Travelore News: Virgin Galactic Resumes Ticket Sales

Virgin Galactic has officially resumed ticket sales for its commercial spaceflights, but the price of admission to the "Final Frontier" has reached new heights.

After a two-year hiatus focused on developing its next-generation fleet, the company is back in the business of selling weightlessness—at a premium.

The New Ticket Price: $750,000

The most striking update is the price tag. Previously set around $450,000, a seat on a Virgin Galactic flight now costs $750,000.

This isn't just inflation; it’s a strategic pivot. By reopening sales on a limited basis, Virgin Galactic is leaning into the exclusivity of the experience. They aren't just selling a flight; they are selling a "Spaceflight Expedition" in an era where they currently stand as one of the only active providers for short-duration suborbital tourism.

Out With the Old, In With the "Delta"

The reason for the long pause in sales was a total shift in technology. The company has retired its prototype-style VSS Unity in favor of the Delta-class SpaceShip.

Unlike its predecessors, the Delta-class ships are designed for high-frequency use:Capacity: Each ship can carry up to six passengers (or a mix of passengers and research payloads).Frequency: These ships are built for rapid "turnaround," with the goal of flying up to eight missions per month.Efficiency: The design focuses on lower maintenance and higher reliability, which is the key to the company finally reaching profitability.

The 2026–2027 Flight Roadmap

If you buy a ticket today, when do you actually go? The company has laid out a clear timeline for the next 18 months:

April 2026: Ground testing begins for the first new SpaceShip.

Q3 2026: The flight test phase is scheduled to commence.

Q4 2026: Commercial operations are expected to officially resume with the first Delta-class ship.

Early 2027: A second Delta-class ship is projected to enter service, significantly increasing the "cadence" of flights.

What Does the Experience Include?
For your $750,000, you aren't just getting a 90-minute flight. The "Expedition" includes:

Multi-day Training: Astronaut training at Spaceport America in New Mexico.

The Flight: A Mach 3 boost to the edge of space, several minutes of out-of-seat weightlessness, and views of the Earth’s curvature against the blackness of space.

Astronaut Status: Membership in a very small, exclusive community of humans who have earned their "Commercial Astronaut" wings.

The Bottom Line: Virgin Galactic is moving from the "experimental" phase into a "production" phase. While the price hike may price out all but the ultra-wealthy, it represents the company's bet that the demand for space travel is high enough to sustain a luxury-tier business model.

If you have three-quarters of a million dollars burning a hole in your pocket, the Astronaut Portal is officially open for business at: https://www.virgingalactic.com/

Virgin Galactic Restarts Space-Trip Sales At $450,000 And Up

The ticket window is open again for space flights at Virgin Galactic, with prices starting at $450,000 a seat.

The space-tourism company said Thursday it is making progress toward beginning revenue flights next year. It will sell single seats, package deals and entire flights.

Virgin Galactic announced the offerings as it reported Thursday that it lost $94 million in the second quarter on soaring costs for overhead and sales. The company posted revenue of $571,000, barely enough to cover one seat on a future flight.

The company’s most noteworthy recent achievement came last month, after the quarter ended, when founder Richard Branson and five crewmates soared to 53.5 miles (86 kilometers) above the New Mexico desert.

CEO Michael Colglazier said the company resumed sales on Thursday to take advantage of a surge in consumer interest after the flight by Branson, who beat rival billionaire Jeff Bezos and his Blue Origin ship into space by nine days.

The company based in Las Cruces, New Mexico, won regulatory approval in June to fly people into space.

Virgin Galactic said “early hand-raisers” will get first priority to book seats, and another list will be created for new customers.

The company’s next spaceflight is scheduled for late September in New Mexico with the Italian air force.

Virgin Galactic said it ended the quarter with cash and equivalents totaling $552 million.

The results were released after the stock market closed. The company’s shares were up nearly 5% in after-hours trading.

Window Opens For Virgin Galactic Test Flight From Spaceport

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — The window has opened for Virgin Galactic’s first rocket-powered test flight from Spaceport America in southern New Mexico as the company prepares for commercial flights next year, but the exact timing of the launch will depend on the weather. Virgin Galactic posted on social media that the flight crew is ready but do not plan to fly before Saturday. “We have range clearance through the weekend and can extend into next week if necessary,” the company tweeted. “Evaluating high-level winds and turbulence. Stay tuned for updates.” The flight was initially planned for November. But it was pushed back because of COVID-19 restrictions stemming from the state’s public health orders. CEO Michael Colglazier said the company has minimized the number of people onsite at its headquarters at Spaceport America in accordance with state mandates and that only spaceport staff critical to the mission will be present.

Officials with Virgin Galactic and the state-financed spaceport said the test flight will mark another key milestone in the march toward commercial flights. The impending flight will be the third space flight for Virgin Galactic and the first from New Mexico. “We are thrilled about hosting the first human spaceflight from New Mexico. This is an incredible moment for the entire state,” Scott McLaughlin, the spaceport’s interim executive director, said in a statement. It has been years since British billionaire Sir Richard Branson and then Gov. Bill Richardson hatched the idea of erecting the world’s first purpose-build spaceport in a remote stretch of the New Mexico desert. Branson will be among the first passengers sometime in the first quarter next year. More than 600 customers from around the world have purchased tickets to be launched into the lower fringes of space where they can experience weightlessness and get a view of the Earth below.

The suborbital flights are designed to reach an altitude of at least 50 miles (80.5 kilometers) before gliding to a landing. In addition to those who have put down deposits for a ride with Virgin Galactic, several thousand more have registered their interest online. The test flight will give Virgin Galactic an opportunity to evaluate the interior space of the cabin where customers will be seated and to check fight controls during boost. The flight will carry payload belonging to NASA as part the space agency’s Flight Opportunities Program. Chief Pilot Dave Mackay and co-pilot CJ Sturckow will crew the spacecraft during the test flight. Assuming everything goes well and the engineers sign off, Virgin Galactic can then move to the next phase, which will involve company mission specialists and engineers being loaded into the passenger cabin. They will evaluate all the hardware, camera settings and which angles will provide the best views. With the upcoming flight, Sturckow will become the first astronaut to have flown into space from three different U.S states. Before joining Virgin Galactic, he completed four flights to the International Space Station during his time as a NASA astronaut. He also was in the cockpit during Virgin Galactic’s first flight to space in December 2018. “In the months leading up to this flight, our engineering and maintenance teams have been working hard to prepare both our mothership, VMS Eve, and SpaceShipTwo Unity for the flight,” Sturckow said in a recent blog post. “It will be great to validate that their efforts have been highly successful to prepare the SFS (space flight system) for this flight and subsequent test flights.”

Virgin Galactic Shows Off Passenger Spaceship Cabin Interior

This undated photo released by Virgin Galactic shows the interior of their SpaceshipTwo Cabin during a flight. Highly detailed amenities to enhance the customer experience were shown in an online event Tuesday, July 28, 2020, revealing the cabin of the company's rocket plane, a type called SpaceShipTwo, which is undergoing testing in preparation for commercial service. There are a dozen windows for viewing, seats capable of being customized to each of six passengers and mood lighting. (Virgin Galactic via AP)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Passengers flying Virgin Galactic on suborbital trips into space will be able to see themselves floating weightless against the backdrop of the Earth below while 16 cameras document the adventures, the company said Tuesday.

Highly detailed amenities to enhance the customer flight experience were shown in an online event revealing the cabin of the company’s rocket plane, a type called SpaceShipTwo, which is undergoing testing in preparation for commercial service.

There are a dozen windows for viewing, seats that will be customized for each flight’s six passengers and capable of adjusting for G forces, and, naturally, mood lighting.

Yet designer Jeremy Brown said the passengers’ most lasting impression may come from a large mirror at the rear of the cabin.

“We think that there’s a real memory burn that customers are going to have when they see that analog reflection of themselves in the back of the cabin, seeing themselves floating freely in space ... that very personal interaction that they’ll have with the experience,” he said.

Virgin Galactic was founded by British billionaire Richard Branson after the prize-winning flights of the experimental SpaceShipOne in 2004. Branson plans to be the first passenger when commercial flights begin.

Like its predecessor, SpaceShipTwo is a rocket plane that is slung beneath a special jet airplane and released at high altitude.

After a moment of free fall, the two pilots ignite the rocket and the craft pitches up and accelerates vertically at supersonic speed.

The rocket shuts down but momentum carries the craft into the lower reaches of space where it flips upside down so that the windows on the roof of the cabin give a view of the Earth far below.

The passengers, clad in space suits designed by the Under Armour company, will be able to leave their seats and float about the cabin, using handholds tested by chief astronaut trainer Beth Moses during Virgin Galactic’s second flight into space last year.

The test was aimed at helping finalize the design and at learning how to train passenger astronauts for what they will experience as they become weightless and reach the top of the flight profile, known as its apogee, before the descent begins.

Moses said she tested different ways of getting in and out of the seats, moved around the cabin and waved at the mirror, concluding that it was not disorienting.

“I also purposely went to a point in the cabin to most dramatically try to enjoy apogee and a view of Earth from the stillness of space,” she said.

The passengers will need to return to their seats after a few minutes as the craft reorients and begins to interact with the increasing density of the atmosphere and then glides to an unpowered landing.

SpaceShipTwo was developed at Virgin Galactic facilities in Mojave, California, and will operate commercially from Spaceport America in southern New Mexico, where passengers will undergo several days of training before their flights.

George Whitesides, the former longtime company CEO who is now its chief space officer, said upcoming test flights will include four crew members playing the role of passengers.

Whitesides, who will now focus on future technology, recently handed the CEO role to Michael Colglazier, a former president and managing director of Disney Parks International.

The company has yet to set a date for flights with paying passengers.

The company has said more than 600 people have put down deposits. The initial seats were sold at $250,000 apiece. Whitesides said the cost may increase for a while but the long-term goal is to make the adventure more accessible, possibly at a lower cost.

Virgin Galactic Reports High Interest In Its Space Flights

In this May 29, 2018 photo provided by Virgin Galactic, the VSS Unity craft flies during a supersonic flight test. Virgin Galactic has received nearly 8,000 online reservations of interest since its first successful test flight into space 14 months ago, the company said Tuesday, Feb. 25, 2020, as it nears commercial operation and prepares to reopen ticket sales. (Virgin Galactic via AP, File)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Virgin Galactic has received nearly 8,000 online reservations of interest since its first successful test flight into space 14 months ago, the company said Tuesday as it nears commercial operation and prepares to reopen ticket sales.

Virgin Galactic already had more than 600 firm reservations that were taken from customers in 60 countries until the December 2018 flight, when it closed down ticket sales.

The company said that on Wednesday it will begin a process called “One Small Step” that will allow those online registrants who are serious about becoming passenger astronauts to register online for a firm reservation by paying a fully refundable deposit of $1,000.

Confirming a spaceflight reservation will be a process called ”One Giant Leap,” echoing the words of Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong when he became the first person to set foot on the moon in 1969.

The company did not say when the new set of seats would be released or the actual cost. The initial seats were sold at $250,000 apiece.

After years of development and testing at Mojave Air & Space Port in Mojave, California, Virgin Galactic has been moving toward starting actual operations at Spaceport America in southern New Mexico — although it has not set a date.

A special carrier aircraft recently ferried its spaceship, VSS Unity, from California to New Mexico and said construction of the next two spacecraft is well underway.

Virgin Galactic is offering suborbital flights to an altitude of at least 50 miles (80.5 kilometers), where passengers will see a vast swath of the Earth far below and experience a few minutes of weightlessness before the spacecraft glides to a landing.

The current 7,957 online registrations are more than double the number the number the company last reported in September 2019.

Stephen Attenborough, the company’s commercial director, said in a statement that the increasing demand for personal spaceflight was encouraging.

“One Small Step allows us to help qualify and build confidence in our direct sales pipeline, as well as to ensure that those who are most keen to make reservations, are able to do so at the earliest opportunity,” he said.

Virgin Galactic was founded by British billionaire Richard Branson after the historic 2004 flights of the experimental SpaceShipOne, which was funded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen and won the $10 million Ansari X Prize as the first privately developed, manned rocket to reach space.

Virgin Galactic’s six-passenger spacecraft is a type called SpaceShipTwo. A carrier aircraft carries it to high altitude and releases it before its rocket engine ignites.

The company is now formally named Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc. and went public on the New York Stock Exchange in October. The fleet is being manufactured by The Spaceship Company, a wholly owned subsidiary.

By JOHN ANTCZAK

Virgin Galactic Unveils New Spaceship For Tourists

Photo courtesy of Thinkstock

A little more than a year after Richard Branson’s SpaceShipTwo crashed, killing a pilot, his company has revealed a new spaceship, CNNreported. 

The company, Virgin Galactic, has spent more than three years building the new spacecraft, which is located at the Mojave Air & Space Port in California.

READ MORE: Meet Virgin Galactic’s 747 Rocket Launcher

After the vehicle undergoes extensive testing, Branson said average people, rather than astronauts, will be able to travel 50 miles above Earth’s surface, which the company said will make them “bona fide space tourists."

"Our beautiful new spaceship, VSS Unity, is the embodiment of that goal and also a great testament to what can be achieved when true teamwork, great skill and deep pride are combined with a common purpose," Branson said, according to a Virgin Galactic press release. 

READ MORE: Virgin Galactic Space Tourism Ship Crashes

More than 700 people have already signed up to fly on Virgin Galactic. In order to fly with the company, passengers must pay $250,000 per seat in advance.

By AMY COYNE BREDESON 

This Hotel Will Host The First Virgin Galactic Space Passengers

COURTESY HOTEL ENCANTO DE LAS CRUCES

Sir Richard Branson's recreational space travel company Virgin Galactic is real—and it's really happening—with flights expected to start next year. (They were supposed to take off in 2010, and then in 2013, but this is space travel so we expect some delays.)

While we wait for the first guests to pay $200,000 to blast off into space, here is a piece of hotel news we can get excited about now: Virgin Galactic has selected The Hotel Encanto de Las Cruces, a Heritage Hotel, to be the "official preferred Virgin Galactic hotel and resort." Previously, Virgin Galactic had hoped to partner with a luxury brand to build a new resort, but this is much easier.

The Encanto is in Las Cruces, New Mexico, about 60 miles from Spaceport America, where the Virgin Galactic flights will take off. Already, the hotel has begun to undergo renovations to accommodate the high-flying guests. Several rooms are being remodeled as Executive Suite VIP Wings with VIP everything—including concierge service, customized room service menus, and artisan-built furniture designed by Adriana Long, who has something "timeless and luxurious" in mind.

Renovations will continue through early 2015, with additional poolside terrace rooms and new outdoor spaces planned. No word on how much a VIP Wing will cost, but c'mon, if you can afford a $200,000 flight into space just for fun, does it matter how much a hotel room costs? Meanwhile, for those not space-bound, regular rooms start at around $90 a night.

This article originally appeared on HotelChatter.com.

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5 Ideas for Adventure Travelers In 2014

Adrenaline-loving travelers looking to push the boundaries in 2014 have plenty of enticing destinations to choose from next year. Whether it’s the time-warped villages of Burma, or the far-flung shores of Antarctica (which, as it happens, will be in the spotlight for the 100th anniversary of Sir Ernest Shackleton‘s epic adventure), 2014 is sure to be filled with inspiration, adventure, and plenty of good photo ops.

Antarctica: In recent years, this frigid continent has drawn more and more adventure travelers who come to see awe-inspiring winter landscapes of icebergs, glaciers, and whales – and, of course, for the bragging rights of venturing to such distant horizons.

And 2014 could usher in a new crop of visitors, with the 100^th anniversary of legendary explorer Ernest Shackleton’s historic (although ultimately failed) expedition to make the first land crossing of Antarctica. In late 1914, Shackleton’s team was less than 100 miles from the continent’s Vahsel Bay when his ship went down in ice-filled waters, preceding Shackleton’s eventual rescue of his 27 crew members – an excursion widely regarded as the greatest adventure in history.

Follow in Shackleton’s footsteps on a trip with modern-day explorer Tim Jarvis and Intrepid Travel, which sponsored Jarvis’s 2013 recreation of Shackleton’s excursions, and which offers several other Antarctic journeys for travelers looking for a little more comfort.

Ecuador: Sure, this coastal country boasts the Galapagos – an epic destination for outdoorsy travelers since Charles Darwin put the biodiverse islands on the map more than 100 years ago as the inspiration for his theory of evolution. But Ecuador’s mainland has also been generating buzz as of late as one of South America’s under-the-radar gems, with an inviting blend of cosmopolitan appeal, colonial charm, and adventurous offerings like the 19,347-foot Cotopaxi, an active volcano that towers over the capital of Quito.

Burma: Yes, Burma, also known as Myanmar, is expensive. No, it’s not easy to reach or get around. But savvy travelers who want to experience Asia’s time-warped, last frontier should still make the trek despite all that. In recent years, developments such as more foreign exchange centers, ATMs, and Internet are evidence of a steady increase in tourism that’s expected to continue.

In June, the country unveiled a new master plan for tourism that projects more than 3 million visitors in 2015 and initiatives such as a new airport and other infrastructure improvements. Go there now, and you’ll still have Burma’s remote villages, welcoming locals, and vastly different customs and culture, almost to yourself.

East Africa: Seeing some of East Africa’s most exotic wildlife – gorillas along with the Big 5 – on the same trip will become much easier for travelers beginning in 2014, when changes to visa regulations in Kenya, Uganda, and Rwanda take effect.

The new joint visa will go into effect in January 2014, costing $100, which promises a much cheaper, and far less complicated process for travelers moving between the three countries than the previous scheme. For those hoping to see the gorillas of Uganda along with the Big 5 in Uganda’s Queen Elizabeth National Park, tour operators such as Africa Adventure Consultants have already introduced new offerings taking advantage of the joint visa.

Outer Space: In August 2014, Sir Richard Branson’s suborbital commercial flights will launch for the first time, with Branson and his two children as the first passengers. But if the quarter-mil ticket on one of Virgin Galactic‘s flights isn’t in your travel budget (ours either) for a trip of your own, you can experience the last frontier from Earth via a live broadcast of the inaugural journey on NBC’s The Today Show.

Contributed by Blane Bachelor,  http://blog.shermanstravel.com

How Do I Go to Space? And How Much Will It Cost Me?

Contributed by: Greg MELVILLE

   

Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipOne     Photo: Shawn Jipp/Flickr

A:Believe it or not, the question isn’t as crazy as it seems. There are actually a few different options for budding space tourists—though none are easy, or cheap. Here are the ways to do it, some of them conventional, others not so much.

Get a Job on Wall Street

Becoming a 1 percenter helps a lot. In 2001, Dennis Tito became the first space tourist by buying his way onto an eight-day Russian mission to the International Space Station. Although he once worked as a scientist at NASA, his opportunity to orbit the earth didn’t come until after he used his analytical math skills to form an asset management company and became a gazillionaire. The total price tag for his adventure: $20 million. The trip was facilitated by Virginia-based Space Adventures, Ltd., which has rocketed six insanely rich others beyond the atmosphere—including a video game developer, the creator of Cirque du Soleil, and a former Microsoft executive—with the help of the Russian space program.  

Book Online

Virgin Galactic, the space flight company owned by Richard Branson, is taking online reservations for suborbital joyrides on its spacecraft modeled after the SpaceShipOne rocket plane that won the Ansari X Prize in 2004. The cost is $250,000, with a refundable 10 percent down payment, so you might need to up the credit limit on your Visa for this. No firm dates have been set for when flights will commence, but the company is predicting within the next year.

Be Like Bieber

Former 'N Sync singer Lance Bass was the first boy pop star to make a serious go at flying into space as a paying tourist. He entered cosmonaut training in 2002 as part of a TV documentary, but his producers ultimately couldn't raise the $20 million fare from sponsors, so he was removed from the mission. Not to be outdone, Justin Bieber reportedly booked a reservation for a flight on Virgin Galactic. To announce that he’ll be boldly going where not even his speeding Lamborghini could take him, he tweeted, “Let’s shoot a music video in SPACE!!”

Join NASA

You could always become a real astronaut. NASA posts its requirements here. Be forewarned: Just to qualify to apply, you need to log 1,000 hours of pilot-in-command time in a jet aircraft, have a science or math degree, and be really physically fit. Good luck.

Take a Balloon Ride

Arizona-based adventure company World View claims that it will be offering balloon rides to the edge of the atmosphere—more than 100,000 feet above the earth—beginning in 2016. The director of crew operations is retired astronaut and former Space Shuttle commander Mark Kelly. Cost for a seat will be $75,000, and you can reserve one now with a $5,000 deposit.