Space Tourism: Companies, Experiences, and the Future

Space tourism has transformed from science fiction into reality. After decades of promises, multiple companies now offer paying customers the opportunity to experience spaceflight. From suborbital hops to orbital missions visiting the International Space Station, options exist across a wide range of prices and experiences. This guide examines the current market and what's coming next.

Provider Comparison

Suborbital Experiences

Blue Origin

Blue Origin's New Shepard vehicle offers the purest spaceflight experience in the suborbital market. The fully automated capsule launches vertically, crosses the Kármán line at 100 kilometers (the internationally recognized boundary of space), and returns to Earth via parachute landing.

The flight profile provides approximately 3-4 minutes of weightlessness. Passengers experience up to 3 Gs during ascent and descent. Large windows—the largest ever flown to space—offer views of Earth's curvature and the blackness of space.

The Experience:

• Total mission time: approximately 11 minutes
• 6 passengers per flight
• Training program on launch day
• Fully automated vehicle—no pilot required
• Estimated price: approximately $450,000

Blue Origin has flown multiple crewed missions, including founder Jeff Bezos on the first crewed flight in 2021. The company has conducted flights with celebrities, paying customers, and research payloads.

Virgin Galactic

Virgin Galactic provides a different experience using SpaceShipTwo, a winged spaceplane that launches from a carrier aircraft. This approach offers a longer total flight experience and a runway landing.

The journey begins with WhiteKnightTwo carrying SpaceShipTwo to approximately 45,000 feet. After release, the spaceplane's rocket motor fires for about 60 seconds, accelerating to Mach 3+ and carrying passengers to approximately 85 kilometers altitude. The vehicle's unique "feathered" re-entry system provides a controlled descent before gliding to a runway landing at Spaceport America in New Mexico.

The Experience:

• Total flight time: approximately 90 minutes
• 6 passengers plus 2 pilots per flight
• Multi-day training program at Spaceport America
• 4+ minutes of weightlessness
• Price: $450,000 per seat

Richard Branson flew aboard in July 2021, and commercial service began in 2023. The company has announced plans for a next-generation vehicle (Delta class) designed for higher flight rates.

Orbital Experiences

SpaceX

SpaceX's Crew Dragon offers true orbital spaceflight, dramatically exceeding what suborbital providers offer—but at a significantly higher price. Orbital missions reach altitudes of 400+ kilometers and can last multiple days.

SpaceX conducted the Inspiration4 mission in 2021, the first orbital spaceflight with an all-civilian crew. Financed by billionaire Jared Isaacman, the three-day mission reached 585 km—higher than the International Space Station. SpaceX has since conducted additional private missions including Polaris Dawn in 2024.

The Experience:

• True orbital spaceflight lasting days
• Up to 4 passengers per flight
• Months of training required
• Extended weightlessness throughout mission
• Estimated price: $55 million+ per seat

SpaceX also plans to fly private missions around the Moon using Starship. Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa has booked a lunar circumnavigation with artists as guests, though the timeline remains uncertain.

Axiom Space

Axiom Space arranges private astronaut missions to the International Space Station using SpaceX Crew Dragon. Axiom provides training, mission planning, and on-orbit coordination, making ISS access available to qualified private citizens.

The company has conducted multiple Axiom missions (Ax-1, Ax-2, Ax-3) sending private astronauts to spend 8-10 days aboard ISS. Crew members participate in research, commercial activities, and educational outreach during their missions.

The Experience:

• 8-10 days aboard the International Space Station
• Extensive training program (months)
• Participation in research and commercial activities
• Interaction with professional astronauts
• Price: approximately $55 million per seat

Axiom is also developing commercial modules to attach to ISS and eventually form a standalone commercial space station.

Emerging Options

Space Perspective

Space Perspective offers a gentler approach to the edge of space using a stratospheric balloon. Spaceship Neptune, a pressurized capsule suspended beneath a giant balloon, rises to approximately 30 kilometers over two hours, cruises for several hours, then descends for a water landing.

While not technically reaching space (the Kármán line at 100 km), the experience offers views of Earth's curvature, the blackness of the sky, and the thin blue line of the atmosphere. The 6-hour flight is described as gentle and accessible to passengers who might not qualify for rocket-based options.

The Experience:

• 6-hour total flight time
• 8 passengers per flight
• Minimal physical requirements
• Lounge-style seating with bar and restroom
• Price: $125,000 per seat

Space Perspective has sold over 1,000 tickets and is conducting test flights ahead of commercial operations.

World View

World View is developing similar stratospheric balloon experiences, though primarily focused on commercial and research applications. The company has conducted uncrewed test flights and aims to offer crewed tourism operations.

The Experience of Spaceflight

Weightlessness

Weightlessness (microgravity) is the signature experience of spaceflight. Even during brief suborbital flights, passengers experience several minutes floating freely, an impossible sensation on Earth. Orbital flights provide extended weightlessness throughout the mission.

The Overview Effect

Many astronauts report profound cognitive shifts from viewing Earth from space—the "overview effect." Seeing the planet without borders, the thin atmosphere, and the vastness of space often transforms perspectives on global cooperation and environmental stewardship. Private space travelers consistently report similar experiences.

Physical Requirements

Space tourism providers have varying physical requirements. Suborbital flights impose acceleration forces but are generally accessible to healthy adults. Orbital missions require more extensive medical screening and fitness. Balloon experiences have the gentlest requirements.

Market Development

Current State

Space tourism remains in its early stages, with hundreds of people having flown or holding reservations. The industry generated an estimated $500 million in 2024, a small fraction of its potential. Most customers are ultra-high-net-worth individuals, though prices are gradually declining.

Price Trajectory

Prices are expected to decline as providers achieve higher flight rates and new competitors enter the market. Suborbital prices could potentially reach $100,000 or below within the decade. Orbital tourism will remain significantly more expensive but could become accessible to wealthy (rather than only ultra-wealthy) customers.

Market Projections

Analysts project the space tourism market could reach $3-5 billion annually by 2030, assuming providers achieve planned flight rates and prices decline. Long-term projections envision a market serving thousands to tens of thousands of passengers annually.

Future Developments

Commercial Space Stations

Axiom Space and others are developing commercial space stations that will provide more capacity for tourists and longer-stay experiences. These stations could offer private suites, recreational facilities, and specialized experiences impossible on the ISS.

Lunar Tourism

SpaceX's Starship could eventually enable lunar tourism—flying private citizens around the Moon or even to its surface. While such missions remain years away and extraordinarily expensive, they represent the next frontier for space tourism.

Orbital Hotels

Several companies have proposed dedicated space hotels, including Orbital Assembly with its rotating designs intended to provide artificial gravity. While these concepts remain speculative, they represent the industry's long-term vision.

Conclusion

Space tourism has finally arrived, offering experiences that were impossible just years ago. From Blue Origin's New Shepard and Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo providing suborbital adventures, to SpaceX and Axiom enabling orbital missions to the International Space Station, paying customers can now experience spaceflight.

The market is poised for growth as providers increase flight rates, prices decline, and new options emerge. While space tourism will remain a luxury experience for the foreseeable future, the trajectory points toward an expanding industry serving an ever-broader customer base.