Inside a luxury space balloon where the mega-rich can stay for $347 a minute

Staying in luxury hotels such as the Ritz in Paris are one thing, but if the mega-rich want to take their exclusive getaways to the next level, a space trip might be in order.

Space balloon company Space Perspective is launching a new venture that sees the arrival of a floating luxury cabin.

These artist impressions show what we can expect to see from this once-in-a-lifetime holiday destination and the views… well they are like nothing else because you will actually be looking at planet Earth from your window.

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Space Perspective hopes to begin this journey from late 2024 and the balloon cabin will take off from Kennedy Space Center, in the US state of Florida.

Each ticket costs $125,000 and more than 600 seats have already been bought.

The capsule has 1.5-metre high windows and deep comfy-looking seats with dark, purple tones and dim lighting – to accentuate the feeling that you are floating in space.

Of course, there will be Wi-Fi connectivity and drinks at the hotel’s very own “Space Lounge” inside the company’s Neptune capsule, which boasts 360-degree views of space.

The balloon reaches an altitude of 30 kilometres, which is much lower than its competitors, Virgin Galactic and Blue Origin, both reaching twice the height.

However, the company’s co-founder, Jane Poynter told AFP: “We are above 99 per cent of Earth’s atmosphere”, giving passengers the best conditions to experience the darkness of space.

“Our mission is to inspire Space Explorers to connect more closely with our planet and each other, and the environment in which they travel with us is central to this. Our Space Lounge is a world away from the white, utilitarian environments you find in other spacecraft,” she added in a statement.

Passengers do not require any prior training to board this giant balloon, which climbs at a slow 19km/h, so no harmful rocket fuel is needed.

In order to fill up the balloon, Space Perspective aims to get hydrogen from renewable sources instead of extracting it from fossil fuels.

Space Perspective hopes to customise the experience for special occasions, from birthday celebrations to corporate getaways.

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