CELEBRITY
I flew from LA to Paris to see Taylor Swift. I was only in the city for 48 hours but it was worth it and easier than I expected.
I’m not exactly what you would call a Swiftie — so why did I fly 11 hours each way from Los Angeles to Paris for a couple of days just to see Taylor Swift on the opening weekend of the latest leg of her record-shattering Eras Tour?
For one, my soon-to-be mother-in-law invited me on a girls’ trip and bought great tickets. Two, because I have been a fan of Swift’s for years. (I saw her open for Rascal Flatts in 2008. Yes, open!) And three, because, well, who wouldn’t want to see the biggest pop star of her generation at the top of her game?
In 2023, Swift’s Eras Tour was estimated to have generated more than $1 billion in ticket sales, the most ever for a tour. Even her film adaptation of the show drew in $250 million, making it the highest grossing concert film of all time. And in the US alone, the Eras Tour was estimated to have generated $5 billion in economic impact.
Taylor Swift is an event, and I didn’t want to miss it.
Flying nonstop from LA to Paris on Air France was a breeze
I flew from LA to Paris on Thursday, May 9, and only had to take two days off work — not bad for a trip to Europe. My Air France flight left LAX at 3:20 p.m. and was scheduled to land in Paris the following day, Friday, at 11:15 a.m. local time.
I had an aisle seat in Premium Economy. While nothing like the first-class cabin, where the seats fully reclined into a flat bed, the premium economy seats were wider, had more leg room, and reclined a bit further than the seats in the main cabin. It also had a footrest that could be extended out.
At the start of the flight, Air France offered complimentary glasses of Champagne to all passengers, which I passed on. During dinner, I did have a free glass of red wine, which to my surprise, was actually pretty good.
Dinner was served less than two hours after takeoff. I had mushroom ravioli, which was served with a salad, soft French cheese, biscuits, a roll, and cheesecake — all of which were much better than what I’m used to having on flights. There was coffee and tea service after dinner, which came with a piece of dark chocolate.