “Speak Now (Taylor’s Version),” “1989 (Taylor’s Version)” and “The Tortured Poets Department.” And despite an already 41-song show, which lasted over three hours long, Swift managed to move things around and make room for a 20-minute set dedicated to her latest album, full of skits, new choreography, and brand new songs.
Along the way, Swift introduced surprise music videos and brought out special guests—including her Super Bowl-winning boyfriend, Travis Kelce. Between shows she cheered on “the guy on the Chiefs” as fans all over the world fell in love with their storybook romance.
While The Eras Tour broke several records along the way, becoming the highest-grossing tour in history with a total of over $2.07 billion, it represented more than just stats and an economic boost to several different countries.
It was legendary, but yet momentary.
And despite the two years of performances, the release of a movie, and countless memories shared on social media, it’s hard to fathom that it’s all over.
A Real Legacy To Leave
While I had the privilege to attend Night 2 of the Los Angeles show, the lasting effects of the Eras Tour stretched far and beyond just my three-hour show. I spent several shifts at FOX Sports, the National Football League and many moments in class updating Twitter for the surprise songs, celebrity sightings, and feel good stories to feed the addiction.
I had notifications on for all of her shows, knowing exactly when the acoustic set was coming up. I had my perfectly curated Speak Now Era themed outfit for the show planned months in advance, asking everyone I knew going to the shows what Era they were going as. I had a running list, at one point, keeping track of each song she had played in her surprise set, in anticipation that she would somehow play “Crazier” during my show.
I made friendship bracelets for months, not just for the concert, but to share with my friends at school and with my little sister who once danced to Fearless in my childhood bedroom. The Eras Tour made me feel like that 9-year-old girl again—the one who discovered Taylor Swift and coined her the older sister I never had.
I cried probably seven different times during my show over things such as realizing she’s truly, actually real and in the same room as me, hearing some of my favorite childhood songs live and sharing an unforgettably special moment with the little girl behind me as we held hands during our favorite era (Speak Now), dancing in our shiny, shimmering purple dresses.
I share these stories without shame because, as Taylor herself taught us:
“The worst kind of person is someone who makes someone feel bad, dumb or stupid for being excited about something.” ~ Taylor Swift.
The Eras Tour was a hug to your younger self, a chance to take off the layers of hardship and difficulty of reality, even if it was just for three hours. It was an escape from reality that everyone deserved to experience.
But don’t just take it from me. Here are the stories of students at APU who also experienced the magic of the Eras Tour:
Emma O’Dell, ‘25 (Vegas Night 2, LA Night 2 & 3)
“I went with my childhood best friends and with all of us in school or working, we are so busy we barely see each other. The Eras Tour brought me back to being 8 with them singing to shake it off. I think the most surreal moment was hearing You’re On Your Own Kid. We cried and hugged each other and I’m forever thankful for the Eras Tour giving us that moment.”
Valery Aguilar, ‘25 (Night 1 & 6 in LA, Night 5 in London)
“It was an unforgettable experience that I will treasure forever. I’m eternally grateful to have been a part of this tour, where I felt so safe, seen, and surrounded by a community that understands the power of music to heal and unite. The energy at every show was electric, and it reminded me of the power of community, storytelling, and the way Taylor’s music has shaped our lives. The legacy of the Eras Tour will undoubtedly be one of inclusivity, empowerment, and the celebration of all the different stages of life we go through. I’ll carry these memories with me always, knowing they’ve shaped not only my connection to Taylor’s music but also to a worldwide family of fans.”
Saundri Luippold, ‘25 (Night 2 in LA)
“I have so much love for Taylor and the Eras Tour! Her concerts truly bring people together in such a positive way to the point that I don’t even think anyone can fully explain. Words won’t do it justice, you simply have to experience what it’s like to be at her show, immersed in her world, and somehow even though there are 75,000 people screaming in a room, it feels like it’s just you and Taylor and the story she’s telling. I’ll always be so grateful that I got to go and I’ll 100% tell my kids about it (I so cried during long live).” Same Saundri.
Sarah Wilson, ‘26, (Night 5 in LA)
“Being able to experience the wonder of the eras tour was such a blessing as I got to go through each era as it represented a different time in my childhood up to now. I think this tour showed the power of music to reach so many despite their age, gender, or musical preferences. I know many who knew nothing about Taylor going in and were just there with a loved one, but left being a Swiftie and having a greater appreciation for her, her music, and the industry as a whole. The tour will leave an incredible legacy of female empowerment and the impact a woman can have, not only on all the fans, but on the whole economy.”
Ella Benjamin, ‘27, got to experience the “Swift Quake” in Seattle at Night 2.
“The Eras Tour was super special for me because I went with family and friends and we were screaming at the top of our lungs singing together, and it brought us all back to when we were young. I’m so grateful I got through the ticketmaster situation and scored tickets. I think it will forever leave a mark on pop culture for being one of the greatest tours ever.”
Taylor Whisler, ‘26,(Night 5 in LA)
“Throughout the concert, I had to stop, pinch myself, and remember that I was actually there. It feels like I was able to watch history unfold because being together just made you feel like you were a part of something special. I have been to many other concerts, but none of them have been as impressive as the Eras Tour…It was a night that I will never forget.”
David Hays, who attended LA Night 5 with his girlfriend said his biggest takeaway was the seven-minute standing ovation fans gave Swift after every Champagne Problems performance and said he also really enjoyed the bracelet exchanges. He added, “Taylor Swift has a bunch of good songs. The fact that it was the Eras Tour shows that she was able to sing so many songs, uniting both old and new fans to form a community behind the artist.”
Emily Wahl, ‘25, (Santa Clara Night 2)
“The Eras Tour was amazing because it became so real to be the sweeping feeling of girlhood: I felt safe, understood, comfortable, and loved being a part of that tour. The fans made me feel accepted and I’m convinced this movement is much bigger than our time period. It was truly the start of something big.”
The Final Acoustic Set Analyzed
Now I want to pivot into the Final Show itself because it was the most raw moment of reflection I think I had seen from Swift throughout the Tour.
While some fans were anticipating the potential announcement of Reputation (Taylor’s version) or a tour documentary, in the end it was Taylor Swift and her contagious joy bouncing around the stage with pure bliss, soaking it all in one final time.
For her surprise acoustic set, she pulled from the archives and played a ballad she wrote when she was just 13 years old: “A Place in this World” mashed with “New Romantics.” Then she sat at her piano, took a breath and shared her gratitude to the fans in the best way she knows: through her music.
To many’s anticipation, she played “Long Live” which she wrote about her fans in 2010, following her first ever tour. But then she put her own twist on it, tugging at the heartstrings of thousands within the arena, the hundreds outside the stadium, and the hundreds of thousands more watching through their screens on a grainy livestream one final time. She slightly adjusted the lyrics to fit the moment, singing, “It was the end of an era/But the start of an age” before mashing the song with “New Years Day” and “The Manuscript,” as if she was talking straight to us Swifties.
Following similar themes as “Long Live,” “New Years Day” represents the end of something good and true while serving as a reminder to “Hold on to the memories/They will hold on to you.” The memories of “glitter on the floor after the party / Girls carrying their shoes down in the lobby” reminiscent of the feelings of girlhood within The Eras Tour.
And while that would have been enough to keep Swifties crying for weeks, she made one final transition into “The Manuscript,” her most recent song released and the last song of her Tortured Poets Department: The Anthropology Album.
As a heart wrenching ending to the song, Swift sang: “The only thing that’s left is the manuscript / One last souvenir from my trip to your shores / Now and then I reread the manuscript / But the story isn’t mine anymore.” As her final show of the tour, she seems to allude to the fact that while she would love to live in this Era of bliss and joy within the Tour, she also knows that all good things must come to an end. While the other two songs share the clinging to memories and keeping a place in your heart for the tour, she seems to give permission to her fans to move on, alongside her into a new era.
It was the End of An Era, But the Start of An Age
So, where do Swifties go from here?
I had and still am having a hard time fathoming that The Eras Tour has officially come to an end. I’ll miss the wild mashups she would somehow make work so seemlessly. I’ll miss the backup dancers’ TikToks as they traveled the globe, trying new foods, and sharing their outfits on their off days. I cried when Swift made her official goodbye post for the Eras Tour.
I took some time to figure out what made me so emotional about the end of this Era.
I realized that while we have seen Taylor Swift from afar for years, this felt like more than just a concert connecting us to her but it was something that connected us to one another. While Taylor Swift taught us that we can do it with a broken heart, it was through her Tour that we got to celebrate pure joy and bliss around the people we loved, also sharing the moment with people they loved. It was a celebration of girlhood, telling each other you loved their outfit and their creativity. It was the connectedness we all yearned for following COVID and in such divisive, polarized times.
But while the Eras Tour ends, Swift, in her Eras Tour book, shared her hopes for us in the New Age:
“You lifted the spirits of those around you with your intricate and clever costumes and outfits. You made people feel included by making friendship bracelets and friends, teaching each other our little tour traditions, and looking out for each other. I heard so many people say that the Eras Tour felt like a safe space. A place for radical girlhood, boyhood or personhood and unapologetic joy…It was for everyone, because you made everyone feel included. My hope is that you won’t let that behavior end with the end of The Eras Tour. It doesn’t have to be the end of an era of joy and acceptance. My hope is that you find ways to create these spaces around you in your daily life, your school, your job. That would be a real legacy to leave.”