Space Balloon Company’s Luxurious ‘Space Lounge’ Has Bar, Mood Lighting – CNET [CNET]

Space tourists on board Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic flights mostly remain strapped in their seats during the adventure. If tourism company Space Perspective successfully launches its edge-of-space balloon flights, passengers will enjoy champagne toasts, house plants and a bathroom with a view.

On Tuesday, Space Perspective unveiled the design of what it’s calling the first ever “space lounge” inside its Spaceship Neptune. The area will be outfitted with panoramic windows, a bar, reclining seats, food service, Wi-Fi, customizable mood lighting, a telescope, interactive screens, floor lamps and plants and herbs for use in cocktails.

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Prospective passengers can plunk down a deposit on a $125,000 (£96,000, AU$167,000) ticket for a six-hour ride that will reach 100,000 feet (30,480 meters). The pressurized capsule will hold eight people plus a pilot. The company said the first year of seats are already completely reserved.

The word “space” is used liberally here. The balloon will get stunningly high, but not nearly as high as a Blue Origin or Virgin Galactic trip, and it won’t reach orbit, as the SpaceX Crew Dragon does. This is the kind of gentle flight that will appeal to people who don’t want to pay for a rocket ride.

The Space Lounge and Spaceship Neptune renders look glamorous, but the company is still years away from launching commercial flights from Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Space Perspective is targeting late 2024 to get paying customers off the ground. Those soul-stirring bathroom views might be worth the wait.