rotel tours video

Capsule hotels are in vogue right now. The German tour company Rotel has always been ahead of the game by providing capsule hotels on wheels since 1945.

No matter how much you enjoy staying in a five-star hotel, you will always be stationary, trapped in one district. So, to feed your sense of novelty and adventure, you decide to book yourself on a Rotel bus.

What next? Well, first, you choose your tour from hundreds of options all around the world. If the wilds of Africa are not your thing, perhaps the vast planes of central Russia are. Or maybe the frozen wilderness of the Arctic will appeal, or what about exotic Ecuador?

On the bus, you ride in passenger seats during the day and sleep in 6x6x3ft capsules at night. There is a large kitchen on board for food, but you may have to go a few days until you reach a shower as there is no one on the bus.

But who could complain about the smell of unwashed passengers when you wake up in a new and exciting location every day?

Rotel Tours

Rotel Tours is the largest bus tour in the world, based in the Bavarian town of Tittling in Germany. Their name comes from the combination of "rolling" and "hotel", which is a portmanteau (two overlapping words creating a new one).

Rotel Tours was established by Georg Höltl right at the end of World War II in 1945, but it wasn't until 1951 that the first bus took off to Switzerland. Tours went to France, Italy, and Spain in subsequent years.

Höltl's concept for Rotel was human encounters and cultural exchange enabled by a bus hotel that takes you to places. It was a fragile period for Germans to travel abroad, but it was an important mission to reconcile with the past and make way for a better, more empathic future.

Hence, the Rotel Tours soon received its nickname: "International Meeting Trips". It was a pioneering project that has been successfully transporting thousands of people to distant places in their quirky buses ever since.

Then, in 1959, the Jerusalem-bound journey started in Münich. Without using any ferries, they drove all the way to Israel through Turkey over land and made it back to Germany in 38 days.

One decade later, Rotel managed to cross the Sahara, which paved the way for even farther destinations like Mongolia, China, Laos, or Vietnam.

Their specially prepared buses offer trips to far-away destinations, taking (primarily) Europeans (the journeys start in Germany) to exotic landscapes and cultures.

While most tour companies will book you a flight and an all-inclusive hotel where you will eat continental breakfast and have no interaction with locals other than the staff, Rotel offers something very different.

It takes you on study and expedition trips, going off the beaten paths, stopping at the most unlikely places, and converging with the locals whenever possible.

Rotel has four types of vehicles:

—A 20-seater four-wheel drive bus for trips off the beaten track going to South America, Africa, and Asia —A 24-seater bus combined going around European countries —A 34-seater four-wheel drive bus with a trailer for long expeditions in South America and Southern Africa —A 36-seater bus with a Rotel trailer

All four buses have a unified Rotel cabin for overnight stays. It's similar to what you find in capsule hotels but can take you to the next undiscovered destination while you sleep.

The sleeping capsules are 6.6-foot (2 meters) long and 2.8-foot (80 cm) wide for singles and 5.6-foot (160 cm) for doubles.

The idea is fifty years old but just as brilliant today. The long time since it started indicates that the concept is a commercial success.

Today, Rotel Tours offers as many as 3,400 beds on wheels and annually logs around 600,000 overnight stays.

Rotel is a combination of a tourist bus and a hotel. Even while you are "sitting in your room," you discover parts of the world you have never seen before.

The journey will take you through winding roads, some of them so dangerous that without a professional driver, it would be too risky to take.

But every once in a while, the people onboard the bus can ask the driver to take a well-deserved stop to enjoy the cliffside panorama and relax.

Another advantage of taking a sleeper bus all over the world is it can stop at some of the most famous sights, and you can enjoy the view from the window without needing to mingle with the average tourist.

The offroad setup of the bus allows for taking routes that are not feasible for regular vehicles.

The Rotel tour will take you through rugged terrain off the beaten path.

The destinations are often far off the beaten track and wide tourist paths. You are offered considerably more comfort and safety than if you were to wander around with a tent on your back.

Guests should not expect five-star luxury at the Rotel. There is no shower, but there is a toilet on the bus. A camping kitchen can also be used while it's stationary.

The organization uses existing campsites as much as possible, but this is not always possible in remote areas. The travel organization is active in Africa, Europe, and Asia, and the destinations are often exotic and rural.

If more than 24 passengers come along, a trailer can be attached to the bus where you can stay overnight.

The typical Rotel bus travels with between 20 and 40 tourists. It usually has 22 passenger seats and 24 rooms, including one for the driver and one for the tour guide.

The bus stops as often as possible at places where you can have a shower. On certain nights, you will also have the opportunity to spend the night in a normal hotel room.

And if the bus gets in trouble, you and your fellow travelers will work as a team to get through challenging adventures.

You get your own little crawl space - about 3.3 feet (1 meter) high but with ample width - where you can spend the nights in a little more comfort than in a tent.

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And Now, the Rotel: A Rolling Hotel for the Brave Tourist

Is it a bus? Is it a hotel? Is it a mirage? Why, it’s the Rotel, of course! That’s a rolling hotel, to you and I.

The brainchild of Georg Holtl, German entrepreneur and one-time actor, Rotel had its first passengers in 1945, taking them on the short journey from Tittling to Passau. Then, in 1950, Rotel expanded to organised excursions and pilgrimages to places like Alottling and further afield, to Switzerland. Two years later, Rome would join the itinerary – tying in nicely with the boom being felt in the Italian capital post WW2, drenched in aperitivos and films stars who were flocking to Hollywood on the Tiber. Stops in France and Spain joined the roster soon after, and from 1957 Rotel was even taking its passengers on encounter trips for Pax Christi – a Catholic organisation that arose in France at the end of the second world war as a means to foster peace and reconciliation between France and Germany, and for the spiritual healing of Germans recovering from the effects of the Nazi era.

1959 saw the introduction of trailers that could be attached to the back of the buses – not a world away from the average family caravan, but not exactly the same, either.

After all, these trailers weren’t sleeping a group of four, but twenty four. To get an idea of what these trailers were like, think of the rise of Japanese capsule hotels, where your bed is your room, and then add wheels.

Throughout the sixties, Rotel expanded their horizons, taking passengers overland to India, the USA and Central America. In 1964, they journeyed through the Soviet Union, and five years later, in ’69, they managed the first successful coach crossing of the Sahara – 26 times the size of their native Germany, or to put it another way, roughly the size of the entire United States.

The seventies saw them take on Africa, Japan, and Australia, and it was around this time that Rotel began to take on the look familiar to travellers today – a quite literal hotel on wheels. Using buses that are typically customised Mercedes 0404’s, Rotels offer 24 upright seats for travelling during the day, and 26 small berths to the rear of the vehicle for the passengers to bed down in come night. Not for the claustraphobia minded individual, these ‘rooms’ are around 6 feet wide, 6 feet long, and 3 feet high – although there is the option to double-up and get twice the space. But even with the extra space, Rotels might not be for everyone.

There is, alas, a vague feel of the hospital mortuary to it, with the berths stacked up on top of each other, and the entrance and exit coming in the form of a curtain at the foot of your bed. A healthy dose of ‘love thy neighbour’ may be required. There’s also the matter of the – ahem – spa facilities. Or lack thereof. There is one toilet onboard, much like your average tour coach – but there are no showers. Instead, the tours factor in stops at local campsites along the route and use the facilities there.

So, luxury hotels these are not. But what do they offer instead?

Well, breakfast al fresco, for a start. Unlike a traditional hotel, where everyone traipses downstairs half-asleep to the dining room for orange juice and stale croissants, on board the Rotel the path from bed to breakfast is quicker, and the view is much better. A drop-down ‘camp kitchen’ allows you to eat breakfast in a new setting every morning. Lunch break in the shadow of the Taj Mahal, anyone? And that’s one of the key draws for passengers who have adopted this style of travel – the ability to be constantly on the move, with none of this checking-in and checking-out malarkey. It’s just them and the open road. Or desert. Or mountain pass.

Immersion is key when travelling onboard the Rotel. Instead of driving right on by, keeping that plane of glass between traveller and terra incognita, the Rotel makes a point of stopping and allowing passengers to interact with the locations they travel to. None more so than in Namibia, where its red bus streaking across the landscape is a familiar sight to many of the village communities whose economies are supported by locally-bought produce and donations of water, food, and clothing.

And, perhaps more than anything, trips on board the Rotel are about fostering a sense of connection not only between you and the country through which you are travelling, but between you and the person in the bunk below or above you. Not one for the solitary traveller, Rotel tours thrive on groups that want to discover a destination together. Rather sweet, isn’t it?!

Whilst Rotel can be considered as the OG of the rolling hotel world (and has the bonus of being led by qualified tour guides), they’re not the only company out there offering capsule accommodation on wheels.

The Truck Surf Hotel is a converted Merdes Actros that allows a small group of passengers (there’s 5 bedrooms onboard) to travel throughout Portugal from June to October, and Morroco from December to March in some pretty cool digs – think light wood panelling, muted fabrics and a soft nautical vibe. There’s a living space, kitchen and bathroom onboard, too.

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Rotel, the touring German hotel on wheels, rolls to Fort Myers Beach, Sanibel

What was that tomato-red rig breezing along Estero Boulevard?

A bus? An RV?

Nope. It’s a Rotel – a “rolling hotel.”

One of these German custom-built buses arrived Monday at the Red Coconut RV park on Fort Myers Beach, and has been drawing second looks ever since.

People assume the vehicle carries musicians, a traveling theater – "or chickens," quipped tour guide Birgit Zahn.

Such buses are a relatively rare sight in these parts. However, they provide a form of no-frills travel Rotel Tours in Tittling, Germany, introduced nearly 60 years ago, and which since has spread to remote and not-so-remote corners of the globe.

If you didn't get to see the Rotel that was in Lee County for a couple of days, here’s the 4-1-1:

This hotel-on-wheels can sleep 24 guests, a driver and a tour guide.

Guests ride in front during the day, and then move to a triple deck of berths in the rear at night.

More: City of Fort Myers, families spar in court over downtown hotel site

That sleeping experience could be a claustrophobic’s nightmare.

Single cabins measure three feet high, three feet wide – and six feet long.

Their bottom surface is all bed: You probably could prop yourself up to sitting position – unless perhaps you play center in the NBA.

Traveler Siegi Volkner, who is about 5 feet, 10 inches, finds the space manageable. Each berth has a window to the outside.

And, after a day of sightseeing, swimming in the Gulf and such, “you’re so tired in the evening. You lie down, and you sleep,” Volkner said.

Different Rotel models operate elsewhere in the world, including some with a detachable trailer of sleeping cabins that are left behind during day trips.

None of the rigs have showers; hence, campgrounds with shower-and-restroom facilities are favored destinations. Many have a single toilet aboard, although this one doesn’t.

“When we travel, we stop every two hours,” Zahn said.

The 18-day tour she's leading began in Newark, New Jersey. That's where the travelers flew in from Frankfurt, Germany.

More: Amavida developers apply hotel expertise to senior community soon to open in Fort Myers

Stops included New York City, Washington, D.C., Colonial Williamsburg and Myrtle Beach, to name a few.

The 15 guests on this tour all hail from Germany; however, Zahn has led tours that included Italians – and Germans who immigrated to Canada.

The group left the Beach for a day trip to Sanibel Island on Tuesday, and planned to visit the Edison & Ford Winter Estates in Fort Myers on Wednesday before heading to Miami, Key West – and then flying home.

Fran Myers, co-owner of the Red Coconut, sees the German tour group as a sign that some normalcy is returning to Southwest Florida’s lifeblood tourism and hospitality industry, which accounts for an estimated one in five jobs in Lee and Collier counties.

Fish-killing, cough-inducing red tide isn’t entirely gone from the state. However, at least for now it appears to be retreating locally.

Said Myers: “The water’s great! Our phones are ringing off the hook."

More: City of Fort Myers, families strike tentative deal to settle hotel site claims

Accros of Cars 

• Oct 18, 2023

Rotel Tours: Travel around the world by hotel bus

The German company Rotel Tours, founded in 1945 by Georg Höltl, was a pioneer in post-war tourist travel. From 1950, she began her first trips abroad. In 1959, it developed innovative tourism by introducing people to the world from the inside of specially designed hotel buses with bedrooms, kitchens and bathrooms. The company uses 4 different types of buses adapted for each type of trip with a passenger capacity varying between 20 and 36 people.

It was in 1969 that its circuits took on another dimension with a circuit of the discovery of the Sahara crossing Algeria from North to South. The legendary trans-Saharan expedition began on November 3, 1969 in Tunisia and ended on December 6 in Accra. The Mercedes bus with a Rotel trailer and a Unimog as escort vehicle covered more than 4000 km. The journey led through sandy deserts and up often blown slopes across the Sahara, the world's largest desert. More than once the desert has become a serious problem, but also a great experience. The lunar landscape of Hoggar, shaped by volcanic basalts, the evenings with the Tuaregs and the friendly inhabitants of the desert, the landscape of Niger, the tropical forests of Dahome, Togo and Ghana and finally the gold coast of West Africa - the trip was an unforgettable experience for the 43 participants. Georg Höltl, founder of the company Rotel Tours and initiator of this trip, personally participated and documented the extraordinary journey of the pioneers with 16 mm film.

Rotel Tours now offers tours all over the world, including: Scandinavia, the USA, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Pakistan, India, the Andes, Morocco...

On the Price side, for example, a 14-day tour in Morocco with departure from Germany costs around 1,540 euros all inclusive, a 31-day tour in Peru €4,340 and a 15-day tour in Sweden €1,560.

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Rotel Tours’ Hotel Bus Feature Beds, Private Rooms

Calling this thing a “hotel on wheels” is being generous. At the current state of public buses, though, having a semi-private booth with a cramped bed does sound mighty luxurious. And that’s exactly what Rotel Tours’ “rolling hotel” buses bring to commuters.

A 3 x 3 x 6 feet room with a curtain for a door might not sound much. During longer trips, however, having that bed (which fills the entire floor area, by the way) to lie down on does sound like a sumptuous indulgence regular Greyhound passengers would die for. Sure, you can barely move while inside and you will likely knock your head silly on that low ceiling every time you get up. But it’s a bed with some amount of privacy – something I’ve never seen any buses equipped with in the past.

The front of the bus comes with regular bus seats, flanked along large windows. Walk towards the rear, however, and you’ll find three rows of tiny rooms, each equipped with a bed, some hanging hooks (for your bags and clothes) and a small window to peek out of. All buses only get one communal toilet and no bath, although they do arrange for stopovers to places where travelers can freshen up. Considering it’s a European bus, I don’t think all that bathing nonsense really matters, does it (I kid, I kid)?

Honda Motocompacto Crams An Electric Transport Device In A Briefcase You Can Carry In One Hand

Surprisingly, Rotel Tours isn’t anything new. According to the company, they’ve been operating their “Betten auf Rädern” (bed on wheels) since 1959 and, in fact, currently boast a fleet that’s 3,400 strong. Since that time, they’ve been offering bed-bus tours of Asia, Europe and Africa, presumably to non-claustrophobic German tourists who want to see the world lying down.

[ Rotel via Jalopnik ]

Amazing! I like this! I like the name Rotel too. So cool!

I see t,he Rotel everywhere in the Americas. Can non German speaking travellers join the tours? We are exploring alternatives for China in 2013. Thanks

halo guys I saw your vehicle in Kenya Nairobi and I liked it very much it so cool how can one get a chance to work with you,

Passengers cannot “see the world lying down”. The beds are not available while the bus is in motion. The best feature about a Rotel tour is the opportunity to tour without spending money every day except for lunch. Regarding non-German riders: It depends on if the rider would enjoy seeing the sights while not understanding what the guide is saying about those sights.

I saw one of these at playa coco Costa Rica. Pretty cool

I saw one of your vehicles in Nairobi and its so cool. I also read about the ‘rolling hotels’….Wow amazing!!!

Hi I seen your bus in England uk. It looked amazing safe touring to you

I went on the Australia tour in 1990 , wouldn’t say it’s great in that bus but unique .Today – i’m living here in Australia for 23 years now .

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Savvino-storozhevsky monastery and museum.

Zvenigorod's most famous sight is the Savvino-Storozhevsky Monastery, which was founded in 1398 by the monk Savva from the Troitse-Sergieva Lavra, at the invitation and with the support of Prince Yury Dmitrievich of Zvenigorod. Savva was later canonised as St Sabbas (Savva) of Storozhev. The monastery late flourished under the reign of Tsar Alexis, who chose the monastery as his family church and often went on pilgrimage there and made lots of donations to it. Most of the monastery’s buildings date from this time. The monastery is heavily fortified with thick walls and six towers, the most impressive of which is the Krasny Tower which also serves as the eastern entrance. The monastery was closed in 1918 and only reopened in 1995. In 1998 Patriarch Alexius II took part in a service to return the relics of St Sabbas to the monastery. Today the monastery has the status of a stauropegic monastery, which is second in status to a lavra. In addition to being a working monastery, it also holds the Zvenigorod Historical, Architectural and Art Museum.

Belfry and Neighbouring Churches

Located near the main entrance is the monastery's belfry which is perhaps the calling card of the monastery due to its uniqueness. It was built in the 1650s and the St Sergius of Radonezh’s Church was opened on the middle tier in the mid-17th century, although it was originally dedicated to the Trinity. The belfry's 35-tonne Great Bladgovestny Bell fell in 1941 and was only restored and returned in 2003. Attached to the belfry is a large refectory and the Transfiguration Church, both of which were built on the orders of Tsar Alexis in the 1650s.  

To the left of the belfry is another, smaller, refectory which is attached to the Trinity Gate-Church, which was also constructed in the 1650s on the orders of Tsar Alexis who made it his own family church. The church is elaborately decorated with colourful trims and underneath the archway is a beautiful 19th century fresco.

Nativity of Virgin Mary Cathedral

The Nativity of Virgin Mary Cathedral is the oldest building in the monastery and among the oldest buildings in the Moscow Region. It was built between 1404 and 1405 during the lifetime of St Sabbas and using the funds of Prince Yury of Zvenigorod. The white-stone cathedral is a standard four-pillar design with a single golden dome. After the death of St Sabbas he was interred in the cathedral and a new altar dedicated to him was added.

Under the reign of Tsar Alexis the cathedral was decorated with frescoes by Stepan Ryazanets, some of which remain today. Tsar Alexis also presented the cathedral with a five-tier iconostasis, the top row of icons have been preserved.

Tsaritsa's Chambers

The Nativity of Virgin Mary Cathedral is located between the Tsaritsa's Chambers of the left and the Palace of Tsar Alexis on the right. The Tsaritsa's Chambers were built in the mid-17th century for the wife of Tsar Alexey - Tsaritsa Maria Ilinichna Miloskavskaya. The design of the building is influenced by the ancient Russian architectural style. Is prettier than the Tsar's chambers opposite, being red in colour with elaborately decorated window frames and entrance.

At present the Tsaritsa's Chambers houses the Zvenigorod Historical, Architectural and Art Museum. Among its displays is an accurate recreation of the interior of a noble lady's chambers including furniture, decorations and a decorated tiled oven, and an exhibition on the history of Zvenigorod and the monastery.

Palace of Tsar Alexis

The Palace of Tsar Alexis was built in the 1650s and is now one of the best surviving examples of non-religious architecture of that era. It was built especially for Tsar Alexis who often visited the monastery on religious pilgrimages. Its most striking feature is its pretty row of nine chimney spouts which resemble towers.

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‘Long Live,’ Taylor Swift performs several mashups during acoustic set in Lisbon

LISBON — Taylor Swift is performing for the first time in the Portugal capital and bringing her Eras Tour to Estádio da Luz.

On night two, Swift performed a two-song mashup on the guitar of the title track from “The Tortured Poets Department” with “Now That We Don’t Talk” from “1989 (Taylor’s Version).”

On the piano, she did another double mashup of “You’re On Your Own Kid” from “Midnights” with “Long Live” from “Speak Now (Taylor’s Version).”

‘Come back…’ to night one

On Friday, Swift started with a triple mash-up of "Come Back...Be Here" off "Red (Taylor's Version)" with "The Way I Loved You" and "The Other Side of the Door" from "Fearless (Taylor's Version)."

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"Every time I'm not here, from now on, I'm going to want to come back here," she said to the crowd before strumming her guitar.

On the piano, Swift fused "Fresh Out The Slammer," a never-before-played song from "The Tortured Poets Department" with "High Fidelity" from "Midnights."

For a full list of Swift's secret songs, bookmark this page .

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Catch Taylor Swift live with tickets at  Vivid Seats , shop  merchandise , and stream her latest on  Disney+ . Purchases you make through our links may earn us and our publishing partners a commission.  

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Taylor Swift Surprises Eras Tour Crowd in Lisbon by Speaking in Portuguese

Taylor swift rips open her dress during eras tour wardrobe malfunction, cher and boyfriend ae can't stop kissing on pda-filled cannes carpet, ‘evil’ cast dishes on the fourth and final season (exclusive), ‘dead poets society’ turns 35: watch on-set interviews with the late robin williams, patti labelle weighs in on a possible music collab with ‘buddy’ cardi b (exclusive), how jennifer love hewitt's kids are helping with her return to scream queen status (exclusive), how snoop dogg is preparing for ‘the voice’ coaching gig (exclusive), kylie jenner’s exes travis scott and tyga connected to brawl at cannes film festival, remembering morgan spurlock: a look back at the filmmaker’s career, lady gaga rocks car bumper as fashion statement at tour film premiere, travis kelce addresses harrison butker's controversial graduation speech, pat sajak stunned by 'wheel of fortune' contestant's nsfw guess, millie bobby brown and jake bongiovi are married, whoopi goldberg shares promising 'sister act 3' update (exclusive), inside 'furiosa's massive set, chris hemsworth's makeup and more behind-the-scenes secrets, sofia richie and husband elliot grainge welcome first child, morgan spurlock, ‘super size me’ documentary filmmaker, dead at 53, why jennifer love hewitt is 'terrified' to return to 'i know what you did last summer' (exclusive), lady gaga reacts to beyoncé 'telephone' sequel fan theories (exclusive), katie taylor vs. amanda serrano: fighters share why they think they'll win (exclusive), kris jenner addresses scott disick's weight loss after previous 'struggles', taylor swift kicked off her first ever eras tour in lisbon and surprised fans when she dropped a line in portuguese..

Taylor Swift  kicked off her first ever Eras Tour concert in Lisbon, where she surprised fans speaking a little Portuguese.

The Tortured Poets Department singer took the stage Friday at Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica in Portugal in her trademark shimmery outfit. She soaked up the roar from the boisterous crowd, prompting her jaw to drop at such an emphatic reception. At one point, it appeared as though she wiped away a happy tear. 

Swift giggled. Then, the big surprise. The 34-year-old singer dropped a line in Portuguese, much to everyone's surprise and roaring approval.

"Muito obrigada," said the songstress in video captured by The Hollywood Reporter , which translates in English to, "Thank you very much."

Once again, the crowd roared. Swift then expressed exactly how the crowd was making her feel.

"Oh, Lisbon youuuuuu ... you're making me feel amazing right now."

But Swift wasn't done just yet. In another video captured by The Hollywood Reporter , Swift spoke to a security guard in Portuguese saying, "Ayuda por favor (Please help)" as she directed a security guard to help a distressed fan in the crowd. Swift was in the middle of singing "The Smallest Man in the World" when she made the plea.

She made the same plea later in the concert, in video captured on social media , during her piano performance of "Champagne Problems."

Swift's concert in Portugal follows her pitstop in Sweden last weekend, where she suffered a wardrobe malfunction  -- and a broken mic! -- but handled the sitch like a true pro.

Swift could be seen on video at Friends Arena in Stockholm untying her entire dress onstage as she attempted to rectify a technical difficulty. She could be seen messing with the mic pack attached to the back of her costume during the surprise songs section of the show.

After telling fans that the device had "come undone," Swift jokingly asked the audience to "just talk amongst yourselves" for a moment. She then quickly moved to another part of he stage and took a seat at her piano while fully opening her blue wrap dress for better access to the mic pack. Underneath, Swift was still wearing her two piece costume from "I Can Do It With a Broken Heart," which came right before the surprise songs in her setlist. 

Eventually, a crew member came to Swift's aid to help get the situation under control. The "Fortnight" singer did a silly little dance as she re-attached her costume and went on with the show. 

Swift will be in Lisbon until Thursday before taking The Eras Tour to Lyon, France in early June.

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Taylor Swift Fan Catches Boyfriend’s Proposal on Her Own Live Stream at Eras Tour in Portugal (Exclusive)

“He kept singing the song and I was just ugly crying and hugged him,” Beatriz Simões tells PEOPLE about the surprise

Beatriz Simões for PEOPLE

It's a love story — and this Swiftie just said, “Yes!”

While live streaming Taylor Swift ’s Eras Tour show in Portugal at Lisbon’s Estádio da Luz on Friday, May 24, Beatriz Simões unexpectedly captured her boyfriend proposing to her during “Love Story.”

Simões, 23, kept her stream rolling as Ricardo Matos, 20, dropped to one knee exactly when Swift, 34, sang, “He knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring and said, ‘Marry me, Juliet, you’ll never have to be alone.’ ” 

“It was a total surprise,” Simões tells PEOPLE a day after the proposal, during which she gave Matos a silent “yes” while she sobbed. “I’m still in total shock. It was magical, and everyone was so happy.”

The couple, who met five years ago and started dating three years ago, live together in Porto, Portugal. 

Matos timed his marriage proposal to Simões perfectly, waiting until the eighth song in Swift’s 46-song setlist to pop the question.

“He kept singing the song and I was just ugly crying and hugged him,” Simões says, before sending PEOPLE a one-minute clip of her stream.

Swift continued to sing, unaware of the moment happening in section 3, as Matos lip-synced along: “I love you and that’s all I really know. I talked to your dad, go pick out a white dress. It’s a love story, baby, just say, ‘Yes.’ ”

Keren Noyman, 28, who was also at the May 24 concert, captured the proposal of the fellow Swifties from another angle.

“I felt jealous because I went with my boyfriend of eight years last time and got no proposal,” Noyman of Tel Aviv jokes to PEOPLE. “But seriously, I watched these kinds of proposals as a kid online so it was super exciting to watch it happen with my eyes. They were insanely cute, and everyone around us got really excited and so happy for them!”

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Later in the show, during the surprise songs segment, Swift performed an acoustic mashup that meant a lot to the newly engaged couple. 

At each Eras Tour stop, the 14-time Grammy winner performs two songs or mashups just for that night’s crowd acoustically either on piano or guitar. 

“One of the surprise songs was ‘Come Back…Be Here,’ which was one of our songs when we did long-distance [for two years]. We looked at each other in shock,” Simões says of Swift’s mashup of “Come Back…Be Here,” “The Way I Loved You” and “The Other Side of the Door” on the guitar.

Fans who were watching Simões’ stream around the world were not only in shock about the live-streamed proposal, but they were also surprised that she kept the stream going throughout the remainder of the concert. 

“She’s still live-streaming after the proposal 😍😍😂😂,” Elisa Gioia, 39, of Italy, reacted on X (formerly Twitter). 

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Later, Gioia told PEOPLE witnessing the moment was “so romantic.”

“It felt like being part of a big family,” Gioia says. “I don’t know the bride-to-be. I’ve read her tweets lately on X, so I thanked her for continuing with the live stream after this big moment in her life.”

What’s next for the couple? 

“We're gonna take it easy, but we expect to move to a big house with our cat next year so we can start our journey,” reveals Simões, whose cat is named Tijolo, adding, “And get more cats!!!” 

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