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The Future of Space Tourism Is Now. Well, Not Quite.

From zero-pressure balloon trips to astronaut boot camps, reservations for getting off the planet — or pretending to — are skyrocketing. The prices, however, are still out of this world.

By Debra Kamin

Ilida Alvarez has dreamed of traveling to space since she was a child. But Ms. Alvarez, a legal-mediation firm owner, is afraid of flying, and she isn’t a billionaire — two facts that she was sure, until just a few weeks ago, would keep her fantasy as out of reach as the stars. She was wrong.

Ms. Alvarez, 46, and her husband, Rafael Landestoy, recently booked a flight on a 10-person pressurized capsule that — attached to a massive helium-filled balloon — will gently float to 100,000 feet while passengers sip champagne and recline in ergonomic chairs. The reservation required a $500 deposit; the flight itself will cost $50,000 and last six to 12 hours.

“I feel like it was tailor-made for the chickens like me who don’t want to get on a rocket,” said Ms. Alvarez, whose flight, organized by a company called World View , is scheduled to depart from the Grand Canyon in 2024.

Less than a year after Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson kicked off a commercial space race by blasting into the upper atmosphere within weeks of each other last summer, the global space tourism market is skyrocketing, with dozens of companies now offering reservations for everything from zero-pressure balloon trips to astronaut boot camps and simulated zero-gravity flights. But don’t don your spacesuit just yet. While the financial services company UBS estimates the space travel market will be worth $3 billion by 2030, the Federal Aviation Administration has yet to approve most out-of-this-world trips, and construction has not started on the first space hotel. And while access and options — not to mention launchpads — are burgeoning, space tourism remains astronomically expensive for most.

First, what counts as space travel?

Sixty miles (about 100 kilometers) above our heads lies the Kármán line, the widely accepted aeronautical boundary of the earth’s atmosphere. It’s the boundary used by the Féderátion Aéronautique Internationale, which certifies and controls global astronautical records. But many organizations in the United States, including the F.A.A. and NASA, define everything above 50 miles to be space.

Much of the attention has been focused on a trio of billionaire-led rocket companies: Mr. Bezos’ Blue Origin , whose passengers have included William Shatner; Mr. Branson’s Virgin Galactic , where tickets for a suborbital spaceflight start at $450,000; and Elon Musk’s SpaceX , which in September launched an all-civilian spaceflight, with no trained astronauts on board. Mr. Branson’s inaugural Virgin Galactic flight in 2021 reached about 53 miles, while Blue Origin flies above the 62-mile mark. Both are eclipsed by SpaceX, whose rockets charge far deeper in to the cosmos, reaching more than 120 miles above Earth.

Balloons, like those operated by World View, don’t go nearly as high. But even at their maximum altitude of 18 or 19 miles, operators say they float high enough to show travelers the curvature of the planet, and give them a chance to experience the overview effect — an intense perspective shift that many astronauts say kicks in when you view Earth from above.

Now, how to get there …

Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, which are both licensed for passenger space travel by the F.A.A., are open for ticket sales. (Blue Origin remains mum on pricing.) Both companies currently have hundreds or even thousands of earthlings on their wait lists for a whirl to the edge of space. SpaceX charges tens of millions of dollars for its further-reaching flights and is building a new facility in Texas that is currently under F.A.A. review.

Craig Curran is a major space enthusiast — he’s held a reserved seat on a Virgin Galactic flight since 2011 — and the owner of Deprez Travel in Rochester, N.Y. The travel agency has a special space travel arm, Galactic Experiences by Deprez , through which Mr. Curran sells everything from rocket launch tickets to astronaut training.

Sales in the space tourism space, Mr. Curran acknowledges, “are reasonably difficult to make,” and mostly come from peer-to-peer networking. “You can imagine that people who spend $450,000 to go to space probably operate in circles that are not the same as yours and mine,” he said.

Some of Mr. Curran’s most popular offerings include flights where you can experience the same stomach-dropping feeling of zero gravity that astronauts feel in space, which he arranges for clients via chartered, specialized Boeing 727s that are flown in parabolic arcs to mimic being in space. Operators including Zero G also offer the service; the cost is around $8,200.

You can almost count the number of completed space tourist launches on one hand — Blue Origin has had four; SpaceX, two. Virgin Galactic, meanwhile, on Thursday announced the launch of its commercial passenger service, previously scheduled for late 2022, was delayed until early 2023. Many of those on waiting lists are biding their time before blastoff by signing up for training. Axiom Space, which contracts with SpaceX, currently offers NASA-partnered training at Houston’s Johnson Space Center. Virgin Galactic, which already offers a “customized Future Astronaut Readiness program” at its Spaceport America facility in New Mexico, is also partnering with NASA to build a training program for private astronauts.

Would-be space tourists should not expect the rigor that NASA astronauts face. Training for Virgin Galactic’s three-hour trips is included in the cost of a ticket and lasts a handful of days; it includes pilot briefings and being “fitted for your bespoke Under Armour spacesuit and boots,” according to its website.

Not ready for a rocket? Balloon rides offer a less hair-raising celestial experience.

“We go to space at 12 miles an hour, which means that it’s very smooth and very gentle. You’re not rocketing away from earth,” said Jane Poynter, a co-founder and co-chief executive of Space Perspective , which is readying its own touristic balloon spaceship, Spaceship Neptune. If all goes according to plan, voyages are scheduled to begin departing from Florida in 2024, at a cost of $125,000 per person. That’s a fraction of the price tag for Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, but still more than double the average annual salary of an American worker.

Neither Space Perspective nor World View has the required approval yet from the F.A.A. to operate flights.

Unique implications

Whether a capsule or a rocket is your transport, the travel insurance company battleface launched a civilian space insurance plan in late 2021, a direct response, said chief executive Sasha Gainullin, to an increase in space tourism interest and infrastructure. Benefits include accidental death and permanent disablement in space and are valid for spaceflights on operators like SpaceX, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, as well as on stratospheric balloon rides. They’ve had many inquiries, Mr. Gainullin said, but no purchases just yet.

“Right now it’s such high-net-worth individuals who are traveling to space, so they probably don’t need insurance,” he said. “But for quote-unquote regular travelers, I think we’ll see some takeups soon.”

And as the industry grows, so perhaps will space travel’s impact on the environment. Not only do rocket launches have immense carbon footprints, even some stratospheric balloon flights have potentially significant implications: World View’s balloons are powered by thousands of cubic meters of helium, which is a limited resource . But Ted Parson, a professor of environmental law at the University of California, Los Angeles, said that space travel’s environmental impact is still dwarfed by civil aviation. And because space travel is ultra-niche, he believes it’s likely to stay that way.

“Despite extensive projections, space tourism is likely to remain a tiny fraction of commercial space exploration,” he said. “It reminds me of tourism on Mt. Everest. It’s the indulgence of very rich people seeking a transcendent, once-in-a-lifetime experience, and the local environmental burden is intense.”

Stay a while?

In the future, space enthusiasts insist, travelers won’t be traveling to space just for the ride. They’ll want to stay a while. Orbital Assembly Corporation, a manufacturing company whose goal is to colonize space, is currently building the world’s first space hotels — two ring-shaped properties that will orbit Earth, called Pioneer Station and Voyager Station. The company, quite optimistically, projects an opening date of 2025 for Pioneer Station, with a capacity of 28 guests. The design for the larger Voyager Station , which they say will open in 2027, promises villas and suites, as well as a gym, restaurant and bar. Both provide the ultimate luxury: simulated gravity. Axiom Space , a space infrastructure company, is currently building the world’s first private space station; plans include Philippe Starck-designed accommodations for travelers to spend the night.

Joshua Bush, chief executive of travel agency Avenue Two Travel , has sold a handful of seats on upcoming Virgin Galactic flights to customers. The market for space travel (and the sky-high prices that come with it), he believes, will evolve much like civilian air travel did.

“In the beginning of the 20th century, only very affluent people could afford to fly,” he said. “Just as we have Spirit and Southwest Airlines today, there will be some sort of equivalent of that in space travel, too. Hopefully within my lifetime.”

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You Won’t Hear Much About the Next Chapter of Space Travel

Space tourism is getting less transparent, and more like traveling by private jet.

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Of all the high-flying tourism ventures spawned by space-obsessed billionaires, Virgin Galactic, founded by Richard Branson, offers perhaps the most unconventional approach. It doesn’t use big rockets or gumdrop-shaped capsules. Instead, an airplane takes off with a spacecraft strapped to its wing. The spacecraft, shaped like a plane itself, holds the paying customers and more pilots. When the airplane reaches a certain altitude, it releases the spacecraft. The spacecraft’s pilots then ignite its engine, and the vehicle soars straight up, to the fuzzy boundary that separates us from the rest of the universe, before gliding back down and landing on a runway.

The spaceplane experience is a stark contrast to Blue Origin’s suborbital jaunts and SpaceX’s orbital missions, but Virgin Galactic’s passengers still have a few surreal minutes of weightlessness, and they get to see the planet gleaming against the darkness of space. Those passengers have included the first former Olympian to reach space, as well as the first mother-daughter duo and, most recently, the first Pakistani .

In the midst of all that, Virgin Galactic clocked a first that raised some eyebrows: The company withheld the passenger list from the public before a takeoff last month, divulging the travelers’ names only after they had landed. The company never publicly explained its preflight secrecy. (Virgin Galactic did not respond to a request for comment.) Yesterday, Virgin Galactic announced its next flight, scheduled for November; the company kept one of the three listed passengers anonymous, saying only that the person is “of Franco-Italian nationality.”

Virgin is of course within its rights to withhold passenger names before takeoff. After all, airlines and railroads keep private the names of their customers. But Virgin Galactic’s choice to do so marks a subtle shift—the latest in U.S. spaceflight’s arc from a publicly funded national mission to private tourism. NASA, as a taxpayer-funded organization, has always had to provide the public with launch lists and livestreams. But the age of space tourism raises a host of questions: How much openness do space-tourism companies owe the public? How much privacy do they owe their customers? Before the Virgin flight returned home last month, it operated almost like a privately chartered plane, its movements known to relevant aviation agencies but its passengers’ names undisclosed to the public. Commercial spaceflight and air travel are still far from alike, but in this particular aspect, the space-tourism industry may be drifting toward its private-jet era.

Read: The new ‘right stuff’ is money and luck

In practice, the space-tourism industry is barely more than two years old, and it’s “still finding its norms,” says Carissa Christensen, a space consultant and the CEO of BryceTech, an analytics and engineering firm. The first passenger rosters were marquee news in 2021, when Branson and Jeff Bezos were racing to be the first to ride their own spacecraft , and Elon Musk’s SpaceX was working to send a quartet of private astronauts with zero spaceflight experience into orbit.

All three of their companies publicized, and even hyped, the passenger lists, in some cases months in advance. Wally Funk, an octogenarian aviator who had outperformed male candidates in astronaut tests during the 1960s but was kept out of the astronaut corps because she was a woman, flew alongside Bezos . Jared Isaacman, a billionaire businessman, paid for three other people to fly into orbit with him on SpaceX; all of them gave countless interviews before launch. And who can forget the hype ahead of William Shatner’s flight, and the Star Trek star’s unfiltered, emotional remarks after landing?

The rosters became less noteworthy as time went on: The customers were no longer memorable guests who got free rides, but simply very wealthy people who could afford the trips on their own. Last month’s temporarily secret Virgin Galactic fliers included a real-estate investor from Las Vegas, a South African entrepreneur, and a British engineer who founded a company that builds race cars. Michelle Hanlon, a space lawyer and the executive director of the University of Mississippi’s Center for Air and Space Law, told me that she was mildly surprised by Virgin Galactic’s decision to withhold the passengers’ identities before takeoff, but that the decision did not strike her as inappropriate.

“From a paparazzi standpoint, if it’s Ashton Kutcher, the world’s gonna care a little bit more than if it’s Michelle Hanlon,” Hanlon said. (Kutcher did, in fact, purchase a Virgin Galactic ticket in 2012, but he later sold it back to the company after his wife and fellow actor, Mila Kunis, talked him out of going.) And from a legal standpoint, nothing inappropriate occurred, Hanlon said; there are no existing requirements for a private company to disclose passenger names. Space travelers must sign waivers from the Federal Aviation Administration outlining the risks associated with the activity, she said, but the companies they’re flying with are not required to provide the agency with a passenger list.

Read: Jeff Bezos knows who paid for him to go to space

Passenger names aren’t the only details of commercial spaceflight that are becoming more opaque. When SpaceX launched its first set of private astronauts, the company shared significantly less live footage of their experience in orbit than they did when NASA astronauts test-drove the capsule a year earlier. During its last two flights, Virgin Galactic decided not to provide a livestream, giving updates on social media instead.

Because there are no regulations, it’s difficult to say when the companies’ right to privacy becomes a concerning level of secrecy. NASA overshares when it comes to its astronauts and their mission, because the public—which funds the agency—expects it. Americans might also expect a good look at SpaceX customers who visit the International Space Station, which relies on billions of dollars of taxpayer money, and where private visitors share meals with government astronauts. But what about other kinds of SpaceX missions, which go into orbit without disembarking at any government-owned facility? The company developed its crewed launch services with significant investment from NASA, so virtually every SpaceX trip indirectly involves government money. That doesn’t necessarily mean SpaceX is obligated to share as the space agency does, even if people on the ground feel that it should.

Another major difference between NASA missions and private ones, of course, is that astronauts are at work, whereas many space tourists are presumably just having fun. Caryn Schenewerk, a consultant who specializes in commercial spaceflight at her firm CS Consulting, told me that she thinks commercial spaceflight will adopt the practices of other forms of adventure tourism. Take skydiving, for example: Schenewerk said that she has signed paperwork granting the skydiving company permission to use footage of her experience for its own purposes. “There’s some expectation of privacy on the individual’s behalf that then has to be actively waived for the company’s benefit,” she said.

The once-anonymous Virgin Galactic passengers on the September flight have since publicly shared their stories , basking in the awe of their experience. Christensen told me that most future tourists will likely do the same. “A big part of the fun is other people knowing that you’ve done it,” she said. Flying to space isn’t exactly something to be modest about: Fewer than 700 people have done it since human beings first achieved the feat, in the early 1960s, and we know all of their names. If Virgin’s new mystery passenger doesn’t reveal their name, they really will make history.

Read: Seeing Earth from space will change you

Many spacefarers—the Soviet cosmonauts who inhabited the first space station, the American astronauts who shuttled their way into orbit, the Chinese astronauts living in space right now, all of the people who have flown commercial—have spoken about the transformational wonder of seeing Earth from space, a phenomenon known as the overview effect . They reported that they better understood the reality of our beautiful, fragile planet, and that they felt a duty to share their impressions with people on the ground. Gene Cernan, one of the dozen men who walked on the lunar surface, once said, “If only everyone could relate to the beauty and the purposefulness of it … It wouldn’t bring a utopia to this planet for people to understand it all, but it might make a difference.” In this sense, for a space traveler to remain unknown forever would be a sort of anti–overview effect: Just as they may have the right to request some privacy, they have no obligation to bring the transcendent power of their journey back to Earth.

Three years ago, two NASA astronauts made a historic flight on a new SpaceX astronaut capsule. Ahead of the mission, I asked NASA what Doug Hurley and Bob Behnken were going to have for breakfast on the morning of the launch. It was a question with a long tradition in spacefaring history: During the Apollo days, the public was privy to the final Earth-bound meals of history-making astronauts. NASA officials balked, saying they couldn’t divulge that information for privacy reasons. But on the day of the launch, Hurley, as if to sate the space press corps, posted a picture of his steak and eggs on Twitter (as it was still known then).

Hurley and Behnken’s preflight hours seemed like fair game; after all, these men were government employees, doing their job on their assigned mission. But future passengers may decide that we have no business knowing their breakfast order—or even their name.

Space tourism, you’re go for launch

July 28, 2021 Two billionaires soared into suborbital space in separate trips this month, ushering in a new era of space exploration for private citizens. Richard Branson reached the edge of space first, on July 11, in a rocket operated by Virgin Galactic. Jeff Bezos’ suborbital flight followed nine days later in a shuttle operated by his business, Blue Origin. If test flights continue to go smoothly, commercial trips to space—for those with the financial means to book a seat—are on the horizon.

To read the commentary, see “ Wall Street to Mission Control: Can space tourism pay off? ”, May 12, 2021.

Space tourism – 20 years in the making – is finally ready for launch

Professor of Strategy and Security Studies, Air University

Disclosure statement

Wendy Whitman Cobb is affiliated with the US Air Force School of Advanced Air and Space Studies. Her views are her own and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Department of Defense or any of its affiliates.

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For most people, getting to the stars is nothing more than a dream. On April 28, 2001, Dennis Tito achieved that lifelong goal – but he wasn’t a typical astronaut. Tito, a wealthy businessman, paid US$20 million for a seat on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft to be the first tourist to visit the International Space Station. Only seven people have followed suit in the 20 years since, but that number is poised to double in the next 12 months alone.

NASA has long been hesitant to play host to space tourists , so Russia – looking for sources of money post-Cold War in the 1990s and 2000s – has been the only option available for those looking for this kind of extreme adventure. However, it seems the rise of private space companies is going to make it easier for regular people to experience space.

From my perspective as a space policy analyst , I see the beginning of an era in which more people can experience space. With companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin hoping to build a future for humanity in space, space tourism is a way to demonstrate both the safety and reliability of space travel to the general public.

The development of space tourism

Flights to space like Dennis Tito’s are expensive for a reason. A rocket must burn a lot of costly fuel to travel high and fast enough to enter Earth’s orbit.

Another cheaper possibility is a suborbital launch, with the rocket going high enough to reach the edge of space and coming right back down. While passengers on a suborbital trip experience weightlessness and incredible views, these launches are more accessible.

The difficulty and expense of either option has meant that, traditionally, only nation-states have been able to explore space. This began to change in the 1990s as a series of entrepreneurs entered the space arena. Three companies led by billionaire CEOs have emerged as the major players: Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin and SpaceX. Though none have taken paying, private customers to space, all anticipate doing so in the very near future.

British billionaire Richard Branson has built his brand on not just business but also his love of adventure. In pursuing space tourism, Branson has brought both of those to bear. He established Virgin Galactic after buying SpaceShipOne - a company that won the Ansari X-Prize by building the first reusable spaceship. Since then, Virgin Galactic has sought to design, build and fly a larger SpaceShipTwo that can carry up to six passengers in a suborbital flight.

The going has been harder than anticipated. While Branson predicted opening the business to tourists in 2009, Virgin Galactic has encountered some significant hurdles – including the death of a pilot in a crash in 2014 . After the crash, engineers found significant problems with the design of the vehicle, which required modifications.

Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, respective leaders of SpaceX and Blue Origin, began their own ventures in the early 2000s.

Musk, fearing that a catastrophe of some sort could leave Earth uninhabitable, was frustrated at the lack of progress in making humanity a multiplanetary species. He founded SpaceX in 2002 with the goal of first developing reusable launch technology to decrease the cost of getting to space. Since then, SpaceX has found success with its Falcon 9 rocket and Dragon spacecraft. SpaceX’s ultimate goal is human settlement of Mars – sending paying customers to space is an intermediate step. Musk says he hopes to show that space travel can be done easily and that tourism might provide a revenue stream to support development of the larger, Mars-focused Starship system.

Bezos, inspired by the vision of physicist Gerard O’Neill , wants to expand humanity and industry not to Mars, but to space itself. Blue Origin , established in 2004, has proceeded slowly and quietly in also developing reusable rockets. Its New Shepard rocket, first successfully flown in 2015, will eventually offer tourists a suborbital trip to the edge of space, similar to Virgin Galactic’s. For Bezos, these launches represent an effort at making space travel routine, reliable and accessible to people as a first step to enabling further space exploration.

Outlook for the future

Now, SpaceX is the only option for someone looking to go into space and orbit the Earth. It currently has two tourist launches planned. The first is scheduled for as early as September 2021 , funded by billionaire businessman Jared Isaacman. The other trip, planned for 2022, is being organized by Axiom Space . These trips will be costly , at $55 million for the flight and a stay on the International Space Station. The high cost has led some to warn that space tourism – and private access to space more broadly – might reinforce inequality between rich and poor.

Blue Origin’s and Virgin Galactic’s suborbital trips are far more reasonable in cost, with both priced between $200,000 and $250,000 . Blue Origin appears to be the nearest to allowing paying customers on board, saying after a recent launch that crewed missions would be happening “soon.” Virgin Galactic continues to test SpaceShipTwo, but no specific timetable has been announced for tourist flights.

Though these prices are high, it is worth considering that Dennis Tito’s $20 million ticket in 2001 could pay for 100 flights on Blue Origin soon. The experience of viewing the Earth from space, though, may prove to be priceless for a whole new generation of space explorers.

[ Over 104,000 readers rely on The Conversation’s newsletter to understand the world. Sign up today .]

An updated version of this article was published on May 7, 2021. Read it here .

• Space tourism
• International Space Station (ISS)
• Virgin Galactic
• Space industry
• Blue Origin
• Private spaceflight

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The Rise of Space Tourism

F or millionaires and billionaires, space tourism is considered the next step of the human race into space.

Fortunately, for potential space tourists in 2021, advanced technology, space station construction and new knowledge of space travel has opened the door for a new type of leisure.

The advent of space tourism occurred at the end of the 1990s, incited by a deal between a Russian company, MirCorp, and an American company: Space Adventures Ltd .

MirCorp was a private venture in charge of its own space station, "Mir," and to generate income for maintenance, the company decided to sell a trip to Mir. The first paying passenger for this trip was ex-NASA engineer, Dennis Tito .

Space Adventures Ltd. was founded in 1998 by Eric Anderson , providing  zero-gravity atmospheric flights, orbital space lifts and other spaceflight-related experiences. They also hoped to offer the first commercial space flight.  zero-gravity atmospheric flights, orbital space lifts and other spaceflight-related experiences. They also hoped to offer the first commercial space flight.

Before Tito could make his trip with MirCorp, however, the decision was made to deorbit its space station, and Space Adventures Ltd. handed off the mission to the International Space Station (ISS). 

Tito paid $20 million in 2001 for his flight on the Russian spacecraft, Soyuz TM-32 . He spent seven full days on board the ISS and is considered the world’s first space tourist. 

While many companies have tried to chart a path in space tourism, only three main ones have made an impact: SpaceX, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic.

Shivram Mahendran, a sixth year Software Engineering graduate  student , is a professional Product Designer; his previous works include is previous works include multiple space projects for Microsoft.

Elon Musk, the current CEO of Tesla, created SpaceX with the goal of reducing space transportation costs and expanding our reach within the solar system.

SpaceX has gained an opportunity to work with NASA. This contract has given the company greater commercial visibility.

Musk hopes to build 1,000 starships over a span of 10 years , helping the company to later explore Mars.

"SpaceX’s mission is simple ... taking crew and spaceships to Mars by 2050," Mahendran said.

"SpaceX’s mission is simple ... taking crew and spaceships to Mars by 2050."

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos is also using his wealth to establish space-based properties. While SpaceX's goal is directly related to exploring other planets, Bezos's is to create a space hotel.

Blue Origin was also in the running to partner with NASA, but SpaceX won the bid instead.

Despite this, Blue Origin continues their work towards space tourism. Announced in Oct. 2021, Blue Origin and Sierra Space hope to launch Orbital Reef, their own space station, by the late 2020s.

This commercially developed, owned and operated space station will be built in low Earth orbit, with the main goal of creating a human habitat in space. It is expected to be operating in the second half of the current decade.

Another company,  Virgin Galactic, was the first to openly offer space trips to civilians. However, it has been postponing its commercial flights due to various factors, including manufacturing defects .

2021 seems to be the year of private companies launching civilians, alongside with trained astronauts, into space. As of Nov. 8, 2021, only 16 people have made the journey so far: four with SpaceX, four with Virgin Galactic and eight with Blue Origin.

As space tourism evolves, the number of spaceflight participants will grow. Suborbital and orbital flights will inevitably give way to lunar excursions and trips to Mars. By that time, space tourism may become a full-fledged industry capable of truly opening the frontier of space.

Convenient Space Gadgets

Due to space tourism's current popularity, a trend has led to the creation of various new technologies that space tourists will be able to utilize.

Product designers have envisioned several instruments to meet the basic needs of future space tourists including, but not limited to: air, heat, light and food.

One instruments that may be used is the " aerating loop, " designed to provide an extra kick of oxygen. Other items such as a personal heater, spatial food steamer and floating light may also be useful.

While we wait for space tourism to ramp up though, Virtual Reality (VR) technology While we wait for space tourism to ramp up though, Virtual Reality (VR) technology While we wait for space tourism to ramp up though, Virtual Reality (VR) technology has been developed to see space from Earth.

Michelle Bobilev is a fourth year Digital Humanities and Social Sciences student and is currently developing her CAPSTONE project:  a virtual reality planetarium .

"The VR Planetarium is a virtual reality model of a planetarium designed in Unreal Engine with 3D assets created with Blender modeling software," Bobilev explained.

She added that with the use of VR headsets and controllers, users can navigate the virtual space and choose from a variety of locations to explore.

"If the people have the tool to see the galaxy and what is out there ... VR will be an essential gadget before taking a flight there," she said.

"If the people have the tool to see the galaxy and what is out there ... VR will be an essential gadget before taking a flight there."

In the future, space tourists would be able to utilize these gadgets as a way to visualize and get a taste of what they are looking to experience out there.

Collateral Benefits

Some people are concerned about the environmental impact of space tourism. Experts claim rocket launches could damage our ozone layer. Certain chemicals in rocket fumes may be getting trapped in the stratosphere allowing them to eat away at it.

Until now, this problem hasn't been a huge issue due to limited launches. With rocket launches becoming more frequent due to space tourism, however, it could become a much bigger contributor to climate change.

Another issue is that space tourism is a luxury only available for few due to the cost. Private companies and billionaires will not be the only ones to benefit from leisurely space travel though.Another issue is that space tourism is a luxury only available for few due to the cost. Private companies and billionaires will not be the only ones to benefit from leisurely space travel though.

The rise of space tourism can provide further development of terrestrial observation systems and the preparation of technologies for interplanetary travel, among other things.

This new era of research could make space science more accessible. In addition, improvements in technologies on earth are often based on innovations that started in space. Our trip to the moon gave us our running shoes, foam mattresses and even bulletproof vests.

The Past, Present, and Future of Space Tourism

It’s been more than 20 years since the first space tourist took flight, but there’s a lot more to come in the emerging industry of space tourism..

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Are space vacations in our near future?

Illustration by Delcan & Co.

When Austrian journalist Gerhard Pistor requested to book a trip to the moon in 1964, his travel agency forwarded his query to Pan American World Airways—Pan Am. The now-defunct airline accepted the reservation and noted that the first flights to the moon would take off in the year 2000. So began a years-long space-tourism marketing stunt in which some 93,000 people joined Pan Am’s First Moon Flights Club, a waiting list for the first civilian trips to the moon.

That, of course, never happened. But as the Space Age advanced, space tourism did, too. In 2001, American entrepreneur Dennis Tito became the first true space tourist, launching aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft and spending more than a week aboard the International Space Station (ISS)—reportedly spending $20 million to do so.

Today, we’re in a new era of space tourism, with growing numbers of civilians leaving Earth for brief moments through private enterprises focusing on such endeavors. And in the coming decades, we may even see the dawn of regular long-duration space vacations.

The Birth of Space Tourism

After the Apollo era, companies investigated opportunities to send civilians rather than government professionals—that is, NASA astronauts—into space. In the 1970s, manufacturing conglomerate Rockwell International, a contractor for NASA’s Space Shuttle program, researched the possibility of passenger modules that could fit into the payload bay of the Space Shuttle, with similar concepts developed by other companies over the subsequent decade. None came to fruition.

NASA did open up its spaceflights to nongovernment professionals, though, primarily as payload specialists, who were tasked to complete specific in-flight projects by companies outside of NASA. NASA also developed the Teacher in Space and Journalist in Space programs to open up spaceflight to several civilians annually. But the programs were ended after the Challenger disaster in 1986, which killed the first Teacher in Space participant, Christa McAuliffe, along with her six crew members. The program was considered for a revival, but that, too, was ended after a Space Shuttle failure—this one, the fatal Columbia disaster in 2003.

Space tourism finally became successful in 2001 with Tito’s launch to the ISS. That trip was organized by a company called Space Adventures, which ultimately saw eight other space tourists take trips to the ISS through 2009, each launched on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft. But these tourist flights ended after the retirement of NASA’s Space Shuttle program in 2011. Because the only spacecraft capable of human spaceflight at that time was the Soyuz , every seat on every launch was needed for professional astronauts from around the world, and tourism was put on the back burner.

Space Tourism Today

For the past decade, private space tourism companies have been developing spacecraft to take passengers on suborbital flights, which bring them to the edge of space and back down to Earth in relatively short “hops” lasting anywhere from a few minutes to a few hours. By comparison, the first nine Space Adventure clients flew orbital missions that encircled the planet for days.

The method of flight varies by company. Blue Origin , for instance, launches vertically like most rockets, whereas Virgin Galactic flies a rocket-powered space plane that is launched from the belly of a carrier aircraft. While these two companies are the only suborbital companies cleared by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) for launches—both have already carried passengers to space—other companies are preparing for liftoff. That includes space-balloon companies Space Perspective and World View , which offer a far more leisurely journey than rocket-powered ascents, gently lifting passengers to high altitudes in a high-tech version of a hot air balloon. Across all suborbital space tourism companies, prices range from approximately $50,000 to $450,000 per seat.

Orbital tourism has also made a comeback, though at far higher prices: tens of millions of dollars per seat. SpaceX , which is contracted by NASA to launch astronauts to the ISS, is also available for private charters. In 2021, entrepreneur Jared Isaacman organized the Inspiration4 mission, the world’s first all-civilian mission, during which he and three crewmates orbited the Earth in a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule as a fundraiser for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. In 2022, SpaceX provided the launch vehicle for the Axiom mission 1 (Ax-1), the world’s first all-civilian mission to the ISS, during which four crew members spent eight days onboard the orbiting research facility.

Space Adventures is also back in business; it organized a flight to the ISS for Japanese entrepreneur Yusaku Maezawa, who traveled to space in December 2021. Maezawa intends to charter SpaceX’s under-development Starship spacecraft for a moon mission called the dearMoon project, taking with him eight civilians on the journey.

What’s Next for Space Tourism

Space tourism remains in its nascent phase, with plenty of work to be done. Existing suborbital companies are still tweaking launch vehicles and increasing launch cadence to approach regularity, while upcoming ones are waiting for FAA approval to begin their operations. And, hopefully, the space tourism companies will eventually be able to reduce the cost of flights, too.

But many enterprises are already eyeing the future when it comes to space tourism—a future in low-Earth orbit (LEO). NASA itself is investing in that future through the Commercial LEO Development Program, through which it is funding the development of private space stations. As NASA and its international partners move toward retiring the ISS in the next decade or so, the agency hopes to rent facilities from private stations that will be able to host not only its professional astronauts but also commercial visitors.

Four projects have received funding from NASA’s Commercial LEO Development Program, including Axiom Space, the company that launched the Ax-1 mission. Axiom has partnered with avant-garde interior designer Philippe Starck to work on its Axiom Station. Another funded project, Starlab by Voyager Space and its subsidiary Nanoracks, has partnered with Hilton to develop astronaut accommodations.

Three of the four companies are expecting to launch their space stations by the end of the decade, but as space programs go, delays are highly likely. (NASA’s current Artemis program, for instance, was hoping to land humans on the moon in 2024, but that deadline has been pushed back to at least 2025.) Still, the future is bright for space tourism and certainly within the realm of reality—all we have to do is wait. And for travelers who have always wished to be among the stars, that wait will be worth it.

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The future of space tourism is now. Well, not quite

Ilida Alvarez has dreamed of traveling to space since she was a child. But Alvarez, a legal-mediation firm owner, is afraid of flying, and she isn’t a billionaire – two facts that she was sure, until just a few weeks ago, would keep her fantasy as out of reach as the stars. She was wrong.

Alvarez, 46, and her husband, Rafael Landestoy, recently booked a flight on a 10-person pressurized capsule that – attached to a massive helium-filled balloon – will gently float to 100,000 feet while passengers sip champagne and recline in ergonomic chairs. The reservation required a $500 deposit; the flight itself will cost $50,000 and last six to 12 hours.

“I feel like it was tailor-made for the chickens like me who don’t want to get on a rocket,” said Alvarez, whose flight, organized by a company called World View, is scheduled to depart from the Grand Canyon in 2024.

Less than a year after Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson kicked off a commercial space race by blasting into the upper atmosphere within weeks of each other last summer, the global space tourism market is skyrocketing, with dozens of companies now offering reservations for everything from zero-pressure balloon trips to astronaut boot camps and simulated zero-gravity flights.

But don’t don your spacesuit just yet. While the financial services company UBS estimates the space travel market will be worth $3 billion by 2030, the Federal Aviation Administration has yet to approve most out-of-this-world trips, and construction has not started on the first space hotel. And while access and options – not to mention launchpads – are burgeoning, space tourism remains astronomically expensive for most.

First, what counts as space travel?

Sixty miles (about 100 kilometers) above our heads lies the Kármán line, the widely accepted aeronautical boundary of the earth’s atmosphere. It’s the boundary used by the Féderátion Aéronautique Internationale, which certifies and controls global astronautical records. But many organizations in the United States, including the FAA and NASA, define everything above 50 miles to be space.

Much of the attention has been focused on a trio of billionaire-led rocket companies: Bezos’ Blue Origin, whose passengers have included William Shatner of “Star Trek” fame; Branson’s Virgin Galactic, where tickets for a suborbital spaceflight start at $450,000; and Elon Musk’s SpaceX, which in September launched an all-civilian spaceflight, with no trained astronauts on board. Branson’s inaugural Virgin Galactic flight in 2021 reached about 53 miles, while Blue Origin flies above the 62-mile mark. Both are eclipsed by SpaceX, whose rockets charge far deeper in to the cosmos, reaching more than 120 miles above Earth.

Balloons, like those operated by World View, don’t go nearly as high. But even at their maximum altitude of 18 or 19 miles, operators say they float high enough to show travelers the curvature of the planet, and give them a chance to experience the overview effect – an intense perspective shift that many astronauts say kicks in when you view Earth from above.

Now, how to get there …

Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, which are both licensed for passenger space travel by the FAA, are open for ticket sales. (Blue Origin remains mum on pricing.) Both companies have hundreds or even thousands of earthlings on their wait lists for a whirl to the edge of space. SpaceX charges tens of millions of dollars for its further-reaching flights and is building a new facility in Texas that is under FAA review.

Craig Curran is a major space enthusiast – he’s held a reserved seat on a Virgin Galactic flight since 2011 – and the owner of Deprez Travel in Rochester, New York. The travel agency has a special space travel arm, Galactic Experiences by Deprez, through which Curran sells everything from rocket launch tickets to astronaut training.

Sales in the space tourism space, Curran acknowledges, “are reasonably difficult to make,” and mostly come from peer-to-peer networking. “You can imagine that people who spend $450,000 to go to space probably operate in circles that are not the same as yours and mine,” he said.

Some of Curran’s most popular offerings include flights where you can experience the same stomach-dropping feeling of zero gravity that astronauts feel in space, which he arranges for clients via chartered, specialized Boeing 727s that are flown in parabolic arcs to mimic being in space. Operators including Zero G also offer the service; the cost is around $8,200.

You can almost count the number of completed space tourist launches on one hand – Blue Origin has had four; SpaceX, two. Virgin Galactic, meanwhile, on Thursday announced the launch of its commercial passenger service, previously scheduled for late 2022, was delayed until early 2023. Many of those on waiting lists are biding their time before blastoff by signing up for training. Axiom Space, which contracts with SpaceX, offers NASA-partnered training at Houston’s Johnson Space Center. Virgin Galactic, which already offers a “customized Future Astronaut Readiness program” at its Spaceport America facility in New Mexico, is also partnering with NASA to build a training program for private astronauts.

Would-be space tourists should not expect the rigor that NASA astronauts face. Training for Virgin Galactic’s three-hour trips is included in the cost of a ticket and lasts a handful of days; it includes pilot briefings and being “fitted for your bespoke Under Armour spacesuit and boots,” according to its website.

Not ready for a rocket? Balloon rides offer a less hair-raising celestial experience.

“We go to space at 12 miles an hour, which means that it’s very smooth and very gentle. You’re not rocketing away from Earth,” said Jane Poynter, a co-founder and co-CEO of Space Perspective, which is readying its own touristic balloon spaceship, Spaceship Neptune. If all goes according to plan, voyages are scheduled to begin departing from Florida in 2024, at a cost of $125,000 per person. That’s a fraction of the price tag for Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, but still more than double the average annual salary of an American worker.

Neither Space Perspective nor World View has the required approval yet from the FAA to operate flights.

Unique implications

Whether a capsule or a rocket is your transport, the travel insurance company battleface launched a civilian space insurance plan in late 2021, a direct response, said CEO Sasha Gainullin, to an increase in space tourism interest and infrastructure. Benefits include accidental death and permanent disablement in space and are valid for spaceflights on operators like SpaceX, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, as well as on stratospheric balloon rides. They’ve had many inquiries, Gainullin said, but no purchases just yet.

“Right now it’s such high-net-worth individuals who are traveling to space, so they probably don’t need insurance,” he said. “But for quote-unquote regular travelers, I think we’ll see some takeups soon.”

And as the industry grows, so perhaps will space travel’s effect on the environment. Not only do rocket launches have immense carbon footprints, even some stratospheric balloon flights have potentially significant implications: World View’s balloons are powered by thousands of cubic meters of helium, which is a limited resource. But Ted Parson, a professor of environmental law at the University of California, Los Angeles, said that space travel’s environmental impact is still dwarfed by civil aviation. And because space travel is ultra-niche, he believes it’s likely to stay that way.

“Despite extensive projections, space tourism is likely to remain a tiny fraction of commercial space exploration,” he said. “It reminds me of tourism on Mt. Everest. It’s the indulgence of very rich people seeking a transcendent, once-in-a-lifetime experience, and the local environmental burden is intense.”

Stay a while?

In the future, space enthusiasts insist, travelers won’t be traveling to space just for the ride. They’ll want to stay a while. Orbital Assembly Corp., a manufacturing company whose goal is to colonize space, is building the world’s first space hotels – two ring-shaped properties that will orbit Earth, called Pioneer Station and Voyager Station. The company, quite optimistically, projects an opening date of 2025 for Pioneer Station, with a capacity of 28 guests. The design for the larger Voyager Station, which they say will open in 2027, promises villas and suites, as well as a gym, restaurant and bar. Both provide the ultimate luxury: simulated gravity. Axiom Space, a space infrastructure company, is building the world’s first private space station; plans include Philippe Starck-designed accommodations for travelers to spend the night.

Joshua Bush, CEO of travel agency Avenue Two Travel, has sold a handful of seats on upcoming Virgin Galactic flights to customers. The market for space travel (and the sky-high prices that come with it), he believes, will evolve much like civilian air travel did.

“In the beginning of the 20th century, only very affluent people could afford to fly,” he said. “Just as we have Spirit and Southwest Airlines today, there will be some sort of equivalent of that in space travel, too. Hopefully within my lifetime.”

This article originally appeared in The New York Times .

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Space tourism explained: What, why and where

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Space tourism is an exciting development in the travel and tourism industry. A futuristic type of tourism , the prospect of being able to spend leisure time in space is a daunting concept for many. But whilst some of us may have expected only have to be able to experience space tourism using virtual reality software, several companies are turning holidays in space into a reality.

What is space tourism?

Space tourism definitions, history of space tourism, rocket launches, space museums, space tourism holidays, virgin galactic, blue origin, is space tourism safe, the cost of space tourism holidays, space tourism: conclusion, further reading.

Space tourism is a type of tourism that involves an interest in space. Whilst most people associate space tourism solely with trips to space, the concept of space tourism is, in fact, broader than this.

Space tourism can include visiting space-focussed museums, watching rocket launches or travelling to destinations popular for stargazing, amongst other space-related activities.

Most recently, there has been a lot of commercial attention centred around the concept of travelling to space as a tourist; this is something that several companies are working to achieve in the near future, including Virgin Galactic and SpaceX.

If you Google the phrase ‘what is space tourism’ you will quickly be informed by Google, Wikipedia and a range of other sources that it is travelling to space for leisure or business purposes.

I, however, contest that space tourism is solely focussed upon the act of travelling to space. There is so much more to space tourism than this! Yes, this is an exciting prospect that has grabbed the attention of the media and the public, but hold on a minute…. what about all the other space-related activities that we can do without boarding a rocket and leaving the solar system?

The people over at The Space Tourism Guide have the right idea. They state that;

‘Space Tourism is not — and should not be — confined to space alone… While we can and should consider all of the activities from space tourism companies like Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin, Zero2Infinity, and others space tourism, we should not discredit the companies and destinations here on earth who meet the needs and desires for all of us who love to travel for space-related activities. These can vary widely, from cities and museums like Space Center Houston to hotels with space-themed rooms.’

Space tourism is so much more than taking a trip to space! In fact, I argue that space tourism should encompass all activities related to space and astrology!

To date, there is little academic research into space tourism. Yes, some people have looked into astrology and the like, but on the whole, there is a dearth of information. Most research that has been conducted has focussed on looking at potential demand and market demographics.

In light of the misleading definitions that you will find when asking your favourite search engine what is meant by the term space tourism, I have provided my own definition below.

‘Space tourism is the act of taking part in activities that involve or are related to space, either for business or leisure purposes.’

So there you have it- a definition of space tourism.

There are a total of 600 people that have been to space. The first man visited space in 1961, but it was actually long before this day that many people developed an interest in space. In fact, people have been star gazing as long as records go back. Heck, even the ancient pyramids of Egypt were built around the stars .

So, the concept of space tourism is not new.

The 1950s, 60s, 70s and 80s saw huge progress in space research. The Soviet Union and The United States were world leaders in this area; undertaking many trips to space, exploring our solar system, nearby planets and moons. Space travel became more affordable and we learnt a lot during this time.

It was only at the turn of the new millennium that commercial space tourism ,whereby a tourist could travel to space, started to become a reality. A handful of wealthy citizens from around the world embarked on their leisure outings to space between 2001-2009. Observing this demand, a number of space tourism operators began to emerge, namely Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic and Rocket Lab. Said companies have since become household names.

In recent years the commercial hype and excitement towards space tourism has died down. The public continue to eagerly await the days that they may be able to exchange their all-inclusive holiday in Benidorm for a week of zero-gravity in space, but for most, this is an unrealistic and unachievable prospect.

For now, it appears that travelling into space will be available only for the super-rich, and we do not yet know when this might be attainable. BUT the space tourism industry in all its other forms (museums, star gazing, rocket launches etc) remains to be obtainable to all.

Types of space tourism

We might not realistically be able to travel into space for our annual leave days just yet, but there are still ways that we can get involved with the space tourism industry. Here are some examples.

Stargazing is a popular space tourism pastime for many. There are many parts of the world that are renowned for their stargazing potential. These are usually remote areas, where the light pollution is reduced, enabling maximum visibility.

Some popular stargazing destinations have capitalised on the tourist market by organising stargazing tours or stargazing-focussed accommodation options, such as bubble hotels. This CNN article shows you some of the best bubble hotel spots around the world. Many people use this opportunity to visit the Northern Lights or the Southern Lights too.

Lots of these destinations are perfect for practicing your astrophotography too!

Whilst a rocket launch may not be an everyday occurrence, it is possible to spectate when they do happen. Once operated only by Governments, there are now a range of private companies that undertake rocket launches.

If you travel to a destination with the sole intention of watching a rocket launch, or if you watch a rocket launch alongside other business or leisure pursuits, you can be classified as a space tourist.

A prominent part of the space tourism industry are space museums.

There are many museums throughout the world that are focussed around the concept of space, although these are most numerous in the United States and Russia. Here are some of the most highly-rated space museums.

• Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum, Washington DC, US
• Canada Aviation and Space Museum, Ottawa, Canada
• Memorial Museum of Cosmonautics, Moscow, Russia
• Pima Air and Space Museum, Arizona , US
• Intrepid Sea, Air and Space Museum, New York City, US
• Le Bourget Air and Space Museum, Paris, France
• Kennedy Space Center, Florida , US
• Cité de l’espace, Toulouse, France

As I mentioned earlier, space tourism holidays are what many people think space tourism is all about. Whilst there are other activities that constitute space tourism, space tourism holidays have gained a lot of media attention in recent years, and rightly so. Who wouldn’t pick up the paper and read an article that tells them that they can swap their two weeks in the sun for two weeks in space?

OK, so it isn’t quite so simple. It will require some adjustment to spending time at zero gravity, you might get a little travel sick and you might not return home with quite the same tan lines, BUT space tourism holidays are set to become a reality.

There are a number of companies who have been developing their space tourism products for a number of years, although exactly when we can go on our next space tourism holiday, is yet to be determined.

Space tourism companies

There are several key players in the space tourism holiday market. See below for a brief summary of each.

Virgin Galactic is perhaps one of the best known space tourism holiday companies. It is part of the wider Virgin Group and therefore has the benefit of an already well-established brand and reputation. It is owned by Richard Branson.

The company plans to send range of tourists to space and already has an extensive waitlist for eager space travellers, including the likes of Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Leonardo DiCaprio, Ashton Kutcher and Justin Bieber.

Virgin Galactic has, however, had some negative publicity in recent times, with multiple delays and the in-flight loss of its VSS Enterprise spaceplane in 2014.

Unlike Virgin Galactic, SpaceX are an experienced rocket launching company that are now extending their operations to the commercial space tourism holiday market.

SpaceX was founded by Elon Musk. Their first holiday was initially scheduled for 2018, but has since been delayed.

Blue Origin plans to offer similar space tourism holidays to that offered by Virgin Galactic. With a traditional, vertical take-off rocket, the company plans to begin operations soon, although there is not firm date set yet.

Blue Origin was founded in 2000 by Mr Bezos.

Orion Span plans to send tourists to space to stay in their ‘space hotel’. The space hotel would accommodate up to six tourists at a time and would be positioned the private commercial space station, Aurora Space Station.

The CEO of Orion Span is Frank Bunger who states that the company’s ‘goal is to make space accessible to all’. They plan to begin operations in 2021.

Better known for their aircraft that do not leave the hemisphere, Boeing have also branched out into the space tourism holiday market.

Boeing’s involvement emerged from their working arrangement with NASA, whereby they have been working on the Commercial Crew Development programme, aimed at increasing involvement from private sector companies in the production of crew vehicles to be launched into orbit.

Boeing have developed a crew capsule, called the Boeing CST-100 Starliner, providing them with the opportunity to sell seats to space tourists.

There have been some concerns over the safety of space tourism, particularly after the negative publicity surrounding the Virgin Galactic loss of aircraft in 2014.

Because it’s so early in development of the space tourism industry and the FAA can’t control how companies design and manufacture their aircraft , it’s hard to say how safe space tourism holidays will be.

There have been many critiques, however, who have suggested that there will be deaths amongst tourists who seek to holiday in space. The number of accidents that have occurred during the testing phases hasn’t done much to people’s minds at ease, either.

Space tourism holidays are for everyday folk, at least not yet anyway, because you need to have a hefty sum of money in your pocket to be able to afford the ticket.

Prices start from US$250,000 and range up to tens of millions of Dollars. Whilst each space tourism holiday company will differ slightly, prices will typically include pre-departure training and equipment. For now, space tourism trips are set to be short in duration, lasting only a few hours. The intention is, however, that trips can be extended in the future to allow for prolonged stays in space.

As you can see, the space tourism industry is a prominent part of the wider tourism industry. Whilst most attention typically goes to the exciting prospect of space tourism holidays, there are also a number of other leisure pursuits that constitute space tourism.

It is likely that we will see many developments in the space tourism industry in the coming years, as research and development continues to be undertaken by a number of commercial operators. Watch this space and maybe you will be the next person to spend your annual leave days in space!

If you want to read up on the space tourism industry a little more then I can recommend the following texts-

• The Market for Space Tourism: Early Indications by Geoffrey Crouch- An overview of the Space Tourism market and its future potential
• Endurance: A Year in Space, A Lifetime of Discovery by Scott Kelly- A diary account of NASA astronaut’s experiences in space.
• Space Tourism by Patrick Stakem- A textbook introducing the concept of space tourism.

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Space travel is the next frontier in tourism, but is it a marketing opportunity?

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February 28, 2024 | 8 min read

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Space tourism used to be the reserve of sci-fi. But, says Joanna Lewis of Relevance, a trip to space is increasingly a reality – if you can afford the price tag.

More and more people are taking trips beyond the Earth's atmosphere, says Joanna Lewis / Freepik

Space travel is the new frontier for ultra-high-net-worth individuals (UHNWI), giving the world’s wealthiest travelers the chance to view life on Earth from a whole new perspective.

Commercial flights into space are becoming more routine, with the race for space travel being led by Virgin Galactic , SpaceX , Blue Origin, and Space Adventures. However, space tourism remains the reserve of the world’s richest individuals, with space travel companies focusing their marketing efforts on UHNWIs and billionaires.

According to research by UBS, the space tourism market is expected to reach a value of US$3bn (£2.4bn) by 2030. And it’s not surprising, given the global UHNW population in 2022 was 395,070, according to Wealth-X, with a combined wealth of $45,430bn. The total billionaire population stands at 3,194 individuals, with a collective wealth of $11,107bn.

Not only will space tourism add an exciting dimension to where UHNWIs vacation , but it will also provide a lucrative market for successful space tourism companies.

What are the different types of space travel ?

There are several different types of space travel, including orbital, suborbital, and lunar space tourism. Currently, space tourism is primarily focused on orbital and suborbital.

Suborbital space tourism is when the spacecraft reaches space but doesn’t break the gravitational border. Space tourism is currently dominated by suborbital spaceflights, with space travel companies Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin dominating this market. Suborbital flights typically reach altitudes of about 62 miles and give passengers just a few minutes in space and the chance to experience micro-gravity.

Orbital space tourism is when the spacecraft reaches orbit and passengers can spend up to a week orbiting Earth. SpaceX and Space Adventures are the only companies currently offering orbital space tourism.

Who are the key players in space tourism ?

The key players at the forefront of the race to bring space tourism to the masses are Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin, and SpaceX.

Virgin Galactic was established in 2004 by the British entrepreneur and billionaire Richard Branson. It launched its first commercial spaceflight in June 2023 for research purposes only and carried three passengers from the Italian Air Force and National Research Council.

The company took its first paying space travelers aboard Galactic O2 on August 10, 2023. The space tourism flight was launched from New Mexico and took three passengers – mother and daughter Keisha Schahaff and Anastasia Mayers, and Jon Goodwin, an 80-year-old former Olympian – to the edge of space and back, reaching an apex point of 55 miles above Earth and lasting a total of 72 minutes.

Virgin Galactic now offers a monthly cadence of spaceflights, asserting itself as a major player in space tourism. Each flight can accommodate three paying passengers, along with an accompanying astronaut.

Aerospace company Blue Origin was founded by American billionaire Jeff Bezos in 2000. Bezos traveled to space aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard rocket in 2021, describing the experience as the “best day ever.” His journey into space lasted 10 minutes and 10 seconds and was Blue Origin’s first crewed flight. The flight also took aviation pioneer Wally Funk, and 18-year-old Oliver Daemen, the youngest space traveler.

SpaceX is owned by billionaire Elon Musk and was founded in 2002. In 2021, SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket, the first orbital class rocket capable of re-flight, successfully took four passengers into orbit – 363 miles above Earth. A year later, the company, in conjunction with Axiom Space, took four passengers to the International Space Station, where they spent more than a week. According to reports, the passengers paid US$55m each for the trip.

SpaceX is the only space tourism company to send private civilians into orbit and to the International Space Station. To date, the Falcon 9 rocket has undergone 299 launches, 257 landings, and 231 re-flights. SpaceX’s Starship is the world’s most powerful launch system and in the future should be able to carry up to 100 people on long-duration, interplanetary flights.

While space tourism has gained headlines over the past few years as the industry is poised to become more accessible, it has been around for several decades. Indeed, American businessman Dennis Tito was the first space tourist in 2001, visiting the International Space Station while joining two Russian cosmonauts on a supply mission. The trip cost him a reported US$20m.

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How much does a trip to outer space cost?

The cost of space tourism has dramatically decreased since Tito's trip. However, it can vary significantly depending on the type of flight – suborbital or orbital – and on the company.

A Virgin Galactic ticket, for example, costs $450,000; however, even those with the cash to splash will have to join an 800-long waiting list.

Blue Origin does not publicly publish its flight costs. However, according to a space tourist who booked a flight in 2021 aboard Blue Origin, he paid a reported US$28m, although later had to skip the flight due to a “scheduling conflict”.

While the cost of space travel is currently prohibitive except for the world’s wealthiest individuals, there’s no doubt that as technology advances and space tourism companies reach economies of scale, space travel will become more affordable to more people.

What’s next for space tourism ?

Beyond commercial flights becoming more regular and more affordable, space tourism companies are already setting their sights on extended stays in space. In 2018, Orion Span, a galactic experience company, launched plans for an extended stay in a luxury space hotel – the Aurora Station – on the moon. The experience will reportedly set travelers back $9.5m.

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Space tourism - statistics & facts

What is the public’s opinion on space tourism, do the public want to travel to space, key insights.

Detailed statistics

Global sub-orbital space tourism market size 2021-2031, by flight vehicle type

Amount invested globally into space companies by venture capitalists 2013-2022

Equity investments in space companies worldwide 2013-2022, by type

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Current statistics on this topic.

Travel, Tourism & Hospitality

Forecast revenue of orbital space travel and tourism worldwide 2021-2030

Share of U.S. adults who want to travel to space 2021

Related topics

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• Space industry worldwide
• Space Mining
• Tourism worldwide
• Travel and tourism in the U.S.
• Aviation and aerospace industries in Germany
• European aerospace industry
• Aerospace industry in Japan

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Market overview.

• Premium Statistic Global sub-orbital space tourism market size 2021-2031, by flight vehicle type
• Premium Statistic Forecast revenue of orbital space travel and tourism worldwide 2021-2030
• Premium Statistic Amount invested globally into space companies by venture capitalists 2013-2022
• Premium Statistic Equity investments in space companies worldwide 2013-2022, by type
• Premium Statistic Share of investment deals in space start-ups worldwide by company in 2020
• Premium Statistic Distribution of space start-up investors by type 2000-2020

Sub-orbital space tourism market size worldwide in 2021, with a forecast for 2031, by flight vehicle type (in million U.S. dollars)

Forecast revenue of the orbital space travel and tourism market worldwide from 2021 to 2030 (in million U.S. dollars)

Amount venture capitalists invested into space companies worldwide from 2013 to 2022 (in billion U.S. dollars)

Cumulative equity investment in space companies worldwide from 2013 to 2022, by type (in billion U.S. dollars)

Share of investment deals in space start-ups worldwide by company in 2020

Distribution of investment deals on space start-ups worldwide in 2020, by company

Distribution of space start-up investors by type 2000-2020

Distribution of investor groups in space start-ups from 2000 to 2020, by investor type

Public opinion

• Premium Statistic U.S. public opinion on which private space companies are leading the space race 2021
• Premium Statistic U.S. opinion on which private space companies are leading the space race 2021, by age
• Premium Statistic Share of U.S. adults that believe space travel should be accessible to everyone 2021
• Premium Statistic U.S. public opinion on profitability of space exploration companies in future 2021
• Premium Statistic U.S. adults that believe billionaires should spend money on space travel 2021

U.S. public opinion on which private space companies are leading the space race 2021

Public opinion on which space companies are leading the private sector's push into space in the United States as of December 2021

U.S. opinion on which private space companies are leading the space race 2021, by age

Public opinion on which space companies are leading the private sector's push into space in the United States as of December 2021, by generation

Share of U.S. adults that believe space travel should be accessible to everyone 2021

Share of adults that believe space travel should be accessible to everyone and not just those that can afford the costs in the United States as of September 2021

U.S. public opinion on profitability of space exploration companies in future 2021

Share of the public that believe private companies focused on space exploration will make a profit in the next 10 years in the United States as of December 2021

U.S. adults that believe billionaires should spend money on space travel 2021

Share of adults that believe billionaires should be spending money traveling to space in the United States as of September 2021

Traveler interest

• Premium Statistic Share of U.S. adults who want to travel to space 2021
• Premium Statistic Share of U.S. adults who want to travel to space 2021, by gender
• Premium Statistic Share of the U.S. public who would go to the moon if money was not a factor 2021
• Premium Statistic Share of the U.S. public who would go to the moon in 2021, by generation
• Premium Statistic Share of the U.S. public who would go to the moon in 2021, by gender
• Premium Statistic Share of U.S. adults who would travel to the moon 2021, by age
• Premium Statistic Share of U.S. adults who would spend over 100 thousand USD to travel to space 2021

Share of adults that would want to travel to space if money was not an issue in the United States as of September 2021

Share of U.S. adults who want to travel to space 2021, by gender

Share of adults that want to travel to space if money was not an issue in the United States as of September 2021, by gender

Share of the U.S. public who would go to the moon if money was not a factor 2021

Share of the public that would go to the moon as a tourist if money was not a factor in the United States as of December 2021

Share of the U.S. public who would go to the moon in 2021, by generation

Share of the public that would go to the moon as a tourist if money was not a factor in the United States as of December 2021, by generation

Share of the U.S. public who would go to the moon in 2021, by gender

Share of the public that would go to the moon as a tourist if money was not a factor in the United States as of December 2021, by gender

Share of U.S. adults who would travel to the moon 2021, by age

Share of adults that would travel to the moon in the United States as of May 2021, by age

Share of U.S. adults who would spend over 100 thousand USD to travel to space 2021

Share of adults that would spend more than 100 thousand U.S. dollars to travel to space in the United States as of September 2021

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Space Tourism: Exploring the Future of Cosmic Travel

Space tourism has long been a dream for many, and recent technological advancements have brought this ambitious aspiration closer to reality. Skyrocketing beyond mere science fiction, the emerging market of space tourism has captured the imagination of entrepreneurs and enthusiasts alike.

With the potential for commercial space travel becoming increasingly tangible, the opportunity to explore the cosmos, witnessing Earth from a breathtaking vantage point, will soon be within the reach of ordinary people.

A handful of pioneering companies have ventured into the development of space tourism infrastructure, setting the stage for a new era of exploration and adventure. The industry’s flagship enterprises range from ambitious startups to well-established corporations, all working tirelessly to establish themselves as leaders in an emerging market, fueled by dreams of zero-gravity excursions and lunar vacations.

As we stand at the dawn of a new space age, it’s essential to understand the challenges and opportunities space tourism presents. While the industry is fraught with uncertainties, the promise of making what was once a privilege reserved for astronauts accessible to the general public is driving tremendous innovation. Consequently, space tourism is poised to catalyze an unprecedented era of human achievement and exploration.

Table of Contents

Definition of space tourism.

Space tourism refers to the commercial activity in which private individuals can purchase tickets to travel to space for recreational, leisure, or experiential purposes. Unlike traditional space missions primarily focused on research and development, military operations, or telecommunications, space tourism aims to make space travel accessible to people who are not professional astronauts.

This form of tourism usually involves suborbital, orbital, or lunar trips and may include activities like weightless experiences, Earth observation, and potentially even stays at space hotels or stations.

History of Space Tourism

Space tourism has its roots in the early days of human spaceflight. Alan Shepard, the first American in space, took a brief 15-minute suborbital flight in 1961, but it wasn’t until much later that the concept of space travel for ordinary citizens began to take shape.

In 2001, American businessman Dennis Tito became the first private space tourist when he paid $20 million for a trip to the International Space Station (ISS) aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft. Tito’s groundbreaking voyage blazed the trail for others to follow. In the following years, a handful of private individuals, including South African entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth and American businessman Gregory Olsen, followed in Tito’s footsteps, embarking on their space adventures.

The idea of space tourism continued to develop as private companies, such as MirCorp, began making plans for commercial space travel. MirCorp, a now-defunct company, was created to establish a commercial space station called Mir-2, derived from the Russian space station Mir that operated in low Earth orbit from 1986 to 2001.

The Ansari X-Prize, a competition offering a $10 million prize to the first non-government organization to launch a reusable crewed spacecraft twice within two weeks, played a significant role in the development of the industry. In 2004, SpaceShipOne, designed by Burt Rutan and financed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, claimed the prize and put space tourism on the map.

Over the years, several high-profile space tourists embarked on their own journeys to space, including Northrop Grumman Corporation researcher Anousheh Ansari, who became the first Iranian and female space tourist in 2006. Microsoft software architect Charles Simonyi visited the ISS twice (in 2007 and 2009), while Richard Garriott, a computer game developer, travelled to space in 2008. Cirque du Soleil Founder Guy Laliberté journeyed there in 2009.

Space tourism continues to evolve today, with private companies such as SpaceX, Blue Origin, and Virgin Galactic developing reusable spacecraft to make space travel more affordable and accessible to the public. While the industry is still in its infancy, the history of space tourism demonstrates that the dream of space travel is becoming a reality for people from all walks of life.

Major Players in Space Tourism

SpaceX, founded by Elon Musk in 2002, is a leader in the space tourism industry. It focuses on reusable rocket technology, allowing more affordable and accessible space travel. SpaceX has successfully launched and landed the Falcon 9 and Falcon Heavy rockets multiple times, significantly reducing costs. One of the company’s most ambitious projects is Starship, a fully reusable spacecraft designed for long-duration missions and carrying large crews. SpaceX has plans to take private passengers on lunar trips around the Moon, with the first mission tentatively scheduled for 2023.

Blue Origin

Blue Origin, led by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, is another crucial player in the space tourism market. Founded in 2000, the company aims to make space travel more accessible through reusable rocket technology. Its flagship vehicle, the New Shepard, is designed for suborbital flights, offering passengers a few minutes of weightlessness and views of Earth from space. Blue Origin has completed multiple test flights and plans to begin commercial operations shortly.

Virgin Galactic

Virgin Galactic, founded by Sir Richard Branson in 2004, is focused on creating a world-class space tourism experience. With its unique air-launched spacecraft, SpaceShipTwo, the company aims to offer suborbital flights for passengers, providing several minutes of weightlessness and impressive views of Earth.

Virgin Galactic has completed multiple successful test flights and plans to begin commercial operations soon. More than 600 people have already secured tickets for the first flights, with prices starting at $250,000 per seat.

Although NASA is not explicitly involved in private space tourism, the agency has worked with SpaceX and other companies to support the development of commercial space travel. For example, NASA’s Commercial Crew Program has facilitated the growth of a competitive market for crew transportation to and from low-Earth orbit, serving both government and private-sector customers.

Types of Space Tourism

Suborbital space tourism focuses on taking passengers to the edge of space, providing them with a view of Earth from above and a taste of weightlessness. In these missions, spacecraft reach altitudes between 80 to 100 kilometres before returning to Earth. Suborbital flights last a few minutes and are designed to provide a thrilling and unique experience rather than extended travel to different destinations in space. Several private companies, such as Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, are developing spacecraft for suborbital tourism .

• Blue Origin’s New Shepard : This reusable rocket system can carry up to six passengers and reaches altitudes just above the Karman line, providing a few minutes of weightlessness.
• Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo : This air-launched spacecraft also offers passengers a brief experience of weightlessness and a view of Earth from space, with potential for future improvements and modifications.

Orbital space tourism takes passengers to low Earth orbit (LEO) aboard a spacecraft that orbits our planet. These more ambitious missions allow tourists to experience life aboard a space station, observe Earth from a unique perspective, and potentially engage in scientific research. Orbital space tourism has a higher level of complexity when compared to suborbital missions, and there have been fewer orbital tourist flights to date. The Russian space agency, Roscosmos, has previously facilitated orbital space tourism missions.

International Space Station (ISS) visits : Since 2001, a select number of tourists have travelled to the ISS with the assistance of Roscosmos. These orbital missions typically last around ten days, with tourists participating in activities such as spacewalks and observing Earth from the station.

While lunar space tourism , which would involve a journey to the Moon, is not yet available, it represents a potential future development in the industry. Private space companies like SpaceX have announced plans to eventually offer lunar space tourism missions, though specific timelines and details have yet to be confirmed.

Advantages and Disadvantages of Space Tourism

Space tourism is an exciting and evolving field that offers a range of potential benefits and challenges. Here’s a look at some of the advantages and disadvantages:

• Economic Growth : The space tourism industry could become a significant revenue generator, creating jobs and stimulating investment in related sectors like aerospace engineering, hospitality, and training services.
• Technological Advancements : Commercial investment in space tourism can spur technological innovation as companies compete to offer safer, more efficient, and more affordable space travel.
• Public Engagement : The prospect of space tourism can increase public interest and engagement in space exploration and science, potentially inspiring a new generation of scientists, engineers, and ordinary people to look to the stars.
• Global Collaboration : The space tourism industry could foster international cooperation as countries and private enterprises collaborate on regulatory frameworks, safety protocols, and best practices.
• Democratization of Space : Although still expensive, the growth of space tourism could eventually make space more accessible to people other than highly trained astronauts and the military, democratizing the experience of space travel.
• Educational Value : Direct experiences of space travel could offer immense educational value, enhancing our understanding of human physiology in space and giving people a unique perspective on Earth that could promote global unity and stewardship.

Disadvantages

• Cost : Space tourism is extremely expensive, limiting access to a tiny, wealthy fraction of the population. The prices are also resource-intensive, raising questions about sustainability.
• Safety Concerns : Space travel is inherently risky. Even with advanced technology, there is the potential for catastrophic failure, which could result in loss of life.
• Environmental Impact : Rockets used in space travel produce greenhouse gases and black carbon particles that could contribute to climate change. The mining of materials for rocket construction and fuel also has environmental implications.
• Space Debris : Increased activity in space could contribute to the growing problem of space debris, which poses risks to both manned and unmanned missions.
• Regulatory and Ethical Concerns : The space tourism industry will require robust regulation to ensure safety and address a range of ethical considerations, including the potential militarization of space and the treatment of space as a commodity.
• Resource Allocation : Investment in space tourism can be seen as diverting crucial resources from other pressing issues like poverty, healthcare, and education, especially given that the immediate benefits of space tourism are likely to be enjoyed by a select few.
• Exclusivity : Given the high costs and risks involved, space tourism could exacerbate social inequalities by allowing only the wealthy to experience something as unique and transformative as space travel.

The advantages and disadvantages present compelling arguments for and against the development of the space tourism industry. As technology advances and we learn more about the implications of frequent space travel, this balance of pros and cons will likely continue to evolve.

Notable Space Tourists

Dennis Tito was the first space tourist, making history in 2001 when he visited the International Space Station (ISS) aboard a Russian Soyuz spacecraft. The American businessman and former NASA engineer paid a reported $20 million for his trip, opening the door for future space tourists.

Mark Shuttleworth followed Tito as the second space tourist in 2002. Known as the founder of Canonical Ltd., which sponsors the popular Linux-based operating system Ubuntu, the South African entrepreneur spent eight days aboard the ISS after paying about $20 million for his flight.

Gregory Olsen became the third tourist to visit the ISS in 2005. An American entrepreneur and scientist, Olsen paid roughly $20 million for his 10-day stay aboard the ISS. His trip marked another important milestone in the history of space tourism.

Anousheh Ansari was the first female space tourist and the first Iranian in space when she visited the ISS in 2006. A successful entrepreneur and philanthropist, Ansari’s journey as a space tourist garnered global attention, and she has since remained an advocate for space exploration and education .

Charles Simonyi , a Hungarian-American computer programmer who contributed to the development of Microsoft Office, made two trips to the ISS in 2007 and 2009. He is the first and only space tourist to have made multiple visits to the space station.

Richard Garriott , the British-American computer game developer and son of NASA astronaut Owen Garriott, became the sixth space tourist in 2008. His trip, which lasted 12 days, cost him around $30 million. Garriott is also known for creating the Ultima series of computer games.

Guy Laliberté , the Canadian founder of Cirque du Soleil, travelled to the ISS in 2009. A prominent philanthropist, Laliberté used his trip to raise awareness and funds for his foundation, One Drop, which aims to provide access to clean water worldwide.

Some recent noteworthy space tourists include:

• Jared Isaacman , an American billionaire and founder of Shift4 Payments, led the Inspiration4 mission in 2021, the first all-civilian spaceflight.
• Hayley Arceneaux , a pediatric cancer survivor and physician assistant, joined Isaacman on the Inspiration4 mission and became the youngest American to travel to space at 29.
• Peggy Whitson , a retired NASA astronaut who set records for the most time spent in space by an American astronaut and as the oldest female astronaut, announced in 2021 that she would return to space as a private astronaut.

These remarkable individuals have paved the way for future space tourists as the industry continues to evolve and gain momentum.

Space Tourism Destinations

Space tourism is becoming a reality, with various destinations offering unique experiences for those who want to travel beyond Earth. The first destination to consider is the  International Space Station (ISS) , which offers unparalleled access to microgravity research and breathtaking views of our planet. A select few private citizens have already visited the ISS, paving the way for more opportunities in the near future.

Suborbital space  is another popular destination in space tourism. Companies like Virgin Galactic have successfully launched tourists to the edge of the cosmos. This type of trip provides passengers with a thrilling, albeit brief, experience of weightlessness and allows them to witness the curvature of the Earth during their ascent.

The upper atmosphere presents an ideal option for those looking for a more leisurely destination. This is where passengers can experience the weightless sensation without leaving the Earth’s atmosphere. High-altitude balloons, such as those developed by World View Enterprises, can take passengers up to the edge of the atmosphere, allowing them to experience weightlessness without venturing into outer space.

Finally, one of the most ambitious and anticipated space destinations is the concept of a  space hotel . A space hotel would serve as a luxury accommodation orbiting the Earth, providing guests an unparalleled experience of living in space. Several companies are working on realizing this dream, such as the Orbital Assembly Corporation, which has plans for Voyager Station, a space hotel designed to offer its guests scientific and leisure opportunities.

In conclusion, space tourism is expanding rapidly, offering various destinations and experiences for those eager to explore the cosmos. As technology advances and commercial opportunities grow, there will likely be even more opportunities for adventurous tourists to choose from in the near future.

Space Travel Essentials

Several spacecraft are in development or operation for space tourism, such as SpaceX’s Crew Dragon and Starship, Blue Origin’s New Shepard, Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo (VSS Unity) , and Russia’s Soyuz from Roscosmos. The Crew Dragon and Starship aim to revolutionize space travel by reducing costs and increasing safety. The New Shepard is a reusable suborbital rocket designed for short trips to space, while the VSS Unity operates as a spaceplane targeting suborbital trips as well.

Most of these spacecraft are designed to transport passengers to the International Space Station (ISS) or a short stay in the Low Earth Orbit (LEO). For example, the Crew Dragon spacecraft has already transported astronauts to the ISS. The capsules and spaceplanes typically feature pressurized cabins, comfortable seating, and large windows to allow passengers to enjoy the breathtaking view of Earth below.

Training and Preparation

Space tourists will need to undergo astronaut training before embarking on their journeys to space. The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) sets guidelines to ensure space tourist safety. The intensity and duration of training depend on the type of mission and the spacecraft being used. For example, those travelling to the ISS may require more rigorous training than those embarking on suborbital flights.

Training typically includes the following:

• Physical fitness training: To prepare the body for the rigours of space travel and adapt to microgravity environments.
• Environmental training: Familiarization with the spacecraft and its systems, including the pressurized capsule, emergency procedures, and life support systems.
• Simulation and mock-up training: To practice launch, docking, and landing procedures in a safe and controlled environment.

In summary, the essentials of space tourism include selecting an appropriate spacecraft that suits one’s travel goals and undergoing the necessary training and preparation. The future of space tourism shows promise, with advancements being made in reusable rockets, spaceplanes, and astronaut training facilities.

Experiencing Space

Weightlessness and zero-gravity.

Tourists venturing into space will experience a thrilling phenomenon known as weightlessness, also referred to as zero gravity or microgravity. This sensation occurs when the spacecraft reaches an altitude of approximately 100 km, known as the Kármán Line, and begins to enter a free-fall state. As they float through the cabin, passengers will find no discernable up or down, where normal gravity conditions do not apply.

This weightless environment permits tourists to perform actions that would be difficult or impossible on Earth. Some examples include:

• Effortlessly floating through the cabin
• Tossing objects to each other over large distances
• Spinning rapidly in midair

However, weightlessness also presents challenges as the body must adapt to this new environment. It is essential to note that some individuals may experience discomfort or motion sickness when first exposed to microgravity.

Views From Space

One of the most captivating aspects of space tourism is the breathtaking views. Tourists will be gifted with unparalleled sights as the spacecraft ascends beyond the Kármán Line at an altitude of 100 km.

Here are some highlights tourists can expect:

• Earth’s curvature : The vast, curved horizon showcases the planet’s spherical nature.
• Thin atmosphere : A thin blue layer envelops Earth, showcasing the fragility of our atmosphere.
• Landmarks : Iconic geographic features such as coastlines, mountain ranges, and sprawling deserts can be observed from space.
• Night sky : Astronauts have often marvelled at the beauty of the “dark sky”, with more stars visible than ever before due to the absence of atmospheric distortion and light pollution.

These awe-inspiring vistas often evoke a profound connection to our home planet. Space tourism offers adventurous travellers a unique opportunity to experience these phenomena firsthand while gaining a newfound appreciation of Earth’s beauty and fragility.

The Future of Space Tourism

Space tourism is rapidly becoming a reality, with several private companies leading the industry in developing innovative technologies and offering unique experiences for private astronauts. Companies such as Virgin Orbit, Axiom Space, and SpaceX have made significant strides in commercial space travel, laying the foundation for a thriving space tourism industry.

The Inspiration4 mission, a milestone for private space travel, demonstrated the possibilities of what private astronaut missions might look like in the future. With a crew of ordinary civilians, the mission opened doors for both orbital and suborbital tourism. Companies like Virgin Galactic continue to work on suborbital flights, which provide a shorter but exhilarating experience just beyond the edge of space.

Private companies like Axiom Space are also venturing into orbital tourism with initiatives such as Axiom Mission 1. This bold venture aims to send private astronauts to the International Space Station, paving the way for other similar missions. Furthermore, Axiom is developing a space hotel and a private space station for tourists. These ambitious projects can potentially revolutionize human spaceflight and establish a new era of space travel.

As the space tourism industry evolves, addressing concerns surrounding space travel’s environmental impact becomes essential; with climate change increasingly pressing, commercial space travel must prioritize sustainability. Solar power is a promising solution, providing clean energy and reducing the carbon footprint of space tourism. Private companies will need to focus on developing innovative technology to harness solar power efficiently.

As infrastructure develops, spaceports like Spaceport America and Kennedy Space Center will play a crucial role in supporting the space tourism industry. They will provide launch and landing facilities, training, and support for commercial spaceflight, enabling routine space tourism to become achievable. This, in turn, will allow the industry to expand and offer more accessibility to private astronauts.

A variety of space tourism companies are shaping this new frontier. With their efforts, it’s evident that a new age of human spaceflight is on the horizon, and the future of space tourism appears to be a limitless expanse full of possibilities.

Space Tourism Regulations and Challenges

As space tourism gains momentum, it is essential to understand the regulations and challenges surrounding this emerging industry.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) plays a crucial role in regulating space tourism. It is responsible for issuing licenses and permits to private companies for launching and re-entering spaceships. The FAA ensures that every space tourism company adheres to strict safety guidelines and fulfils the necessary requirements before taking tourists on space expeditions.

One major challenge space tourism companies face is managing the expectations and risks associated with space travel. To address this issue, the concept of informed consent has been introduced. Informed consent signifies that passengers must fully comprehend the risks they will be exposed to while travelling in space. Moreover, they must voluntarily agree to undertake these risks and waive their rights to sue the company in case of accidents or mishaps.

The Kármán line, set at 100 kilometres (62 miles) above Earth’s surface, is often considered the boundary between Earth’s atmosphere and outer space. While the FAA regulates activities below this line, there is a lack of clear, international regulations for space tourism beyond the Kármán line. Developing consensus on the regulations and standards for space tourism will require cooperation from various international space agencies, such as Roscosmos, the Russian space agency.

In summary, the regulation and challenges of space tourism include managing safety protocols, informed consent, and international cooperation on space tourism standards. As the industry grows, understanding the complexities of regulations and addressing the challenges presented will be key to ensuring that space tourism becomes a safe and accessible reality for more and more people.

Impact of Space Tourism on the Economy

Space tourism’s advent can potentially create a significant economic impact. As billionaires like Jeff Bezos and Richard Branson have made headlines with their ventures in this emerging industry, we can observe growing interest among consumers. This section will explore the impact of space tourism on the economy, focusing on the involvement of billionaires, auction-based ticket sales, and the development of spaceports.

Space tourism companies, such as Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic, pioneered an industry once considered a distant dream. As a result of their ambitious investments, the space economy has witnessed rapid advancements. Tickets for space flights are auctioned, ranging from $200,000 to $300,000 per passenger. These high financial barriers ensure that only the wealthiest will initially be able to participate, though the cost is expected to drop as the industry matures.

Despite the considerable fees, there is significant demand for the unique experience that only space travel can offer. The wealth amassed by participants in the space tourism sector aids in funding research and technology development, contributing to economic growth. As the industry continues to expand, additional job opportunities may arise in sectors such as engineering, manufacturing, and hospitality.

Spaceport America is an example of a dedicated space travel hub that has the potential to invigorate local communities. This facility is located in New Mexico and serves as a launchpad and operations centre for commercial space travel. As space tourism becomes more prominent, regional economies benefit from increased tourism, job creation, and infrastructure investments associated with these spaceports.

Space tourism will undoubtedly impact the economy on multiple levels, from the participation of billionaire investors to the development of innovative spaceports. This new frontier has the potential to create jobs and drive technological advancements while offering a unique travel experience . As the sector grows, we can expect further developments to reshape how we traverse our galaxy.

11 Questions about the Future of Space Tourism Answered

By Zach Everson

In 2008, Sir Richard Branson pledged that his Virgin Galactic would bring tourists into space within 18 months. Six years later, with tourists still earthbound, Branson promised that 2014 would see the first space flights for civilians. That, of course, didn’t happen either.

In fact, the last six months have been tough for commercial space exploration. In October 2014, NASA blew up an Antares rocket , built by Orbital Sciences, when it malfunctioned seconds after launching. The next month Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo crashed over California's Mojave Desert, killing one test pilot and seriously injuring another. And this January, SpaceX’s first attempt at using a reusable rocket failed when it crashed in the Atlantic Ocean .

But despite those setbacks, space tourism will happen. The technology to put humans into space has existed for decades; more than 500 astronauts have flown. And the Russian government took seven paying civilian customers to the International Space Station in the previous decade—and has plans to do so again this year . As former astronaut Kathy Thornton, a veteran of four space shuttle missions and currently an advisor to Space Adventures, said upon retiring from NASA ,"The next time I go into space, I’ll be able to take my family with me.”

While we’re waiting for that day, the logistics of space tourism remain open questions. How will we book? How will we board? And will the TSA be involved? We asked experts in the nascent field for their answers about what to expect once space tourism takes off.

How will tourists buy tickets for space travel? "Tickets will be bought from 'spacelines' just like tickets are bought from airlines,” said Christine Anderson, executive director of Spaceport America , "the world’s first purpose-built commercial spaceport” and home to Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo and SpaceX’s Falcon 9-R rocket.

In fact, you can already apply online to fly with Virgin Galactic. But submitting an application is, as of yet, not the same as a guaranteed reservation. If you're accepted, the full $250,000 fare is due up front as a deposit. And, no, you won’t find better deals by booking on a certain day of the week .

Will passports be required? "Right now, commercial space passengers are only going on suborbital flights and returning to the spaceport they departed from, so visas and passports aren’t required," Anderson said. "In the future when point-to-point travel between countries is possible, passports will be required."

How will security work? "Spaceports will have various levels of security," Anderson said. "In the beginning of 'spaceline' travel, spaceport front gate security will be present to check in visitors as they arrive. If you are a passenger, further checks will be required in a similar way to airports."

The FAA’s Office of Commercial Space Transportation is responsible for protecting "the public, property, and the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States during commercial launch or reentry activities," according to the agency.

A TSA spokesperson declined to comment on any possible role for the organization in space travel, instead referring questions to Congress. There are no official discussions in Congress about TSA being involved in space flight, according to a staff member for one of the congressional committees of jurisdiction for TSA, who agreed to speak to Condé Nast Traveler only on background. Also, according to this staff member, regulations currently view space tourists not as passive passengers but rather as space-flight participants who have consented to and are acknowledging the risks they are taking. TSA is not currently required to vet travelers flying on private, non-commercial airlines that make use of private airfields.

In fact, universal screening of airline passengers wasn’t government mandated until after a rash of hijackings between 1969 and 1974, and the government didn’t assume control for airline screening until after 9/11, according to the Los Angeles Times.

“It wasn’t until maybe 2010 that [TSA] started to maybe get the hang of air travel, as far as streamlining stuff and making things kind of sensible,” said Jason Harrington, a former TSA screener who blogged about his experience on Taking Sense Away and has written about security for Vanity Fair and other publications.

Will space travelers be able to buy duty-free goods in space? As long as passengers abide by existing regulations about how much of an item is allowed back into the United States, says Carey Davis, an executive director with U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), bringing back duty-free goods should be no problem.

Will travel insurance be available for space tourists? It seems a safe bet that insurers will offer protection for travelers heading into space. “The ability to be able to support people to do something this amazing, of course we’re going to be looking at it,” said Chris Noble, general manager of World Nomads , one company that’s considering making space travel insurance available to commercial astronauts.

Then what would travel insurance for space trips look like? There’s little need to protect against some of the problems terrestrial travelers face. Personal property theft, lost baggage, and medical interventions—given the likelihood that space carriers won’t allow sick passengers to board—seem unlikely to affect astronauts, Noble said.

Cancellations, though, could be a problem. “As the main concern around this particular type of travel, you could be looking anywhere from $10,000 to $30,000 premiums,” Noble said. And given the costs and high risks, he expects the terms and conditions would be tighter than for general travel insurance.

And, in the event of a worse-case scenario, travel insurers will definitely look at including a life-insurance component, Noble predicts.

Will space travelers need to clear customs upon their return to Earth? Yes. “We’ve been doing it for many decades now,” CBP's Davis said. "Hanging in my assistant commissioner’s office right now is a copy of the customs declaration that the Apollo 11 astronauts filed when they landed back in 1969.”

Laura Walsh

Alex Erdekian

Charlie Hobbs

How will the customs process work? When astronauts return to the United States, they'll have to clear both customs and immigration just like all other incoming international travelers. (CBP has yet to deny entry to a person arriving from space.) Currently, customs doesn’t have dedicated facilities to clear astronauts upon re-entry. “Generally they’re landing at either military installations or airports that are open ports of entry,” Davis said. "We simply have officers on site once the vessel’s been cleared by the people at NASA that do that to make sure it’s safe. Then we simply clear the people on the manifest."

Customs doesn’t yet have procedures in place geared toward civilian space tourism. “The law right now says someone coming from outside the United States must land at an open port of entry. And ports of entry are designated by law and relegation,” Davis said. "So we would have to work those items out with industry as these things became more mature.”

“A big part of CBP’s mandate is to facilitate legitimate trade and travel,” Davis said. “We want to work with the industry very closely and make sure that they're able to do their business in a way that isn’t obstructive to them, yet meets the needs of the U.S. Government."

What customs documentation will travelers need to re-enter the United States from space? Customs will require space tourists to complete the same forms as international travelers, Davis said.

Can space travelers use the helpful, timesaving Global Entry program for their re-entry? Yes. “Global Entry, or if the travelers are Canadian, NEXUS, would be very sensible things for them to join," Davis said. “We suggest it for anyone who is considering travel.”

After space travelers clear customs upon their return, what will they do? The most probable scenario? Share their photos on Facebook and get a lot of likes.

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Space Tourism: A Primer for 2022

Yes, space tourism is a thing. Here’s everything you need to know about it right now.

For many people who grew up watching science fiction movies and television, and read books about space travel and being blasted off to the moon and beyond—space is still the final frontier. These days, it’s more about science than it is about fiction, because space tourism is very much a reality, and not only for astronauts. 

This means that dreams of visiting outer space are being brought closer to the general public, and while the possibility of ordinary people being able to book a ticket at a space hotel sounds amazing, developments in the space industry show us that this is not as far-fetched as we once thought it was. Space flights have ceased to become a thing of the future because they’re already happening right now.

The space industry has been working on developments and innovations for making space tourism more accessible to ordinary citizens, but in 2022, these “ordinary citizens” include the extraordinarily wealthy. While celebrities and VIPs have been reported to book their flights to outer space, it may be a while before ticket prices move closer back down to Earth. In the meantime, the space tourism race continues, and what an exciting race it is.

There are three private companies that are neck-and-neck at the forefront of space tourism. All of these have been building space crafts, developing platforms and spaceports, and collaborating with the best scientists in the field. Let’s take a look at some of these leaders in space tourism and what they’ve contributed so far. 

A Billionaire’s Space Race

The biggest names in the space tourism scene belong to three of the richest, most recognizable billionaires living today. 

The British business magnate Sir Richard Branson started Virgin Galactic in 2004. His space flight company believes that by flying into space, we can find out what can make life better for us here on Earth. Virgin Galactic has completed twenty-seven out of twenty-nine milestones set by the FAA (Federal Flight Administration) in preparation for commercial service. This includes two piloted test flights. The company resumed selling tickets in August 2021 after a hiatus of three years. With ticket prices listed at $450,000, its current prices are about $2000,000 more expensive than what was initially offered before 2018. Still, even with the hefty price tag, about 700 people have booked a seat for Virgin Galactic’s 90-minute tour. 

Blue Origin was started by Amazon founder and CEO Jeff Bezos. According to Blue Origin’s official website, the company is focused on exploring resources found in space in order to preserve our own planet. Apart from space tourism, Blue Origin is interested in exploring the possibilities of building infrastructure outside our planet for the benefit of future generations. Last year, the company was successful in auctioning off a seat on their New Shepard rocket for $28 million dollars. Then on July 20, 2021, Blue Origin made history by launching its first crewed spaceflight, breaking four Guinness World Book Records. 

Tesla Motors’ CEO Elon Musk not only founded SpaceX, but he is also its lead designer in charge of developing spacecraft for the company. SpaceX aims to build a fully reusable spacecraft that is capable of bringing humans to Mars and beyond. The company has partnered with several other space tourism companies like Space Adventures and Axiom. In September 2021, SpaceX was successful in launching tourists into orbit. The mission, which benefited a children’s hospital was called Inspiration4. Its crew was led by billionaire Jared Isaacman, who was joined by three other civilians aboard the Falcon9 rocket. 

No doubt that these three giants are steering the space tourism trajectory, but

there’s a fourth player called Space Perspective. Founded in 2019 by Tabor McCallum and Jayne Poynter, the company is a fast-growing start-up specializing in sub-orbital space flights. Space Perspective has even grabbed the attention of Virgin Galactic’s Sir Richard Branson and Blue Origin’s Jeff Bezos. The company’s aim is to provide cheaper, more affordable space tourism. Their official website showcases their vision for orbital space tourism as a truly immersive, luxury travel experience. What makes Space Perspectives unique is that instead of boarding rockets for space travel, the company is putting hi-tech balloons in the spotlight.  

As far as space tourism start-up companies go, Space Perspectives has been performing competitively against its larger counterparts, with seats for flights in 2024 all snapped up. The biggest draw? The relatively lower cost of tickets. At $125,000 per ticket, it’s a bargain compared to its counterparts’ price tags of $450,000 to $50M. 

With each of these companies’ successful launches, developments, and innovations, humanity comes this much closer to traveling to outer space. While there may be quite a lengthy waitlist yet, and the prices for tickets are still stratospherically high, the rest of us here on Earth watch these amazing pioneers with bated breath for the next big development in space tourism. 

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10 Signs Space Tourism Has Arrived

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Alyssa Carson, 18 and a recent high school grad of Baton Rouge International School in Louisiana, U.S., is headed to Florida Tech this fall to study astrobiology, the scientific exploration of life on earth and in space. Anyone who has met Alyssa knows that this major has been years in the making and is merely a red stepping stone toward her ultimate goal: to visit the planet Mars in 2030, around the time NASA plans to land astronauts on the red planet. Her high school superlative? The teenager most likely to walk on Mars.

Considered the world’s youngest astronaut-in-training, Alyssa attended her first space camp at age 7 and went on to attend 19 others, including camps in Turkey and Canada. “Space camp was the best opportunity for me to learn more about space and to get more involved in it,” Alyssa told Forbes magazine this month. “I got to ride simulators, do simulated missions, build model rockets and learn robotics and aviation.”

From there, when she was 12, NASA invited Alyssa to discuss missions to Mars as part of the MER (Mars Exploration Rovers) 10 panel in Washington, D.C. At age 13, she delivered a TEDx Talk in Greece (the first of three). And at 15, Alyssa became the youngest person to be accepted into the prestigious Advanced PoSSUM Space Academy, where she received the certification in applied astronautics, officially making her certified to do a sub-orbital research flight and venture into space. By the way, she also speaks four languages and has some 140,000 Instagram followers.

While Alyssa plans to potentially help NASA study and colonize Mars in the 2030s (she recently said, “Mars remains my ultimate goal, even if I have to wait until the early 2030s for the rocket, technology and crew to be ready”), she has been watching with interest as private industry marches toward recreational space tourism.

Enterprising and rich entrepreneurs have all turned their innovation to the skies. Companies like Virgin Galactic, which has a waiting list of citizens who want to travel to space; Blue Origin, started by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos; and SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla, are working in different ways to commercialize space travel. Alyssa just told Virgin Media in July 2019, “The technology is there. It’s going to be interesting to see just how soon it happens, but space tourism is the future.”

That ‘future’ is hurtling toward us — and may be happening sooner than we all think. David Erickson, senior fellow and lecturer in Wharton’s finance department, recently joined the Knowledge@Wharton radio show on SiriusXM to discuss a big business deal involving Virgin Galactic that promises to propel the space-tourism industry forward.

Here are 10 signs that mankind is getting closer to taking that next giant leap – recreational space travel:

• On July 8, 2019, Virgin Galactic, a British spaceflight company that is part of Richard Branson’s Virgin Group, announced that it would merge with Social Capital Hedosophia (SCH), a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) that was formed two years ago with the goal of buying a technology company. It raised $600 million and had about two years to make an acquisition or funds would go back to investors.
• This merger will create the world’s first and only publicly traded commercial human spaceflight company.
• Following the merger announcement, Virgin Galactic said that it believes it has “overcome a substantial number of the technical hurdles required to make the company a viable and profitable commercial service .” It pointed out that its spaceship, VSS Unity, is the first and only commercial service thus far to have put people in space. The capital provided by SCH will give Virgin Galactic “the support needed to reach commercialization ,” the company added, saying it has reached an “inflection point” in the development of commercial spaceflight for a safe experience.
• Wharton’s Erickson called the deal, which will close in the second half of this year, “a merger that suits both parties.” SCH will take a 49% stake in the combined company, while Virgin Galactic will be able to revive its space mission. The company was previously counting on a $1 billion investment from Saudi Arabia, but suspended the deal after questions arose around the death of journalist and Saudi critic Jamal Khashoggi.
• Erickson said SCH’s investment in Virgin Galactic is similar to putting money in “very early stage” and “very speculative biotech companies in which revenue generation is years away.” However, by merging with SCH instead of doing an initial public offering , he said Virgin Galactic could avoid “the scrutiny they would typically face in a two-week IPO road show.”
• With this merger, Branson’s company will soon have access to lots of capital to invest in its space-tourism activities. After the deal closes, SCH founder and CEO Chamath Palihapitiya plans to invest another $100 million in the company. Palihapitiya is a Sri Lanka native with a net worth “rumored to be close to $1 billion,” a fortune he amassed as a senior Facebook executive when the company went public.
• Virgin Galactic, which had two successful manned space launches earlier this year, already has $80 million in deposits from more than 600 aspiring space travelers in 60 countries, for a total of $120 million in potential revenue. Those customers reportedly include pop singer Justin Bieber and actor Leonardo DiCaprio. The company said it intends to offer customers a “unique, multi-day experience” including zero gravity and views of Earth from space. After this year’s launches, about 2,500 people have asked to sign up, Branson told CNBC in an interview.
• And when it comes to competitors Jeff Bezos and Elon Musk, the space race is on. Blue Origin is planning a crewed space mission in 2019 and seeks to get people to the moon by 2024. Musk wants to take SpaceX to Mars and has set longer-range plans: ferry cargo by 2022 and humans by 2024, build a city in the 2020s and colonize the red planet in the 2030s. SpaceX is already carrying cargo shipments to the International Space Station on its Dragon spacecraft.
• One of the keys to success is to “demonstrate safety and reliability,” said Iain Boyd, professor of aerospace engineering at the University of Michigan who also joined the K@W SiriusXM radio show. “If the first few space flights of any of these companies go well, “then people will come,” said Boyd. “But if anything goes wrong, it’s going to be very interesting to see if this kind of market can ride that out.”
• Space tourism is not just a private-company endeavor. Fans of NASA (like Alyssa Carson) will recall that last month the U.S. government space agency announced it wants to let space tourists onto the International Space Station – for a cool $59 million per trip. This could happen as soon as next year, although limited to two separate trips per year. Welcome to the final frontier.

Related Links

• Forbes: Alyssa Carson
• CNN: NASA Wants to Land Astronauts on Mars by 2033
• Virgin Galactic and SCH Merger
• Mars Exploration Rovers
• Alyssa’s First TEDx Talk
• Alyssa’s 2nd TEDx Talk
• Alyssa Carson Website
• K@W: Virgin Galactic Revs Up Space Tourism
• Advanced Possum Space Academy
• K@W: Remembering the Dark Side of the Space Race
• TechCrunch: Jeff Bezos Aims Blue Origin at the Moon
• Business Insider: Elon Musk Says SpaceX Is On Track To Launch People to Mars Within Six Years

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2 comments on “ 10 Signs Space Tourism Has Arrived ”

Space has been one of the fundamental fantasies of humanity, especially after World War II, when people finally realize that the earth, although meaning almost everything to most of them, is only a tiny bit of the whole universe——people would dream about aliens fighting each other, escaping earth after natural disasters, and beautiful scenery on some fictional planets. Most people have wanted, at a certain point of their life, to be in space, away from earth, where all problems are.

However, space travelers have been carefully chosen by governmental agencies, significantly depending on either the scientific skills or the military skills of individuals. Space traveling has always been connected to global politics or science during the last century. Not to mention normal tourists, almost no artists and philosophers haven been able to gain new ideas by going to the space. For most of us, the space is far away and full of romantic feelings——we see space in films like 2001: A Space Odyssey and Star Wars; we dream of space walking listening to Elton John’s music; we read about space on News and all those science fiction novels. In fact, we know few about the true space, only knowing about it by watching some scientific documentaries or hearing from high school physics teacher, unless you are a super fan like Alyssa Carson——some even still believe that the earth is literally flat.

It’s very exciting to know that commercial space tour is possible in the near future, although it may be very expensive, despite at the same time we should perhaps not focusing to much on the space and put more efforts on society on the earth.

As a high school student, knowing about space from films and music, I have always wondered about what inspiration I may get when I finally pay a visit the space. Besides, it’s always good to know that after global warming and all the other messes on our planet, our species can go to the space and continue to live.

The driving force of humanity lies in its curiosity, the yearning to discover the unknown. Space is simply too irresistible for humans to ignore. We see this burning passion within many astronauts, but perhaps within none more than Alyssa Carson. Alyssa’s dedication to traveling to Mars has been extremely admirable and it is unbelievable that at 12 years old, she was discussing missions with NASA. I’d like to focus on a particular comment: “The technology is there. It’s going to be interesting to see just how soon it happens, but space tourism is the future.”

We’ve already seen the beginnings of space tourism through Virgin Galactic, a company focusing on the commercialization of space travel. It’s already begun to launch thousands of customers beyond the stratosphere for a couple of hours to experience zero gravity and a view of the Earth. The spaceflight company owned by Jeff Bezos (Blue Origin), has also begun to offer trips to space. It seems as though space tourism is only going to increase in popularity from the present to the future. Yet, I find there to be numerous issues that the article hasn’t addressed.

Each commercial flight to space, although relatively short, has a much greater carbon footprint compared to a normal airplane flight. Virgin Galactic has stated that they wanted to launch 400 flights annually, which would not only greatly increase its carbon footprint, but could also cause further damage to our ozone layer. The emissions from rockets such as soot and aluminum oxide in rocket oxide deplete upper-atmosphere ozone, which would heat up the Earth. It’s ironic that the view people are willing to pay millions for is actually harming the Earth by hastening global warming.

Of course, we cannot forget the cost of spaceflight. As shown in the article, Virgin Galactic has made 80 million dollars in revenue from merely 600 people and even the U.S. government space agency has shown interest in bringing tourists onto the International Space Station for a whopping 59 million dollars per trip! The millions, possibly billions, in gross revenue spent by wealthy customers could benefit thousands in need. Although I don’t have a right to decide what others do with their money, it seems wasteful to spend that much on a niche only the top 0.1% can experience. It not only ruins the environment, but it’s a short trip lasting only 30-60 minutes. With that amount spent, the actual space exploration to planets beyond can be advanced and we can start planning for actual progress for humankind as a whole. For example, Elon Musk’s claims referenced in the article about colonizing Mars seem to hold promise. The thousands of tons of rocket fuel wasted for these short excursions could be used to send robots that test the viability of crops being grown or how oxygen would be artificially made (Martian reference). There are infinite possibilities to better the world and I find it to be a major disappointment that it’s wasted on something so trivial.

Of course, these are just my thoughts on the future of space tourism. There is no doubt that this industry will continue to expand and customers will, in turn, pay hundreds of thousands to have the “experience of a lifetime.” The technology in the future will likely surpass what we have now and I’m hopeful that something will be invented to lessen the environmental impact of rocket fuel so that the trips that the uber-rich won’t destroy our world. In the article, there is no mention of Virgin Galactic talking about the environment, only business statistics and the amount of profit. If the largest spaceflight company disregards something of such importance, I can only foresee a dimming horizon in what lies ahead.

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The Future of Space Tourism

Where we are now.

The idea of Space Tourism feels like something out of a futuristic sci-fi film but the reality is that it’s been around for almost 20 years. Some may recall American businessman, Dennis Tito, becoming the first civilian tourist to visit the International Space Station in 2001. Tito’s trip to space cost him a colossal 20 million dollars, meaning at that price, going into space would remain a dream only to be experienced through films and stories for most of us.

The concept of space tourism evokes a sense of awe and wonder, igniting excitement and fascination within us. This burgeoning industry has gained momentum in recent years, and for valid reasons. For generations, the idea of journeying beyond the confines of Earth’s atmosphere into the boundless expanse of space has captivated the human imagination. With recent technological progress, this aspiration is no longer limited to astronauts and scientists alone, and the prospect of it is enough to entice anyone.

A 20 million dollar space holiday?

Space tourism may seem like a luxury only afforded by the super-rich, but it’s not just about money. It’s an opportunity for anyone to experience something truly unique, awe-inspiring and life-changing. The appeal of space tourism is undeniable, a chance to see the world from a completely different perspective, to feel weightlessness and witness the beauty of our planet from a distance.

According to recent surveys, interest in space tourism is not limited to the wealthy, with 38% of luxury travellers expressing interest in taking a space flight for recreational purposes. Among luxury travellers aged 16-34, that figure rises to an astounding 58%.

The mere thought of space tourism can evoke a sense of wonder and excitement. For many, it’s a chance to realise childhood dreams and experience something that was once unimaginable. It’s a chance to leave behind the mundane and experience the extraordinary. The possibilities of space tourism are endless, from suborbital flights to orbital flights, to staying in space hotels and even commercial space stations.

In this article, we will delve into the world of space tourism, exploring its history, current state, key players and what the future may hold. We will discuss the benefits and challenges of space tourism, its impact on society and the economy, and the ethical and environmental concerns that come with it. So, buckle up and prepare for lift-off as we embark on a journey to the final frontier.

The Space Tourism Market

The government end-user segment is also expected to grow at a CAGR of 37% from 2022 to 2030. In the United States, North America led the overall market in 2022, with a market share of 38.6%. The region has a well-established infrastructure that has allowed for the speedier implementation of modern technologies, and the presence of an extensive research and development base.

There are two types of space tourism: sub-orbital and orbital.

Suborbital Spaceflight

The sub-orbital segment dominated the market in 2022, accounting for 49.3% of the overall market share and aims to reach an altitude of over 300,000 feet, reaching the Karman line, which is the benchmark to define where outer space begins. Currently there are two major players competing in this field, Virgin Galactic, part of Richard Branson’s empire and Blue Origin, run by Amazon’s billionaire founder Jeff Bezos. Both of the companies’ systems are rocket-powered and capable of carrying up to six passengers on a flight. Virgin has completed four successful flights however recently filed for bankruptcy after failing to find funding, Blue origin however has now flown 32 passengers on the New Sheppard alongside a number of uncrewed flights carrying payloads onboard.

Orbital Spaceflight

Unlike suborbital spaceflight which gives passengers a few minutes in space at an altitude of 300,000 feet, orbital spaceflight goes much further than this. Passengers are likely to spend between a few days in space up to over a week at an altitude of over 1.3 million feet. The final quarter of 2021 is likely to be a huge for tourists in orbital spaceflight, with two major companies Space Adventures and Axiom Space announcing up to nine seats to orbit available for purchase by either individuals or organizations.

The sub-orbital segment dominated the market in 2022, accounting for 49.3% of the overall market share. The orbital segment, on the other hand, is expected to witness the fastest growth of 41.0% throughout the forecast period. The demand for space tourism is expected to continue to grow in the coming years, as the cost of space travel decreases and more people become interested in the experience.

Current Space Tourism Competitors and Missions

Whilst still relatively new the space tourism industry already has several key players:

• Blue Origin
• Space Adventure
• Zero 2 Infinity
• Space Perspective

These companies are working to develop new technologies and services that will make space travel more accessible and affordable for a broader market.

More recently NASA  funded three companies to develop commercial space stations, totaling $415M. Blue Origin received $130 million, Nanoracks received $160 million, and Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation received $125.6 million. These developments help support growing demand for space tourism, providing the necessary infrastructure to support it.

Where is Space Tourism Booming?

North America is leading the way in the space tourism market, with a well-established infrastructure and an extensive research and development base. Europe, although behind America in the market, is also showing potential in the space tourism industry, with the U.K. government pledging £2 million to fund horizontal space launches from the country. The U.K. has emerged as a region leader for spaceports, which could then transition into more opportunities for space tourism in Europe. However, the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine have been detrimental to building the European space tourism market, with space activities and funding being diverted elsewhere. To keep up with the US, Europe needs to scale launch capabilities

Why is Space Tourism expected to be so popular?

Going to space provides an opportunity to witness the beauty of the Earth from a completely different perspective. It allows one to see the planet as a whole, and to appreciate the fragile and interconnected nature of all life on Earth. The experience of weightlessness and the sensation of floating in space is also something that very few people have ever experienced, which makes it an incredible and unforgettable experience.

Choosing to go to space over an expensive holiday on Earth is a personal decision, but it offers a once-in-a-lifetime experience that cannot be replicated elsewhere. It provides an opportunity to break free from the monotony of everyday life and to embark on a truly unique adventure that can inspire personal growth and self-discovery. Furthermore, it offers an opportunity to contribute to the advancement of space exploration, science, and technology, which has the potential to benefit all of humanity in the long run.

But space tourism is not without its challenges…

While space tourism offers exciting opportunities, there are also some potential drawbacks and negative effects to consider.

Environmental Impact: Space tourism can have a negative impact on the environment. Launching spacecraft and rockets require a lot of energy and can produce significant amounts of air and noise pollution. These emissions can contribute to climate change and harm the atmosphere.

Safety Concerns: Space travel is still a dangerous endeavor, and accidents can happen. Despite safety protocols, there is always the risk of something going wrong, and the consequences of a mishap could be catastrophic.

Cost: At present, space tourism is an expensive venture that is accessible only to the wealthy. As a result, many people will not be able to experience space travel, which can create feelings of inequality and elitism.

Space Debris: Every launch of a spacecraft generates debris that can stay in orbit for many years, and as the number of space launches increases, the amount of debris grows. This debris can cause problems for other spacecraft, and even small debris can cause damage.

Resource Depletion: Space travel requires a vast amount of resources, including energy, fuel, and materials. The depletion of these resources could have long-term consequences and could negatively impact the environment and the availability of resources for future generations.

Legal Issues: The legal framework for space tourism is still evolving, and it is unclear who will be held responsible if something goes wrong. There are also concerns about the impact of space tourism on international space laws and treaties.

The industry must ensure safety and sustainability, avoiding the mistakes of the past and building a foundation for the future. Including continuing to invest in research and development and ensuring that space travel becomes more accessible and affordable for all.

So What’s Next?

Space hotels.

Plans involving orbital spaceflight will require tourists to stay at the International Space Station, the only habitable structure in space at the moment but many companies are looking beyond this. Space hotels are likely to be the next venture for many to support the space tourism sector. One company, Orion Span , has developed plans for the first-ever “affordable” luxury space hotel called ‘Aurora station’. Orion Span is looking to launch in 2021 and start welcoming guests in 2022. This doesn’t mean the opportunity will be available to many of us with the expected cost of a 12-day stay on the ‘Aurora station’ coming to $9.5 million, quite literally a price that’s out of this world. Still, that’s a lot less than orbital tourists have paid in the past, as all of the seven private citizens that took trips to ISS each payed an estimated $20 million to $40 million per trip.

One small step for hotels … one giant leap for hotel life. Not only are space companies looking to venture into space hotels but giant hotel booking company Hotels.com. Launching the first online travel site, ‘offering future hotel bookings in space and reward earthlings with the ultimate out of this world travel escape’. Featuring space robes and slippers, intergalactic room service, solar lobbies, holographic wake-up calls, meteor mini bar, zero gravity space deck, pool and bar, which have all been imagined through beautiful renders of a space hotel on their galactic booking website.

Whilst space hotels like this may be a long way off until then there’s plenty of options to have an out of this world experience in one of these space themed hotels. Here’s our top five:

Top 5 Space Theme Hotels on Earth

The website says : Experience the feeling of flying among the stars as you enjoy the comfort of your Serenity Latex Mattress, specially designed for your spaceship bed. The triangular whirlpool bath glows softly under the stars from a multitude of different galaxies as you enjoy watching movies on your Plasma Screen Television. The DVD provided ensures you can watch all the Star Wars movies you’re able to while staying with us.

The steam shower is equipped with the “Raindancer Shower” which is almost as good as having a masseuse in the room with you. Your wet bar comes complete with a microwave, refrigerator and coffeemaker so you will not have to leave your spaceship until you are done exploring the universe and are ready to return to Earth! Your mission, should you decide to accept it, is to enjoy your outer space experience and boldly go where no others have gone before.

Outer space room with Seaview balcony at Gold Coast Hotel, Hong Kong

The website says: Journey to a different galaxy in the Outer Space Room, where different planets hang from a ceiling of stars and a full space mural encourages a voyage for both the young and the young at heart. Little guests can sleep and play in their miniature bed, while adults can seek much-deserved rest in a giant crater bed.

Fantasy Land Hotel, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada

The website says: 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, Blast-off! Explore the universe in our new Space Theme room and enjoy the amenities.

Pengheng Space Capsules Hotel, Shenzhen, China

Offering what is likely the most of the this world experience, this hotel pushes the boundaries of design and futurism. This exciting space themed hotel has done away with rooms and features a sleeping capsule mimicking life in space. Not only this, the hotel is staffed entirely by robots so maybe the designs fromHotel.com aren’t so farfetched after all!

The Executive suite at the Kameha Grand Zurich Hotel, Switzerland

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The Fraught History (and Inevitable Future) of Space Tourism

Peter ward on the cost of human luxury among the stars.

Dennis Tito’s weeklong trip into space in April 2001 was the first example of space tourism, and it opened the door for six more people to travel to the International Space Station (ISS). Space Adventures conducted most of their training in Russia and launched their clients into space using Russian Soyuz rockets. South African entrepreneur Mark Shuttleworth became the second person to take a vacation in space in 2002, and the same year pop star and ‘N Sync singer Lance Bass was scheduled to become the third. Although Bass completed the training, the TV producers behind the trip, who wanted to produce a documentary series from it, failed to come up with the $20 million, and the singer was denied a stay at the ISS.

The last citizen to fly into space was Canadian Guy Laliberté, and the millionaires and billionaires of the world have had a frustrating few years with no access to space. But there’s a new wave of space tourism companies on the horizon, and a huge number of people already on their waiting lists. But will this new form of space tourism make it a realistic endeavor for anyone but the one percent?

Each of the seven people to go into space with Space Adventures paid somewhere between $20 and $40 million for the privilege, a price that excluded all but the most wealthy from a holiday off-planet. But over the years, other companies have worked to put tourists into space for a much smaller cost. The company expected to put the first paying customers in space using a commercial spacecraft is Virgin Galactic. The company had been founded on the momentum of the Ansari XPrize in 2004, and had developed the second version of its spacecraft. But today, the company has only just reached space. The journey to this point has been fraught with setbacks and tragedy.

In July 2007, a fatal explosion occurred at Scaled Composites, the company building the rocket engine that would fire the Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo into space. The accident, which happened during a routine test and killed three people, delayed development as the company investigated the cause. Despite this setback, Scaled Composites delivered the new White Knight mother ship—which took the main craft high enough to launch—in 2009. The aircraft was twice the size of its predecessor and was unveiled to the world and the media with much fanfare. The prospect of flying civilians into space was taking longer than expected to come to fruition, but enthusiasm had not waned.

In 2009, Adam Cohen read about Virgin Galactic in the news. You only need to speak to Cohen for 10 minutes to realize he’s both extremely enthusiastic about space and prone to acts of severe spontaneity. This explains how, upon learning about Virgin Galactic, he immediately wrote a check for $200,000 to book passage on the company’s next available flight. “It was really unjustifiable for me at the time,” Cohen told me from Florida via phone. “I wasn’t too far into having started a business, so it was not a reasonable thing to do. But space flight is not being powered by people doing reasonable things. It’s being powered by people having a lot of passion and optimism who wind up putting what they can into it.”

When Cohen signed up for a seat in the spacecraft, he was running his own research service for hedge funds and mutual funds, an incongruously boring career choice for an eccentric man. He says the most logical next step in his career would have been to set up his own hedge fund, a reliably lucrative choice. However, fate and spontaneity took him down a different path.

Cohen hasn’t complained that he’s still waiting to take a trip he paid for in 2009. In July 2008, Branson said the first flight would take place within 18 months. The next year, the company said the maiden flight would be within two years. In December 2009, Branson told a group of customers that flights would begin in 2011. The promises kept coming, and so did the delays. Christmas Day 2013 was mentioned as one possible date, but SpaceShipTwo, now called VSS Enterprise, was not ready.

But none of these delays hurt the company like its next truly tragic setback in October 2014. It was the fourth powered flight of VSS Enterprise, and the vehicle broke apart as it returned to Earth, killing copilot Michael Alsbury and injuring pilot Peter Siebold. The world was shocked at Alsbury’s death, and the inevitable questions were raised regarding the safety of the whole project. The accident was later attributed to a pilot error. Still, the likes of Cohen were not put off. “Let’s just suppose that they start taking off next year, one way or another, whether it’s launch number 200, 500, or 1,000, eventually whether it’s a SpaceX delivery of people to ISS or a Blue Origin, one of these is going to blow up just like airplanes do sometimes,” he said. “When my time comes I’m going to make a short video that says I’m so excited to go on this trip, and on the off chance that I’m the unlucky passenger, I say it’s worth it and nobody should be discouraged by it.”

Perhaps it’s this attitude, or the willingness to wait no matter how long it takes for the rockets to finally fire, that has forged a community spirit among Virgin’s customers. Attenborough describes his 600-to-700-strong customer base as a “pretty interesting group of people” from all over the world. There’s also a great sense of duty in what they’re doing. “In a way, obviously, I’m very excited to get to go on that trip, but from an almost charitable, philanthropic sense, this is the most important thing I can do,” Cohen said. “I write my checks to charities, but anything I can do for space exploration is the most important thing I can do for my great-grandchildren.”

This community has come together online and in the real world with a shared sense of anticipation. “There’s a private Facebook page for the group,” explained Cohen:

They post pictures on that, and when there’s a new task or certification we get warned about that. The Virgin people are really good about letting us know what’s going on. I think we’ve got a really good factual understanding of how things progress. Richard, as an optimistic entrepreneur, makes proclamations about when things are going to be done, but whether it’s a guy like Branson or Musk, guys who innovate, they always have a timetable that people can’t keep up with. I always feel like we know pretty much what’s going on, and when it’s time we’re off to the races.

In turn, the customers have become staunch defenders of the concept. “This is like six, seven hundred people who have formed themselves into an amazing community, and are incredibly emotionally engaged with the project. They are our best ambassadors on good days and bad,” Attenborough stated.

Cohen says the would-be passengers serve as “kind of diplomatic missionaries” for the Virgin Galactic experience and space travel in general. Virgin Galactic sponsors events within the community that seek to introduce more children to science and technology, and the company also plans to reward their customers’ loyalty with additional adventures. One of these was a trip to the National Aerospace Training and Research Center (NASTAR), a training facility outside Philadelphia, where the ticket holders were treated to three days of astronaut training exercises, such as the centrifuge, where a person is spun around rapidly to simulate high g-forces.

Although the sense of community and weekend events are fun, the group is really waiting for one thing. And toward the end of 2018, they took a giant step closer to their goal. On December 13, at 8:03 a.m. on the East Coast of America, Virgin Galactic tweeted: “SpaceShipTwo, welcome to space.” The latest test of the Virgin space tourism program had succeeded. In 45 minutes, the spacecraft had gone from Earth to space and back to Earth again, prompting Branson to declare his aim to be on a test flight himself in 2019. The public—and Cohen—would get the chance soon after.

Virgin Galactic’s first flight into space with passengers will be a landmark moment for the commercial space industry, but customers will always want to go further into space for longer periods of time. Luckily for them, Virgin Galactic isn’t the only player in the game.

There are three main categories of space tourism—one is suborbital, which is what Virgin plans to offer. The second is orbital, which, as the name suggests, involves entering the Earth’s orbit, similar to what customers of Space Adventures experienced. The third type goes beyond that, to the Moon and back.

In the suborbital category, Virgin has two main competitors. Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin is developing a reusable suborbital launch system specifically designed for space tourism. The company would take a maximum of six people on board its New Shepard rocket for a brief sojourn into space. Blue Origin is yet to start selling tickets for flights, despite having passed several test launches, but reports suggest it will charge between $200,000 and $300,000. The other major competitor comes from Russia. In 2016, Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, granted permission to the private company KosmoKurs to build a reusable rocket to send tourists into space. The company is years behind the likes of Virgin and Blue Origin, but plans to offer a similar package as its American counterparts: a short suborbital flight for around $200,000 to $250,000 per person.

Orbital space holidays have slowed to a halt. With no room for passengers available on the Soyuz rockets for many years, enthusiasm has flagged, or other factors have got in the way. British classical singer Sarah Brightman was scheduled to go to the ISS with Space Adventures in 2015 and began training. But she pulled out for family reasons. That meant the Japanese businessman Satoshi Takamatsu was given the option to take her place, but he declined, saying the art projects he wanted to showcase while in space were not ready. He is currently expected to take the trip in 2020. One of the drawbacks to this type of space tourism, besides the dizzying price, is the amount of time would-be space travelers need to devote to the flight. The training for these missions takes around six months and extensive medical tests are required. These factors limit the amount of potential travelers in this sector.

The third tier of space tourism grabs the most headlines, and indeed it is the most ambitious and profitable. These trips are for the dreamers with more money than they can spend and a reckless sense of adventure. They go beyond the ISS and into deep space. Two companies so far have offered trips around the Moon. One is Space Adventures, operating in conjunction with Roscosmos. The experience involves two passengers and one professional cosmonaut heading to the ISS for 10 days so the tourists can adapt to space. A second rocket is then launched from Earth with a Lunar Module, and the passengers will travel from the ISS on their original craft to rendezvous in Earth’s lower orbit with this module, which is comprised of a propulsion section and a living area. The two spacecraft together will then fire their engines and travel around the Moon, flying just 100 kilometers from the lunar surface. In 2011, Space Adventures announced one of the two seats on this journey had been sold for $150 million and by 2014 had found the second customer, meaning the trip could embark by 2017. However, extensive delays mean the company is now aiming to complete the trip by the end of the decade. Nothing is known of the passengers who have reportedly paid to embark on this lunar mission.

The other company aiming to shoot tourists to the Moon is SpaceX—and Elon Musk announced his first customer with typical bravado. In September 2018, to a packed press conference, Musk announced that Yusaku Maezawa, a Japanese e-commerce billionaire, would be the first to take a SpaceX trip around the Moon. Musk announced the departure date as 2023, and also revealed Maezawa had bought all the seats on the flight and will take six to eight artists with him to enjoy the experience.

Maezawa is the founder of Zozotown, an online fashion mall and his net worth is $2.9 billion, according to Forbes. He is an extremely passionate art collector and spent $80 million on paintings by Jean-Michel Basquiat and Pablo Picasso in 2016. He believes that taking artists to space can inspire them to do great things. “If Pablo Picasso had been able to see the moon up close, what kind of paintings would he have [made]?” the website for the Moon expedition asks. “If John Lennon could have seen the curvature of the Earth, what kind of songs would he have written?”

SpaceX plans to use its Starship rocket and ship (previously referred to as the Big Fucking Rocket by Musk and expected to eventually take people to Mars) to take Maezawa and his selected artists to space. The rocket is yet to be built, however, making the 2023 target an ambitious one. But the project, if successful, has the potential to diversify space. Only 24 people have ever flown to the Moon and 12 of them have walked on its surface. All of those 24 have been white, American males. Just this one trip alone, with artists chosen from all over the world and with vastly different backgrounds, would change that dramatically.

This is one of the major reasons to pursue tourism in space—to democratize the experience, make it more readily available for all, and to expand the thinking of a whole generation of people.

__________________________________

Excerpted from The Consequential Frontier: Challenging the Privatization of Space by Peter Ward. Copyright © Peter Ward 2019. Reprinted with permission from Melville House.

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Please note you do not have access to teaching notes, space tourism-past to future : a perspective article.

Tourism Review

ISSN : 1660-5373

Article publication date: 19 December 2019

Issue publication date: 20 February 2020

This paper aims to briefly review the history and future expectations for space tourism.

Design/methodology/approach

Historical review.

After a series of successes in space travel, culminating by the Apollo 11 Moon landings in 1969, governmental efforts at space travel stalled. In the early twenty-first century, private entrepreneurs inspired new life into space travel and tourism, offering commercial suborbital trips, but none have as yet actually taken place. However, despite impediments, a significant expansion of space travel and tourism is expected to occur in the course of the twenty-first century.

Originality/value

The paper offers a synoptic view of past and projected future developments in space travel and tourism.

• 75th Anniversary issue
• Space Tourism
• Space travel
• Near-Earth suborbital

Cohen, E. and Spector, S. (2020), "Space tourism-past to future : a perspective article", Tourism Review , Vol. 75 No. 1, pp. 136-139. https://doi.org/10.1108/TR-03-2019-0083

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited

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