Aboard the ‘Swiftie train’ to Santa Clara: Fans travel from Sacramento for Taylor Swift

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Taylor Swift fans in sequined shirts and cowboy boots trickled into Sacramento Valley Station Friday afternoon, ready to embark on a 3-hour train ride to see the 12-time Grammy Award-winning artist perform in Santa Clara.

The train conductor greeted his passengers proclaiming “This is the Swiftie train,” as eager concert-goers — longtime fans, young kids and their parents — picked their seats on the Capitol Corridor. By 5 p.m., roughly 500 people had already passed through the train headed to the sold-out Levi’s Stadium.

See photos of Taylor Swift performing at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara. Were you there?

Sacramento-area mother and daughter Nickea and Lili Stalter have a shared love for the Swift culture and music. The 10-year-old was born on Oct. 22, 2012 — the same day Taylor Swift release “Red.”

“It’s hard to find music that isn’t kids bop that’s appropriate to listen to with your young tween daughter — and is inspirational and exciting,” said Stalter as she sat in the Capitol Corridor with her daughter before boarding the train.

Lili was dressed in the “Red” era, with heart-shaped sunglasses and a “22” shirt, her face bedazzled with red jewels. Her mom, Nickea’s outfit was inspired by “folklore,”— a white floral dress with puffed sleeves. The album that resonated with her during the pandemic, she said. Both sported a handful of friendship bracelets.

And they weren’t the only two commemorating their favorite Swift eras with vibrant outfits and charms. In fact, aboard the last train of the day, there were roughly 200 passengers.

Savannah Riccomini, 29, a Woodland resident was riding the train with her sister. She’s been a fan her whole life and says she now in her “Lover Era,” which was why she chose to wear a gold sequined dress.

“I’m very excited to be here with my sister to experience this with her,” Riccomini said.

Daryn Erickson, 25, drove from Flagstaff, Arizona, for Friday’s concert. She was going up to kids and adults to exchange the bracelets she prepared at home before the concert. “I just love the community that we have as Swifties,” Erickson said. “Coming together after COVID and all the other stuff that happened and just getting to have a really fun time and bonding over our favorite songs and Eras and it’s just a lot of fun.” At the show, fans continued to swap bracelets as they waited for Swift to take the stage, where she then performed a 3-hour set including two surprise songs.

Swift will perform again Saturday night at Levi’s Stadium before she heads to Los Angeles to finish the U.S. leg of the Eras Tour, the most extensive of her career yet with a total of 52 shows throughout the country.