“Companies who embrace space travel right now can offer their clients a unique and valuable service – positioning themselves as experts in this emerging field and opening exciting and exclusive opportunities for their clients – while capturing the growing lucrative market before it really takes off,” according to Edyta Teper from Space Perspective, soon to be the only option available currently for commercial flights into space.

Space Perspective is on a mission to make space travel accessible to more people than ever before. Its innovative Spaceship Neptune comprises a pressurized capsule propelled by its giant SpaceBalloon™ and there’s no training required for passengers. Regulated by the FAA and following guidelines established by NASA, according to Teper the experience includes “unprecedented views of our planet through the largest windows ever flown to space, a world-class meal and cocktail service, Wi-Fi, and a lavatory.”

The topic of space tourism was recently discussed in a roundtable session with travel professionals titled ‘Capturing Demand for Travel Beyond Earth’s Atmosphere’ held at the Phocuswright Conference in Miami, the leading travel technology event globally, and moderated by journalist Siew Hoon Yeoh from Web in Travel. Following the session we spoke with the three panelists – Sasha Gainullin from travel insurer battleface, luxury travel advisor Tara Hyland, and Edyta Teper from Space Perspective – to gain some more insights on what was discussed.

Right now, there is more demand than supply of opportunities for travelers to experience going to space.  Space Perspective has already sold more than 1,650 tickets for flights over the next several years, surpassing the number of seats sold by any other space tourism company and representing $200M in sales.

Travel agents remain a major point of sale for space operators as people trust their travel agents and want to book their experience via these professionals. According to Teper, who is Vice President, Global Sales & Trade at Space Perspective, around 60% of sales come through selling via retail travel agents, “their expertise helps clients make informed decisions, manage expectations, and plan for an experience that is truly out of this world.”

Hyland is a luxury travel advisor for leading global network of luxury travel advisors Virtuoso and tells us that she became an accredited space agent in 2006. She says that the anticipation of going into space is 60% of the experience and has even had a client say that even if she never gets to fly it will “still have been a great experience just thinking about it.”

She points out that Virgin Galactic completed its inaugural commercial space flight on VSS Unity in June followed by five more flights with the most recent completed in November. However, the company recently announced they will suspend flights of VSS Unity in January, 2024 to direct resources to the production of its next generation of sub-orbital space vehicles know as Delta Class and that the goal is to resume flights in 2026.

But who’s booking space travel you might ask? “It’s not just the super-rich booking these flights. The Space Perspective option is popular with people of all ages and backgrounds,” comments Hyland.  Adding to this, Teper comments: “One day in the future, a family might be sitting there weighing up if they want to go to Disneyland or visit space this summer!”

As with any adventure, particularly into space, insurance should not be overlooked. Travel Insurance company battleface is one company that launched a space travel insurance product in 2021, underwritten by Lloyds of London.  CEO, Sasha Gainullin says “the cost of insurance varies depending upon level of coverage, and the person being covered. Just like other trips, some clients don’t want to get a date in the diary and confirm their booking until they have insurance in place.”

For those of us with more modest means don’t give up hope, there’s even a social impact non-profit called ‘Space for Humanity’ who set up the planet’s first Sponsored Citizen Astronaut Program, where leaders, from any walk of life, can apply for an opportunity to go to space for free!