A suborbital space trip may become the ultimate in upscale gifts: Katy Perry Sending Russell Brand to Outer Space - E! Online - July.30.10.

A brief list of items relating space and sports: Sport in outer space - WAtoday.com.au - Aug.1.10.

See also Space Recreation.

Thinking about price points for space tourism: How much would you pay to become an astronaut? - SciGuy/Houston Chronicle.

Here's an announcement about one of the awards handed out at the recent NewSpace 2009 conference that I attended:

History Channel's 'The Universe, Sex in Space' Wins Award
Best Presentation of Space, NewSpace 2009

History Channel's The Universe, Sex in Space won NewSpace 2009 "Best Presentation of Space" Award for outstanding achievement in documentary. The presentation stated the episode broke ground on international television when it premiered in December 2008 with a milestone episode that addressed humanity's expansion into the solar system and beyond, inspiring millions of viewers to conceptualize life beyond the cradle of Earth, many for the first time.

Producers from the show attended the 40th Anniversary Apollo 11 Moon Mission black tie gala co-hosted by the Space Frontier Foundation and NASA Ames. The award was presented by Vanna Bonta, the novelist/actress who flew in zero gravity on the television series to test her invention, the 2suit, a flight garment that stabilizes proximity in microgravity environments.

A 2Suit mission patch --marking the first mission to test human intimacy for the extreme conditions of space--was raffled at the conference, reportedly the highest yielding item along with a signed copy of the Inventors Digest magazine that profiled Bonta and her various inventions.

The Universe marked its third season this year, and was released in Blu Ray in June 2009.
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Resources:
/-- Photos
/-- DVD - The Universe: Sex in Space - History Channel
/-- The Universe: Sex in Space Marks New Era For Mankind? - NowPublic News - Dec.1.08

An elaborate tour package is available to see Guy Laliberte launch to the ISS form Baikonur: Pure Entertainment Group Inc Offers an Exclusive VIP Rocket Launch Tour Package for the 7th Space Tourist Guy Laliberte - Pure Entertainment Group/PRnewswire - July.16.09.

To celebrate the rocket launch of Guy Laliberte into the International Space Station, Pure Entertainment Group is now taking reservations for one of the most exciting, once in a lifetime experiences. Full program pricing starts at USD $16,500 per person and includes VIP custom entry to Russia, luxury transfers to/from airport in Moscow, four nights hotel stay (three nights in the 5-star Ararat Park Hyatt in Moscow and one night in a local Baikonur hotel), welcome reception, tour of Star city, security clearances, private chartered flight to/from Baikonur, guided tours, and VIP rocket launch experience. Price does not include International flights to/from Moscow. A short version of the tour is also available for guests who wish to only experience the launch.

Make your reservations now and book the "VIP rocket launch tour package" of Guy Laliberte until July 24th 2009. Availability is extremely limited of course.

Lance Bass still hopes to go to space someday: Former 'N Sync member Lance Bass still hopes to go into space - NY Daily News - July.15.09.

Earlier in the decade he came quite close to arranging sponsorships to pay for a trip to the ISS but couldn't quite pull it off : 'NSYNC's Lance Bass Still Looking To Blast Off - MTV.com - Oct.12.04.

Pictures from a space fashion show: Gallery - Beyond the jumpsuit: the future of space fashion - New Scientist - Feb.27.09.

Ben Plater wants to become "the first ever 'internet astronaut'" by attracting enough sponsors to support a ride for him on the Virgin Galactic SpaceShipTwo. The expectation is that his effort will attract lots of attention and simultaneously bring publicity to his sponsors.

See Fly Ben to Space for details. He will also provide updates on his progress via his blog.

Richard Garriott gives another post-flight interview: Richard Garriott: Space tourist - AstronomyNow.com - Nov.13.08

A report on Esther Dyson's cosmonaut training: Space Is The Next Frontier for Esther Dyson - Wired.com

The fifth item overstates the health risks for suborbital spaceflight but this article otherwise gives a good overview of space tourism for the general reader: 5 Things You Didn't Know: Space Tourism - AskMen.com - May.08.

With centrifuge testing, Virgin Galactic has actually found that a much wider span of people can withstand the G forces of a SpaceShipTwo flight than they expected: A Taste of Space on Earth: Pilots, Passengers Train for Spaceliner Flights - Space News/space.com - Feb.25.08

Well, I haven't done number 1 on the list, unfortunately, but at least I've done 2 and 3 (Cape Town): Seven for 2007 - richmond Times Dispatch - Jan.7.07 (Link via spacetoday.net).

My wife is from Ethiopia and it really is a spectacular place that has tremendous tourist potential. For example, the Lalibela Churches, each carved in a single piece from solid rock, are among the great man made wonders of the world and the ruins of the ancient Axumite Empire in the city of Axum are very impressive as well. (I still have pictures of a trip to Ethiopia posted on an old home page in Sweden.) Haven't visited it yet, but the Rift Valley region, which includes a string of beautiful lakes, is said to be quite a sight to see as well. The country is big and holds a great diversity of both natural wonders and cultures.

Get a glimpse of future space tourist milestones at News of Future: Space, a part of the blog Future News for Year 2020 and Beyond - News of Future, edited by Pontus Edenberg.

Anousheh Ansari tells about her experiences just after landing: Second Birth - Anousheh Ansari Space Blog - Oct.5.06. This emphasizes why eventually there will be artificial gravity on space stations produced via either rotation of the station or with centrifuges. The latter could provide a short period each day of non-zero gravity to help keep muscles and other systems in better shape for return to earth.
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Here is a clip of the song Be the Change by Deep Dish, who were inspired by the spaceflight of Anousheh. The song will eventually go on sale on her website and that of Deep Dish.. Proceeds will go to her favorite non-profit organizations (see announcement).

Laura Woodmansee has good things to say about Space Adventures and the company's space tourism projects: OPINION: Space 'Adventurers' Paving The Way For the Rest of Us - SPACE.com - Sept.18.06

Anousheh Ansari gets some recognition from George Washington University where she got her masters in electrical engineering: GW Alumna to be First Female Space Tourist: Anousheh Ansari Will Board Sept. 18 Russian Mission to International Space Station - GW News Center - Sept.7.06. Check her website's news page for latest articles on her flight. Here weblog will open on Sept.9th.
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Meanwhile, Charles Simonyi is getting ready for his trip to the ISS next year: Ex-Microsoft billionaire starts space tourism training in Russia - RIA Novosti - Sept.7.06.
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Some actors who portray space travelers on TV and in the movies, however, are not keen to take even suborbital flights via the first generation of spaceships: William Shatner does not want to throw up in space - Personal Spaceflight - Sept.7.06

The publicity for the flight of Anousheh Ansari to the ISS is starting to build:
* First Female Space Tourist Readies for ISS Trip - SPACE.com/AP - Aug.30.06
* Spacing out - Times Community (Fairfax VA) - Aug.30.06
* US, Iranian flags to travel into space with female tourist - The Raw Story - Aug.30.06

eSpaceTickets.com since 2000 has been developing various games and promotions intended to give the general public a chance to win a space tourism related adventure. They have started a new program involving golfing tournaments in which participants try to score a hole-in-one. Such tournaments are common and can involve big prizes.

There are insurance companies that sell so-called "hole-in-one policies" that pay off if someone hits a ball into the hole with one strike. Insurance companies know the odds for hitting hole-in-ones so they calculate the premiums such that over many such tournaments they come out ahead. The purse for the X Prize, in fact, was funded via a "hole-in-one" policy in which the insurance company essentially bet against any team winning the competition before the deadline.

eSpaceTickets.com now offers a package of resources that make it easy for an organizations to hold such tournaments with a space prize theme. The Golf Sponsorship Information page describes the package, which provides winners with a ride on a Zero-G aircraft.

See also this recent press release: Playing Golf Can Win You a Trip into Space: Your golf swing may not get the ball into space, but it could get you into space. The ultimate nineteenth hole: One small swing for man, one giant swing for mankind - eSpaceTickets /eMediaWire - Aug.24.06

Profile of a Virgin Galactic "founder" who is one of the first 100 passengers on the SpaceShipTow and has paid already paid his $200,000 for a ticket: Venture Capitalist Seeks Celestial Venture - Westport News - Aug.11.06
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A reporter enjoys his Zero-G flight: I survived zero-G - without tossing my cookies - SignOnSanDiego.com - Aug.12.06
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And some students enjoy there flight on a NASA parabola flying aircraft: NASA gives students the ride of a lifetime: Four young UM engineering students flew with NASA into zero gravity - MiamiHerald.com - Aug.12.06

Here's the second article in a two part series in Business 2.0 Magazine about space tourism: Hurtling into the space tourism industry:Space Adventures is leaping ahead of well-known rivals in the race to launch regular Joes into space. - Business 2.0 - Mar. 30, 2006. And here is the earlier article: Profits set to soar in outer space: Prepare for liftoff: The space business may be the most incredible new opportunity of your lifetime - Business 2.0 - Feb.27.06