$9.5M space hotel includes tiny sleeping pods for two

The space race is on, and this time it’s about hotels. While billionaire hotel mogul Robert Bigelow is hoping to book vacationers into space pods by 2021, another company—Orion Span—is looking to corner the luxury space hotel market.

Houston-based technology start up Orion Span is currently working on Aurora Station, a fully modular space station that will function as an exclusive hotel. The station can host six people at a time—including two crew members—for 12-day journeys that start around $9.5 million per person. And just in case you made a fortune in digital currency, the company is also accepting Bitcoin, Ethereum, Bitcoin Cash, and Litecoin.

Chief executive officer and founder of Orion Span Frank Bunger wants Aurora Station to “provide a turnkey destination in space.”

“Aurora Station strikes the perfect balance of giving guests a once-in-a-lifetime authentic astronaut experience while maintaining an engaging and comfortable environment,” said Frank Bunger, chief executive officer and founder of Orion Span. “With customizable private sleeping pods, top-quality space food and luxury design details, Aurora Station is ushering in a new era of space travel, setting the bar higher than ever before.”

Travelers will enjoy zero gravity while flying 200 miles above the Earth’s surface in low orbit. The hotel will orbit our planet every 90 minutes, resulting in about 16 sunrises and sunsets every 24 hours. This video shows a bit of what the jet-like interiors will look like, and the spacecraft will also include a lab for zero gravity research, an area to grow food while in orbit, high-speed wireless internet access, and a holodeck that supports virtual reality.

The modular design means that the station can add capacity as demand increases, and Orion Span also hopes in the future to sell dedicated modules as the world’s first condominiums in space.

The Aurora Station hotel is set to launch in late 2021, is looking for investors, and will host its first guests in 2022. If you have the cash—including a refundable $80,000 deposit—and want to live out your astronaut dreams, travelers have to undergo a three-month certification program to prep for space. But that’s a small price to pay for adventuring in the final frontier.

Courtesy of Orion Span

Courtesy of Orion Span