How to fly to both Taylor Swift’s concert and the Super Bowl – The Points Guy
Ever since the Kansas City Chiefs clinched a spot in the Super Bowl in Las Vegas, there’s been no shortage of chatter about the travel plans of one Taylor Swift. This is because she has been in the stands (or the private suite, at least) at many Chiefs games this season in support of star tight end Travis Kelce.
Given her attendance throughout the season, it’s natural to assume she’d want to be in person to support him at the biggest football game of the year in less than two weeks in Las Vegas. But there’s a challenge.
Swift has a concert in Tokyo the night before the afternoon Super Bowl kickoff in Las Vegas. Add that commitment to the 12 hours or so of flying time required between Tokyo and Las Vegas, and those hoping to see Swift cheering Kelce on from the stands may start to worry that it isn’t possible.
It’s actually very doable, though. In fact, with the right planning, even a fan without a private plane could pull it off. Here’s how the logistics map out.
Is it possible to attend Taylor Swift’s concert in Tokyo and the Super Bowl?
Logistically speaking, it’s entirely possible to make be at both. You could even get a good night’s sleep at the hotel after the concert, have breakfast in Tokyo, fly to Vegas and have a few hours to sightsee or prep — all before kickoff.
Let’s set the scene: Swift performs at the Tokyo Dome at 6 p.m. local time in Tokyo on Saturday, Feb. 10.
When you factor in time zones, that’s 1 a.m. Las Vegas time on Feb. 10, as Tokyo is 17 hours ahead of the Pacific time zone.
The Super Bowl kicks off at 3:30 p.m. PST the next day on Sunday, Feb. 11.
How to fly from Tokyo to Vegas for the Super Bowl
Swift may have access to a plane of her own. However, for the rest of us to make it from Swift’s Tokyo concert to Vegas for the Super Bowl, we’d actually have a handful of flight options.
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Here’s your best: You’d depart at 1:05 p.m. Tokyo time on Sunday, Feb. 11, the day after the concert, from Haneda Airport (HND) aboard American Airlines.
You’d fly over the Pacific Ocean and cross the International Dateline, which means you’d experience a time travel-esque phenomenon common with transpacific flights: You’d arrive at 6 a.m. PST Sunday, Feb. 11 (yes, the same date) at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX).
From there, you’d have a two-hour layover to recover at LAX before a short, 78-minute second leg to Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) in Las Vegas. You would touch down at 9:18 a.m. PST — still six hours before the Super Bowl begins.
An economy ticket goes for $721, one-way.
You can book that same Tokyo-to-Vegas itinerary on American for 35,000 AAdvantage miles, one-way in economy.
Or perhaps best of all, for just 10,000 miles more (45,000 total), you can fly premium economy. This offers a sort of hybrid experience between business class and coach — more spacious seats as well as potentially better food and amenities at a much lower cost than business class.
American has a few other itineraries that would get you into Vegas in time for the big game.
United Airlines does, too.
For example, you could depart Tokyo’s Narita Airport (NRT) at 5:55 p.m. local time Sunday. You’d arrive in LA at 10:50 a.m. PST Sunday. After a two-hour layover, you’d get into Vegas at 2:12 p.m. — exactly 78 minutes before kickoff.
You’d pay $649 for a coach ticket or 55,000 Mileage Plus miles on a couple of different itinerary options.
Bottom line
Of course, we only highlighted the flights from Tokyo to Vegas in the above examples to see if you can be “swift” enough to get from a concert on one side of the globe to a football game on the other side of the world the following afternoon. To get to Swift’s concert at the Tokyo Dome in the first place, consult TPG’s guide to getting to Japan using points and miles.
As for the game itself — not to mention the concert — be warned: You may well end up paying more to attend these iconic events than you’ll pay for all your other travel expenses combined.
But, strictly looking at air travel, you could absolutely make it to both the Taylor Swift concert in Tokyo on Feb. 10 and the Super Bowl in Las Vegas on Feb. 11 — without the services of a private plane or even a time-traveling DeLorean.
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