Having a lovely time, we can see your house. When you really need to get away, the Orbital Assembly Corporation may have the answer: leave the planet behind. Literally. They're planning to open the very first hotel rooms in space by 2027, as part of a huge rotating circular space station known as Voyager. Once there, you'll be able to look down on everyone else, those earthbound holidaymakers who've had to settle for mere five-star hotels, infinity pools and unnecessarily ornate cocktails. Postcards will never be the same again.
Your out-of-this-world space hotel will be in one of 24 so-called "habitation modules" attached to the outer of Voyager's two rings, which will rotate gently to provide gravity of about one-sixth of what we're used to on earth. The idea is to combat zero gravity space sickness of the sort experienced by long-term residents on the International Space Station.
With Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic and Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin already offering short trips into space, the Orbital Assembly's plans, as yet not entirely funded, seem far from flights of fancy. The most upscale accommodation will be in bespoke villas. As Tim Alatorre, Orbital Assembly Corp. Co-founder , puts it, "We can configure our modules for wealthy customers. VIP private jets can be very plush but this station will have far lower noise levels, consistent pressurisation and no turbulence. It'll be more like a billionaire's private yacht."
Construction will be by the Orbital Assembly Corporation which bills itself as "the world's first large scale space construction company". They will start by building the smaller inner ring, which will be linked to the outer accommodation ring by pressurised access tubes. If you tire of the ever-changing view, there will be ample distractions from gyms to high-end restaurants. No news yet on whether Stanley Kubrick's '2001: A Space Odyssey' - which features a broadly similar, albeit less luxurious rotating space station - will be available as a movie choice, or whether Voyager will feature a homicidal computer called Hal, as in ‘2001'. Best not to think about it.
Orbital Assembly is optimistic your off-planet holiday will happen. Costa del Space, here we come.
If earthbound accommodation is more your speed, check out these top hotels in East London.
