Hilton to design astronaut suites, facilities for Voyager’s private space station Starlab
Hotel giant Hilton has signed on to design astronaut facilities for the private space station Starlab currently under development by Voyager Space Holdings and Lockheed Martin, the companies told CNBC on Monday.
In addition to designing hospitality suites and sleeping arrangements, Hilton will also work with Voyager to examine opportunities for the marketing of the space station and astronaut experiences onboard.
Voyager Chairman and CEO Dylan Taylor, speaking with CNBC at the 2022 International Astronautical Congress, said he’s excited by the “unique perspective” that Hilton brings to the project because “they’re not space people.”
“It’s almost like looking at it with a fresh set of eyes and saying: ‘How do we reimagine this experience,’” Taylor said, adding that he sees it as “a bit of an edge.” The partnership marks the first of its kind among the private stations in development, although both the space and hospitality sectors have long envisioned the possibilities of a hotel in orbit.
“For decades, discoveries in space have been positively impacting life on Earth, and now Hilton will have an opportunity to use this unique environment to improve the guest experience wherever people travel,” Hilton CEO Christopher Nassetta said in a statement.
Voyager and its operating company Nanoracks are developing the free-flying Starlab space station in partnership with Lockheed Martin. The companies aim to have the first Starlab operational in low Earth orbit as early as 2027.
The space station is one of four being built by U.S. companies with help from NASA contracts as the agency prepares to retire the International Space Station (ISS) in 2030. Under NASA’s Commercial LEO Destinations program, Nanoracks was awarded the largest individual contract in the program, valued at $160 million, to aid in creating Starlab.
