Vancouver set to overrun Seattle this weekend for Blue Jays and Taylor Swift

Get ready, Seattle, we’re coming.

Expect big border backups this weekend, as a busy lineup of entertainment in Seattle could see an unprecedented number of Canadians flood the city.

The Toronto Blue Jays are in town for their annual trip to Seattle, which always draws thousands of Canadian baseball fans. Games against the Seattle Mariners routinely sound like Blue Jays home games when Toronto visits T-Mobile Field.

The Mariners have taken advantage of this fact in the past, jacking up prices for when the Blue Jays visit. They even had Blue Jays merchandise for sale in their own team store, but pulled it after a couple Mariners players complained.

But there will be thousands more Canadians in town for another reason: Taylor Swift.

Swifties from far and wide, including from north of the border, are expected to be in attendance at Lumen Field, the home of the Seattle Seahawks, on Saturday and Sunday.

Swift’s Eras Tour still isn’t scheduled to stop in Canada, despite Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s best effort to invite her north.

An economist with the Metropolitan State University of Denver told King-TV in Seattle that Swift’s tour had a $35-40 million economic impact during each night of her tour in Colorado.

“Nothing compares to what we got with Taylor Swift. She is clearly the biggest ever in the history of the US. She has broken all kinds of records, she clearly is now the most popular entertainer, bar none,” the university professor said. “To put it mildly, [Denver] has never seen anything like this before.”

Chicago recently set an all-time record with over 44,000 hotel rooms used each night of Swift’s concert when she visited that city. She performed three times in Chicago, generating $39 million in total hotel revenue.

This just in! 🚨

Chicago set its new all-time record for total hotel rooms occupied!

Thanks to three nights of Taylor Swift, the ASCO Annual Meeting, the James Beard Awards and more.

This isn’t just post-pandemic–we had more rooms filled than ever in Chicago’s history! pic.twitter.com/OqEGB3ZB2C

— Choose Chicago (@ChooseChicago) June 7, 2023

Seattle hotel bookings have spiked, which is to be expected, but the current prices might still surprise you.

The cheapest available hotel room on Expedia in downtown Seattle on Saturday is C$1,404. And that’s for a modest 2.5-star hotel in Belltown.

Many from BC will be driving across, though trains and buses remain an option.

But the train option is limited.

Amtrak is showing sold-out trips from Vancouver to Seattle for all of its morning departure times on Friday and Saturday, with only trains that get you to Seattle by 10:10 pm left.

See you on the I-5, everybody.

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