Space trips to be sold on Taobao

Taobao launches the space trips ads on its website. (Photo: screen shot from trip.taobao.com)

(ECNS) – Booking a space trip online in China will become a reality in a few days, Qianjiang Evening News reported.

Taobao announced Monday that it would exclusively broker the Dutch Space Expedition Corp's (SXC) business in China and consumers on the Chinese mainland can book a private tour to explore space on its platform starting June 12.

Three astronaut programs will be offered: Pioneer Astronaut, Founder Astronaut, and Future Astronaut, selling for 599,999 yuan ($96,000), 1.39 million yuan ($221,760), and 629,999 yuan ($100,800), respectively.

The Pioneer astronaut program, providing an option to fly 61 km high on a Lynx Mark I, is expected to take off in 2015.

People in good health over 18 years old, less than 2 meters in height and 125 kilograms in weight can apply for the space tour programs. But only after passing a medical exam and training programs can the applicants fly into space.

Despite the sky-high costs, Michiel Mol, CEO of SXC, said private space tours will become a common tourism choice in the next three to five years.