Floating The Idea Of A Hotel In Space

The race to get tourists in space is getting more and more intense. The latest company to announce a space-related getaway is Bigelow Aerospace, which wants to send inflatable space stations into orbit to be be used as hotels, among other things.

Robert Bigelow, a billionaire who has made his fortune in hotels in America, announced the plans in February, forming a new company called Bigelow Space Operations, which will market and sell the standalone space stations created by the parent firm.

Most of these space stations will be used for scientific endeavors, but Bigelow also plans to use them as space hotels. He said the ideal cost per passenger would be in the low seven-figure range, but there’s a chance it might be closer to “low eight figure”, according to the Daily Mail.

Over the next year, the company will spend time establishing a marketing plan. “We intend to spend millions of dollars this year in drilling down, hopefully, to a conclusion one way or the other as to what the global market is going to look like,” Bigelow explained in a teleconference with reporters. “We expect to finish that investigation by the end of this year.”

Bigelow hopes the new space stations will launch at some point in 2021. The B330-1 and B3330-2 stations are well into the fabrication stage. The modules are 55 feet (16.8 meters) in length, and will join together to form a larger space station, which will be able to double the current capacity of the International Space Station.

The company has already launched three modules into space. The first and second were launched into orbit in 2006 and 2007, respectively, and flew around the earth on uncrewed test missions. The third, the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module (BEAM), has been attached to the International Space Station since April 2016 and serves as a storage area. It will stay on the International Space Station until at least 2020.

Although tourist trips will make up some of the company’s ambitions, Bigelow doesn’t think it will be the bulk of its business: “What we’ve always anticipated and expected is that we would be very involved in helping foreign countries to establish their human space programs, and be able to facilitate whatever their needs were in whatever context that they wanted to pursue,” he said. “The corporate world, obviously, is huge, and [leveraging] that is also our intent.”

A number of companies are going to be targeting space tourism in the coming years. Virgin Galactic aims to launch its maiden flight into space for well-paying tourists this year or next, and Roscosmos, the Russian space agency, is looking at plans to build a hotel attachment to the International Space Station that would allow tourists to explore the station and enjoy time with astronauts, gazing out into space, all from a private cabin with WiFi.

Since you are here, we would like to share our vision for the future of travel - and the direction Culture Trip is moving in.

Culture Trip launched in 2011 with a simple yet passionate mission: to inspire people to go beyond their boundaries and experience what makes a place, its people and its culture special and meaningful — and this is still in our DNA today. We are proud that, for more than a decade, millions like you have trusted our award-winning recommendations by people who deeply understand what makes certain places and communities so special.

Increasingly we believe the world needs more meaningful, real-life connections between curious travellers keen to explore the world in a more responsible way. That is why we have intensively curated a collection of premium small-group trips as an invitation to meet and connect with new, like-minded people for once-in-a-lifetime experiences in three categories: Culture Trips, Rail Trips and Private Trips. Our Trips are suitable for both solo travelers, couples and friends who want to explore the world together.

Culture Trips are deeply immersive 5 to 16 days itineraries, that combine authentic local experiences, exciting activities and 4-5* accommodation to look forward to at the end of each day. Our Rail Trips are our most planet-friendly itineraries that invite you to take the scenic route, relax whilst getting under the skin of a destination. Our Private Trips are fully tailored itineraries, curated by our Travel Experts specifically for you, your friends or your family.

We know that many of you worry about the environmental impact of travel and are looking for ways of expanding horizons in ways that do minimal harm - and may even bring benefits. We are committed to go as far as possible in curating our trips with care for the planet. That is why all of our trips are flightless in destination, fully carbon offset - and we have ambitious plans to be net zero in the very near future.