Taylor Swift may not be Juliet, and Travis Kelce may not be Romeo, but a love story is unfolding nonetheless. The first hurdle in their romance may be Swift’s unconfirmed journey to Super Bowl LVII between the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers in Las Vegas, Nevada. The award-winning artist has yet to announce her plans for travel.
Swift is scheduled for a show in Tokyo on Saturday, Feb. 10, a day before the Super Bowl, and in order to make it to the big game, she’ll need to beat the clock.
The Associated Press reports that Swift’s flight from Tokyo to Las Vegas would take 11-12 hours. If she left at midnight on Saturday from Tokyo, because of time zone differences, she would arrive in Las Vegas at 7 a.m.
To see her boyfriend, who stars for the Kansas City Chiefs, Swift is going to have to find a parking spot for her private jet, a Dassault Falcon 900. The aircraft ranges in price from $19 million to $47 million, according to PilotPassion.com.
However, money isn’t the problem; parking availability is what’s causing the dilemma.
All of the airports around Las Vegas have around 475 spaces combined, according to a report by the AP. Not a single parking spot for private jets remains at any of the four airports, as noted by spokesperson for the Clark County Department of Aviation, Heidi Hayes.
Air traffic is expected to be busy. Commercial airlines have added flights and the Las Vegas Airport reported Wednesday, Jan. 30, it accommodated nearly 60 million passengers in 2023, an average of 160,000 passengers per day.
As far as Swift’s travel, she is not shy about using her aircraft. The New Daily reported that Swift’s flights to NFL games this season have created 138 tons of emissions in just three months.
However, a representative for Swift defended her decision, saying the artist offset the pollutants by doubling down on the carbon credits required for her Eras Tour in March. Those credits are tradable units that represent one metric ton of carbon dioxide avoided or removed from Earth’s atmosphere, according to the investment site Sylvera.
Enough with the side talk, Swift needs to find her parking spot.
The AP reported that there are several airports within 100 miles of Las Vegas which allow for “drop-and-go” flights. Essentially, those flights allow pilots to drop off passengers at their destination and then fly to another airport to park.
If Swift were to go the drop-and-go route, she could choose the Mesquite Municipal Airport in Nevada, which is an hour and 13 minutes to Las Vegas, not considering the added traffic from Super Bowl LVII.
If Swift does “touchdown” in Las Vegas due to a spot opening up at one of the four airports, her parking may actually be cheaper than the average person who drives to the stadium. An official at Harry Reid International Airport confirmed to the AP that parking for private planes ranges anywhere from $20 to $150 per day, depending on the size of the plane.
However, it’s unclear if Swift will even make the trip to Super Bowl LVIII, as her journey remains up in the air. The multiplatinum artist had not confirmed whether or not she will attend the sporting spectacle as of Thursday, Feb. 1.
