If you had 3 billion VND, what would you want to do? Buy land, start a business, buy a car? How about taking a journey to the upper layers of the atmosphere in a hot air balloon?
For just $125,000 (over 2.8 billion VND), you can now purchase a ticket for a trip to the Earth’s atmosphere aboard Space Perspective’s luxurious hot air balloon. This week, the Florida-based company began accepting reservations for the first flight, with takeoff scheduled from the Kennedy Space Center in 2024.
The hot air balloon travel process.
Passengers will float in the stratosphere aboard Spaceship Neptune, a pressurized cabin connected to the hot air balloon, offering a 360-degree panoramic view of the surroundings and equipped with non-glare windows for photography. Amenities include reclining seats for relaxation, a restroom, a fully stocked bar, and of course, Wi-Fi so you can tweet about your space adventure to all the earthbound folks and show off how cool you are.
As for the hot air balloon, it is as large as a football field when fully inflated and can ascend to about 30 kilometers, according to Space Perspective. And yes, this balloon is equipped with a backup parachute capable of safely returning it to Earth in case of an emergency.
Reserve a spot for just $1,000 (23 million VND).
You can reserve a spot for just $1,000 (23 million VND), or you can book all eight seats for only $8,000 (185 million VND). However, these are just deposits; the full experience costs $125,000 (nearly 3 billion VND) per passenger. The company states that the six-hour journey is designed to have a low impact on the body and does not require passengers to undergo special training or wear a space suit.
“Curious individuals who once considered space travel too risky—or too expensive—now have the chance to experience the thrill of traveling to space, with a safe and gentle ascent,” Space Perspective said in a press release.
Additional unmanned test flights are currently underway.
The company reached a significant milestone earlier this month after completing a test flight on Neptune One, a vehicle simulating Spaceship Neptune. Additional unmanned test flights are currently in progress.
“Neptune One marks the beginning of our extensive test flight campaign, as we can conduct tests without a pilot, making Spaceship Neptune an extremely safe way to travel to space when fully crewed,” said CEO Taber MacCallum in the press release.
When fully crewed, Spaceship Neptune becomes an extremely safe way to travel to space.
The company has not confirmed how many tickets have been sold so far, but MacCallum’s wife and co-CEO of the company, Jane Poynter, told Florida Today that the response has been “extremely positive.” Space Perspective has been selling tickets privately to gauge interest, and some of their initial flights are already sold out, she said.
“We have families wanting to go together. We have couples wanting to propose or hold their weddings.” If you’re interested, you can sign up here.
