virgin space trip cost

A first-of-its-kind flight. A one-of-a-kind experience.

Our unique and innovative Spaceflight System enables you and your fellow astronauts to enjoy the most thrilling and awe-inspiring journey of your life, in unparalleled comfort and ease.

VMS Eve is a custom-built, four-engine, dual-fuselage jet carrier aircraft with a unique high-altitude, heavy-payload capability. It is also the world’s largest all-carbon aviation vehicle in service.

Our hybrid propulsion system combines the inherent stability of a solid rocket motor and the controllability of a liquid rocket motor. It is simpler and safer by design.

Your individually size-adjusted seat has been built to enhance your comfort and experience during each stage of flight.

A minute of high-octane, high-g euphoria is followed by absolute silence, absolute space.

17 windows — more than any other commercial spacecraft in history – with built-in hand grabs to optimize zero-g viewing.

Astronauts frequently report a cognitive shift in awareness and perspective brought about by viewing the Earth from space. This has become known as the Overview Effect.

While in space, astronauts are free to leave their seats for the effortless freedom of zero gravity.

Virgin Galactic currently offsets emissions for each spaceflight, and we are always working towards innovations that make our flights and daily operations more sustainable.

Our engineering teams are hard at work to quickly bring more spaceships online and facilitate your spaceflight.

Our pilots go above and beyond.

As the spaceline for Earth, we’re pleased to offer you an elegant, spaceflight system designed for safety, reusability and customer experience. You’ll be in the expert hands of our highly experienced pilots, all with long flight careers behind them.

World-class safety.

At Virgin Galactic, safety has always been our North Star and an ethos that’s deeply embedded into our culture, evidenced by an exhaustive test flight program and highly experienced operational teams drawn from the world of aerospace and aviation.

The Virgin Galactic spaceflight system has been specifically designed to reduce and make risk more manageable, throughout the entire flight.

Vital to this is an air-launched, winged and piloted spaceship with a fully controllable propulsion system, enabling us to cut a flight short, safely and comfortably at any stage.

“Feeling the power of the motor behind me, and seeing the sky change from blue to black ahead – it was an experience unlike any I’ve ever had. While the speed and force was exhilarating, I felt safe and comfortable at all times.”

Sirisha Bandla -

Virgin Galactic Astronaut 004

Virgin Galactic opens ticket sales to the general public

Planning a vacation this year? How about something a little more weightless?

Virgin Galactic , the space tourism company founded by British entrepreneur Richard Branson, announced Tuesday that it will begin selling tickets this week for joyrides to the edge of space. The cost: a whopping $450,000.

Starting Wednesday, members of the public will be able to reserve a spot on an upcoming suborbital spaceflight.

"We plan to have our first 1,000 customers on board at the start of commercial service later this year," Michael Colglazier, CEO of Virgin Galactic, said in a statement.

During the 90-minute flight, passengers will reach an altitude of more than 50 miles and experience roughly four minutes of weightlessness before returning to Earth.

Space tourists will fly aboard the company's rocket-powered vehicle, known as SpaceShipTwo Unity. The craft is designed to take off on a conventional runway while attached to the underbelly of a carrier ship. The vehicles fly to 50,000 feet, where Unity is released and its engine ignites to power it to the edge of space.

Virgin Galactic’s joyrides take off from Spaceport America in New Mexico. Reservations include several days of training and spaceflight preparedness programs, according to the company.

Last year, Branson himself flew to the edge of space on Virgin Galactic's first expedition with a full crew. That July flight later became the focus of a mishap investigation by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, after it was determined that the SpaceShipTwo craft went off course from its assigned airspace during its descent.

The FAA grounded the space tourism company while the investigation took place, but in late September, Virgin Galactic was cleared to return to flight . At the time, the FAA said the company had made "required changes" to how it communicates during missions. Virgin Galactic also said it had taken steps to expand protected airspace for upcoming flights.

Branson's suborbital jaunt in 2021 came less than two weeks before fellow billionaire Jeff Bezos also reached the edge of space aboard a rocket and capsule designed by his own space company, Blue Origin.

The much-hyped stunts marked a new era in the private spaceflight industry, fueled by rivalries among companies such as Blue Origin, SpaceX and Virgin Galactic.

Blue Origin has not announced how much suborbital flights aboard its New Shepard rocket and capsule will cost, though tickets are likely to be in the range of several hundreds of thousands of dollars.

SpaceX, which has been ferrying NASA astronauts to and from the International Space Station since 2020, has been more focused on orbital tourism. The company made history last year after it launched four private passengers into orbit on the first mission to space with an all-civilian crew .

In March, SpaceX is partnering with the Houston-based company Axiom Space to launch a retired NASA astronaut and three private customers — each of whom reportedly paid $55 million — to the International Space Station.

Denise Chow is a reporter for NBC News Science focused on general science and climate change.

Virgin Galactic's Commercial Spaceflight: Cost and How to Sign Up

Sir Richard Branson's spaceflight company Virgin Galactic has received FAA approval for commercial spaceflight and has taken 600 reservations.

Jun. 28 2021, Published 11:29 a.m. ET

A different kind of space race is underway than the space race of the 20th century. Sir Richard Branson is among the competitors seeking to send commercial flights into space. His rocket company Virgin Galactic is preparing to start that journey soon.

How will flights on Virgin Galactic work and how much will it cost to secure a seat on one of them? Recently, the company announced its approval by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to start launching customers into space. The entrepreneur founder Branson plans to ride on one of his company’s upcoming test spaceflights as well.

Requirements for customers to fly Virgin Galactic

Known as “the world’s first commercial spaceline,” Virgin Galactic has a signup portal on its website for people who are interested in the company. The next round of reservations for space flights isn't currently open. The reservations will open up sometime following Branson’s own flight into space.

People can sign up online and indicate whether they’re interested in reservations, research, or other updates from Virgin Galactic.

Astronauts on SpaceShipTwo will undergo a three-day training program at Virgin Galactic’s Spaceport America. Then, they will board SpaceShipTwo, which will launch from the carrier aircraft WhiteKnightTwo. Customers will also be able to get out of their seats for a few minutes to experience weightlessness before they return to Earth.

How much does a seat on a Virgin Galactic flight cost?

According to Branson , the spacecraft will “open space to everybody—and change the world for good.” Of course, the cost to reach space is significant.

Over 600 people have already reserved their seats on future Virgin Galactic flights, with a reported initial price tag of $250,000 to secure a spot. However, that price might increase with the next round of flight reservations.

Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo is said to offer safe and comfortable exposure to G-forces. SpaceShipTwo also has more windows than any other spacecraft to provide impressive views to astronauts (passengers).

When will Virgin Galactic start flying commercially?

The third Virgin Galactic spaceflight in May successfully reached an altitude of 55 miles or 89 kilometers. CEO Michael Colglazier said that flight’s success plus the FAA approval give the company confidence moving forward, according to USA Today .

A date for the first commercial flight isn’t known yet, although it will likely happen in 2022 after the three additional test flights planned for the summer and fall.

How Virgin Galactic compares to Blue Origin and SpaceX

Virgin Galactic's key competitors in the race to commercial spaceflight are Blue Origin, the company founded by Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, and Elon Musk’s SpaceX . Recently, Blue Origin announced that its founder Jeff Bezos will fly into space on July 20, accompanied by his brother Mark Bezos and the winner of an online auction.

So far, Blue Origin hasn't made a public announcement regarding when it might start offering flights to the public or how much that privilege would cost.

According to USA Today , both SpaceX and Blue Origin will operate reusable rockets that launch fully automated capsules from the ground. In comparison, Virgin Galactic has developed a winged spacecraft that needs two pilots and launches from within an airplane.

Latest Virgin Galactic News and Updates

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Dream of going to space? Virgin Galactic just launched commercial flights

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For years, British billionaire Richard Branson vowed that commercial spaceflights with his firm Virgin Galactic were just around the corner.

On Thursday, that hype finally became reality when three Italian researchers boarded the VSS Unity space plane as Virgin Galactic’s first paying passengers and flew about four minutes in suborbital space.

The researchers — Col. Walter Villadei and Lt. Col. Angelo Landolfi of the Italian Air Force and Pantaleone Carlucci, an engineer with the National Research Council of Italy — spent their precious minutes in microgravity conducting scientific research on topics including cognitive performance and physiological responses in space.

The carrier aircraft and the attached VSS Unity space plane took off from the Spaceport America launch site around 7:30 a.m. Pacific time near Truth and Consequences, N.M., and climbed to an altitude of about 45,000 feet. By 8:30 a.m., the carrier aircraft had released the space plane, which rocketed to the edge of space.

A livestream of the flight showed the researchers strapped into their seats as they traveled at Mach 2, with one researcher puffing out his breath in visible O’s. At 8:31 a.m., the space plane’s motor cut off and the researchers were free to move around. Villadei was the only researcher to get out of his seat, and he propelled himself to the back of the craft, where he tended to experiments on a stationary rack. The other two researchers stayed in their seats, hurriedly looking at their tablets.

They all took a momentary break to unfurl an Italian flag and give the onboard camera a grin or thumbs-up.

Virgin Galactic will start selling tickets to space — have your $150,000 deposit ready

A 90-minute flight on Virgin Galactic will cost $450,000. Ticket sales open to the general public Wednesday.

Feb. 15, 2022

“I was concentrating on my test, my knee board, but I had the opportunity to look out,” said Carlucci, the engineer. “Speechless.”

By 8:35 a.m., everyone was back in their seats. The craft touched down back in New Mexico around 8:42 a.m.

Prior to Thursday’s flight, only Branson and Virgin Galactic employees had flown aboard the space plane . As of last year, the company had received reservations for nearly 800 tickets and collected $103.3 million in deposits and membership fees from “future astronauts,” according to Virgin Galactic’s most recent annual report.

A seat on Virgin Galactic’s space plane now costs $450,000, up from the initial price of $200,000 that early enthusiasts paid.

Thursday’s first commercial flight is a milestone for the company and for the space tourism market as a whole, said Alan Ladwig, a former NASA executive and author of the space travel book “See You in Orbit? Our Dream of Spaceflight.” But it doesn’t indicate that routine trips to space are just around the corner.

“When you’re in the $450,000 price range for a suborbital flight ... you’re a few years away from a mass market,” he said. “The milestones ahead are when’s the next flight, how often can they get a rhythm and schedule that can be predicted and counted on.”

Thursday’s mission high above the New Mexico desert showcased a part of the space tourism market not often discussed — research flights.

Although space tourism is more commonly associated with wealthy passengers achieving lifelong dreams of spaceflight, companies like Virgin Galactic and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin have also touted suborbital spaceflight as an opportunity for scientists to conduct their own experiments in a microgravity environment.

Virgin Galactic’s Richard Branson plans to visit space before Jeff Bezos

Virgin Galactic’s Richard Branson is set to be on a SpaceShipTwo Unity test flight as soon as July 11. Jeff Bezos plans to visit space July 20.

July 1, 2021

Performing experiments in orbital space isn’t really an option, with the cost and time needed to prepare for intensive spaceflight probably outweighing the benefits. Scientists can also send their experiments to the International Space Station, but they can’t tend to them themselves. Flying on a parabolic, or zero-gravity, plane flight is another option, but passengers experience weightlessness for only 22 seconds at a time.

“There’s nothing in between,” Villadei said. The Virgin Galactic flight “was not only to try the payloads that we developed along with the international research council, but [to] even try how this new platform can really ... provide us a kind of gap filler. What I can see is, it was really beneficial to us.”

The results of the onboard experiments will be analyzed in the next few weeks or months, Carlucci said.

Virgin Galactic Chief Executive Michael Colglazier nodded to the company’s dual revenue streams in a statement released before the flight, noting that the company’s “two dynamic products” are scientific research and private astronaut flights.

However, the flight also comes as extreme or adventure tourism is scrutinized after the implosion of the OceanGate deep-sea exploration submersible Titan , which killed all five people aboard.

Some have likened the minimal regulatory oversight for submersibles to the commercial space industry. Under federal law, the Federal Aviation Administration cannot impose safety standards on commercial craft that carry humans to space, according to Bloomberg .

It’s unclear whether the OceanGate submersible disaster could have an effect on demand for other adventure tourism ventures . Ladwig notes that while tourists sometimes die trekking to Mt. Everest or driving race cars, those incidents haven’t damped public interest or demand for those activities.

“Space and certainly submersibles, they seem to be a little different than that because [they are] such bigger experience[s],” he said. “It doesn’t seem to have the same impact in the public psyche.”

A disaster on the scale of the OceanGate submersible implosion has not happened in the commercial spaceflight industry. But there have been mishaps.

Nearly two years ago, Virgin Galactic’s spacecraft went off course during Branson’s flight to suborbital space. After an FAA investigation into the matter, the company was cleared to return to flight .

In 2014, an earlier version of Virgin Galactic’s spacecraft broke apart in midair during a powered test flight , killing the co-pilot and injuring the pilot.

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Virgin Galactic's first space tourism flight took off this week. Here are the players taking civilians to space.

• Virgin Galactic launched its first space tourism flight for paying customers on August 10.
• It marks a new era in space tourism for the company, with monthly flights expected to follow. 
• Space tourism is a growing industry for the rich. Seats on a Virgin Galactic flight cost $450,000 each.

This week, Virgin Galactic's first space tourism flight successfully launched from New Mexico, taking three passengers who weren't traditional astronauts, to the edge of space and back .

Blasting off to the edge of space has become a more popular — though hardly mainstream — tourism experience. The company intends on operating commercial flights every month, ushering in a new era for space travel. 

Galactic 02's passengers included Keisha Schahaff and Anastatia Mayers, a mother and daughter from the Caribbean who won their seats in a ticket raffle, as well as Jon Goodwin, an 80-year-old former Olympian . 

Virgin Galactic , Richard Branson's commercial space venture, was established in 2004 and completed its first commercial spaceflight in June. On the flight were three passengers from the Italian Air Force and National Research Council. 

Space tourism translates to big business for the company: In its second quarter earnings report, Virgin Galactic attributed an increase in quarterly revenue from $0.4 in 2022 to $2 million this year to "commercial spaceflight and membership fees related to future astronauts." 

Tickets for a seat on a Virgin Galactic rocket can cost $450,000, though some, like Goodwin, bought their tickets over a decade ago for $250,000.

The steep price doesn't seem to be keeping people away. As of the end of last year, about 800 tickets for commercial spaceflights had been reserved, the company said in its 2022 annual report . These tickets will translate to about $207 million in future revenue, per the report.

Virgin Galactic is not the only company in the game. In July 2021, Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin sent four people, including Bezos, 62 miles above Earth, marking the first passenger spaceflight completed by the Amazon chairman's company, which was founded in 2000. 

Using a rocket called New Shepard , Blue Origin has completed six human spaceflights since.

There's also SpaceX, Elon Musk 's rocket company, which was founded in 2002 and is making concerted efforts in the commercial spaceflight industry.

In September 2021, SpaceX's Falcon 9  rocket took four civilians close to orbit without any professional astronauts on board. It was the first all-civilian crew to successfully complete a mission and was funded entirely by billionaire Jared Issacman. 

The following year, SpaceX , in conjunction with Axiom Space, launched the first all-private crew to the International Space Station, where they spent more than a week. The four attendees spent $55 million each for the trip.

Of course, most of us mere mortals aren't able to afford the price of entry into outer space. So until it becomes more affordable, here's a look at the options available to space tourists:

Virgin Galactic completed its first space tourism flight, dubbed Galactic 02, with paying customers on August 10. With monthly flights expected to take place moving forward, the company has asserted itself as a major player in the spaceflight industry.

Source: Virgin Galactic

The flight took off at 10:30 a.m. EST and landed at hour later, reaching a an apex point of 55 miles above the Earth. Virgin Galactic's next private spaceflight, Galactic 03, is planned for September.

The flight marked the first mother-daughter duo, Olympian, and majority female crew to go to space. Keisha Schahaff and Anastatia Mayers also become the first Caribbean astronauts.

Virgin Galactic completed its first commercial space flight, Galactic 01, at the end of June. The mission was for research, not tourism, and included three passengers from the Italian Air Force and National Research Council.

Source: Insider

The flight lasted 72 minutes from take off to landing.

Galactic 01's objectives were to measure hypergravity and microgravity effects on the human body.

Walter Villadei, a colonel in the Italian Air Force, was on the flight.

As of now, tickets are going for $450,000 a pop. While cabins can fit four people, Virgin Galactic intends on flying out only three passengers, reserving the final seat for an astronaut trainer.

Sources: Insider , Spacenews

Blue Origin's New Shepard made its ascent towards the edge of space and subsequent return back in August 2022. NS-22 was the company's most recent successful mission, and marked the rocket's 22nd mission to space and sixth human flight.

Source: Blue Origin

The calm before the storm: New Shepard at its launch pad ahead of NS-22 last year. Six crew members were part of the flight and getting ready inside the craft.

During the course of Blue Origin's 11-minute trips, tourists experience zero gravity, which offers a sense of weightlessness. The company requires passengers to take a course in order to prepare.

Mario Ferreira, a businessman and entrepreneur, became the first person from Portugal to travel to space after successfully completing NS-22. Sara Sabry, an engineer and CEO of the nonprofit Deep Space Initiative, pictured on the right, was the first person from Egypt to go to space.

Past Blue Origin passengers include "Star Trek" actor William Shatner, healthcare entrepreneur Glen de Vries, and Bezos' brother Mark.

Blue Origin is notoriously tight-lipped about its ticket pricing, but prior to its first commercial flight in July 2021, a passenger who later had to skip the flight due to "a scheduling conflict" said he'd paid $28 million to secure a seat.

SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket is the only vessel that has sent private civilians to the International Space Station.

SpaceX's commercial space flight is the only one to actually send tourists into orbit, or 363 miles above Earth. In September 2021, a Falcon 9 rocket took four civilians into space for a total cost of around $220 million, paid for in full by billionaire Jared Isaacman.

Source: ABC

Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic, and SpaceX did not respond to Insider's request for comment.

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Virgin Galactic

Virgin Galactic is the world’s first commercial spaceline, and our purpose is to connect people across the globe to the love, wonder and awe created by space travel. We believe that spaceflight has the unique ability to shift our perspectives, our technology, and even our trajectory as a species. As the spaceline for Earth, we aim to transform access to space for the benefit of humankind; to reveal the wonder of space to more people than ever before. Join us, and help pioneer this exciting new space age for humanity.

We’re comprised of hundreds of dedicated and passionate professionals all working towards the same mission – to be the Spaceline for Earth. We believe we can inspire future generations and make it possible to experience our planet from a different perspective.

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We recognise that the answers to many of the challenges we face in sustaining life on our beautiful, but fragile, planet lie in making better use of space. That’s why we seek to inspire young people through space-inspired Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) initiatives. Galactic Unite is an outreach initiative that’s come from a unique collaboration between the Future Astronaut community and Virgin’s non-profit foundation, Virgin Unite. Together we seek to drive a positive change for young people by channelling our collective energy and resources – working to ensure that future generations are equipped to apply the space perspective to earth’s greatest challenges.

Find out more at Virgin Galactic .

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You can now book your $450,000 ticket to fly into space with Virgin Galactic

The fledgling spaceline Virgin Galactic announced it is now selling tickets for seats on its rocket ship to members of the general public who can afford a 90-minute jaunt into space.

Ticket are officially on sale to anyone who can afford one as of February 16. The cost is $450,000 per seat, a price tag the company had previously revealed last August just weeks after founder Sir Richard Branson had reached the edge of space in the Unity spacecraft . The spaceline, which is based in New Mexico, says a third of the cost of the ticket, $150,000, must be paid in an initial deposit ($25,000 of which is non-refundable), and the remaining balance due before the flight takes off.

A hefty price, for sure. But think of the points you'll accrue when you slap down your credit card to reserve your seat.

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If the sky-high price tag would keep your feet firmly planet on earth, there is a points and miles option. Anyone with 2 million Virgin Points can enter a prize draw to redeem those points for a trip with Virgin Galactic - its a three day trip including the two-hour space flight and at least five minutes of weightlessness.

You'll only need to redeem the points if you win the prize draw.

According to CNBC , Virgin Galactic has had about 600 reservations on the books from ticket sales going back several years, when a trip to suborbital space was being sold for about $200,000 to $250,000 per seat. The company actually sold about 100 tickets at the increased $450K price last summer. During Virgin Galactic's most recent earnings call in November, CEO Michael Colglazier said the company had been testing its sales process had sold about 100 seats at the new $450k price point. Its goal is to book 1,000 sales before commercial flights actually begin, which right now appears to be in October.

This marks an encouraging turnaround for the company, which saw its stock price jump by more than 30% on the news of ticket sales reopening. The Wall Street Journal says Virgin Galactic stock has lost 80% of its value in the past year after delays caused the optimism and public-relations buzz from Branson's flight to space on the air-powered Unity rocket to fade. Branson had won the "Billionaire Space Race" by beating Amazon boss Jeff Bezos to the launchpad and getting to space first. Companies like Virgin Galactic and Bezos' Blue Origin have both been trying to develop a viable business model around space tourism.

But there were also safety concerns after a story in the New Yorker revealed that the Federal Aviation Administration was investigating a red warning light that had gone off in the cockpit during Branson's flight. The FAA grounded all flights as it probed the incident, but eventually gave Virgin Galactic approval to resume operations.

Featured Image courtesy of VirginGalactic.com.

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A Ride to Space on Virgin Galactic? That’ll Be $450,000, Please.

The cost of a few minutes of weightlessness for new customers will be much higher than earlier prices, and they may have to wait awhile to fly.

By Kenneth Chang

If you were hoping to buy a ticket to space on one of Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic space planes, you’ll probably wish you bought one seven years ago.

On Thursday, Virgin Galactic announced that it was resuming sales of tickets on its flights, which rise above 50 miles and offer about four minutes of free fall and a view of Earth against the darkness of space.

The price: at least $450,000 per seat.

That’s some $200,000 more than what the company was charging in 2014 before it suspended sales after the crash of its first space plane, V.S.S. Enterprise, during a test flight. About 600 people have tickets from the earlier round of sales.

And if you haven’t already put down a $1,000 refundable deposit, you’ll have to wait even longer. Virgin Galactic will first make tickets available to the 1,000 people who were able to reserve a spot on the waiting list for when ticket sales resumed.

Michael Colglazier, Virgin Galactic’s chief executive, acknowledged during a call with industry analysts as the company announced its quarterly earnings that the higher price would lead to higher revenues and please shareholders. But, he said, the trip to space still “delivers such great value, that the people who experience this journey with us can’t help but recommend it.”

While the earlier customers’ tickets are relative bargains now, they have been waiting for years longer than they had anticipated. Through the years, Mr. Branson had repeatedly said he expected commercial flights would begin shortly.

Mr. Branson founded Virgin Galactic in 2004, and he originally expected commercial flights to begin by 2008. But development of the rocket plane proved much more difficult and slow than planned. Mr. Branson finally got his flight in July as one of six people during a test flight.

The next flight is scheduled for late September. It is still a test flight, but it will carry paying customers — the Italian Air Force bought the flight for two of its researchers to conduct experiments.

Virgin Galactic will then pause operations for upgrades to the space plane, named V.S.S. Unity, and to the carrier airplane that takes it off the ground to an altitude of about 45,000 feet before releasing it for its short flight to space.

In the middle of 2022, Virgin Galactic plans one more test flight to verify the upgrades and then begin commercial operations, Mr. Colglazier said. From there, Virgin Galactic hopes to increase the pace of flights with additional space planes coming into service.

Even at the sky high price, Mr. Colglazier said he expected repeat customers. “We believe this experience is so unique and compelling that it will drive multiple repeat experiences with friends and family across multiple spaceports around the world,” he said.

Blue Origin, the rocket company founded by Jeff Bezos and the competitor to Virgin Galactic in the suborbital space tourism market, recently began selling tickets on its New Shepard spacecraft, which launches like a rocket instead of a plane and goes a bit higher, to more than 62 miles. For its first flight , which carried Mr. Bezos, Blue Origin auctioned one seat, for $28 million, which went to Mr. Bezos’ space-focused charity, Club for the Future.

Blue Origin started selling seats to people who participated in the auction, but it has not disclosed its current ticket price or how many people have bought tickets.

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Kenneth Chang has been at The Times since 2000, writing about physics, geology, chemistry, and the planets. Before becoming a science writer, he was a graduate student whose research involved the control of chaos. More about Kenneth Chang

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Virgin Galactic’s first space tourists finally soar, an Olympian and a mother-daughter duo

Virgin Galactic rocketed to the edge of space with its first tourists Thursday, including a former British Olympian who bought his ticket 18 years ago and a mother-daughter duo from the Caribbean. (August 10) (Production Marissa Duhaney)

This photo provided Virgin Galactic shows passengers during Virgin Galactic’s first space tourism flight on Thursday Aug. 10, 2023. Virgin Galactic rocketed to the edge of space with its first tourists Thursday. The space plane glided back to a runway landing at Spaceport America in the New Mexico desert, after a brief flight that gave passengers a few minutes of weightlessness.(Virgin Galactic via AP)

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Virgin Galactic’s rocket-powered plane Unity 22, lands after a short flight to the edge of space at Spaceport America, near Truth or Consequences, N.M., Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023. Virgin Galactic is taking its first space tourists on a long-delayed rocket ship ride. (AP Photo/Andrés Leighton)

Virgin Galactic’s rocket-powered plane Unity 22, left, flies past its mothership Eve on its way to the edge of space after taking off from Spaceport America, near Truth or Consequences, N.M., Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023. Virgin Galactic is taking its first space tourists on a long-delayed rocket ship ride. (AP Photo/Andrés Leighton)

Virgin Galactic’s mothership Eve, carrying the rocket-powered plane Unity 22, flies after taking off from Spaceport America, near Truth or Consequences, N.M., Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023. Virgin Galactic is taking its first space tourists on a long-delayed rocket ship ride. (AP Photo/Andrés Leighton)

Space tourists, from left, Anastatia Mayers, Jon Goodwin and Keisha Schahaff pose for photos before boarding their Virgin Galactic flight at Spaceport America, near Truth or Consequences, N.M., Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023. Virgin Galactic is taking its first space tourists on a long-delayed rocket ship ride. (AP Photo/Andrés Leighton)

Guests wave flags of Antigua and Barbuda while watching the return of Virgin Galactic’s rocket-powered plane Unity at Spaceport America, near Truth or Consequences, N.M., Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023. Virgin Galactic is taking its first space tourists on a long-delayed rocket ship ride, including a British former Olympian and a mother-daughter duo from the Caribbean island. (AP Photo/Andrés Leighton)

Space tourists, from left, Anastatia Mayers, Jon Goodwin and Keisha Schahaff walk to the tarmac before boarding their Virgin Galactic flight at Spaceport America, near Truth or Consequences, N.M., Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023. Virgin Galactic is taking its first space tourists on a long-delayed rocket ship ride. (AP Photo/Andrés Leighton)

Virgin Galactic’s mothership Eve, carrying the rocket-powered plane Unity 22, takes off from Spaceport America, near Truth or Consequences, N.M., Thursday, Aug. 10, 2023. Virgin Galactic is taking its first space tourists on a long-delayed rocket ship ride. (AP Photo/Andrés Leighton)

TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES, N.M. (AP) — Virgin Galactic rocketed to the edge of space with its first tourists Thursday, a former British Olympian who bought his ticket 18 years ago and a mother-daughter duo from the Caribbean.

The space plane glided back to a runway landing at Spaceport America in the New Mexico desert, after a brief flight that gave passengers a few minutes of weightlessness.

This first private customer flight had been delayed for years; its success means Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic can now start offering monthly rides, joining Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin and Elon Musk’s SpaceX in the space tourism business.

“That was by far the most awesome thing I’ve ever done in my life,” said Jon Goodwin, who competed in canoeing in the 1972 Olympics.

Goodwin, 80, was among the first to buy a Virgin Galactic ticket in 2005 and feared, after later being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, that he’d be out of luck. Since then he’s climbed Mount Kilimanjaro and cycled back down, and said he hopes his spaceflight shows others with Parkinson’s and other illnesses that ”it doesn’t stop you doing things.”

Ticket prices were $200,000 when Goodwin signed up. The cost is now $450,000.

He was joined on the flight by sweepstakes winner Keisha Schahaff, 46, a health coach from Antigua, and her daughter, Anastatia Mayers, 18, a student at Scotland’s University of Aberdeen. They high-fived and pumped their fists as the spaceport crowd cheered their return.

“A childhood dream has come true,” said Schahaff, who took pink Antiguan sand up with her. Added her daughter: “I have no words. The only thought I had the whole time was ‘Wow!’ ”

With the company’s astronaut trainer and one of the two pilots, it marked the first time women outnumbered men on a spaceflight, four to two.

Cheers erupted from families and friends watching below when the craft’s rocket motor fired after it was released from the twin-fuselage aircraft that had carried it aloft. The rocket ship’s portion of the flight lasted about 15 minutes and it reached 55 miles (88 kilometers) high.

It was Virgin Galactic’s seventh trip to space since 2018, but the first with a ticket-holder. Branson, the company’s founder, hopped on board for the first full-size crew ride in 2021. Italian military and government researchers soared in June on the first commercial flight. About 800 people are currently on Virgin Galactic’s waiting list, according to the company.

In contrast to Virgin Galactic’s plane-launched rocket ship, the capsules used by SpaceX and Blue Origin are fully automated and parachute back down.

Like Virgin Galactic, Blue Origin aims for the fringes of space, quick ups-and-downs from West Texas. Blue Origin has launched 31 people so far, but flights are on hold following a rocket crash last fall. The capsule, carrying experiments but no passengers, landed intact.

SpaceX, is the only private company flying customers all the way to orbit, charging a much heftier price, too: tens of millions of dollars per seat. It’s already flown three private crews. NASA is its biggest customer, relying on SpaceX to ferry its astronauts to and from the International Space Station. since 2020.

People have been taking on adventure travel for decades, the risks underscored by the recent implosion of the Titan submersible that killed five passengers on their way down to view the Titanic wreckage. Virgin Galactic suffered its own casualty in 2014 when its rocket plane broke apart during a test flight, killing one pilot. Yet space tourists are still lining up, ever since the first one rocketed into orbit in 2001 with the Russians.

Branson, who lives in the British Virgin Islands, watched Thursday’s flight from a party in Antigua. He was joined by the country’s prime minister, as well as Schahaff’s mother and other relatives.

“Welcome to the club,” he told the new spacefliers via X, formerly Twitter.

Several months ago, Branson held a virtual lottery to establish a pecking order for the company’s first 50 customers — dubbed the Founding Astronauts. Virgin Galactic said the group agreed Goodwin would go first, given his age and his Parkinson’s.

This story has been updated to correct introductory price to $200,000, not $250,000.

Dunn reported from Cape Canaveral, Florida.

The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Science and Educational Media Group. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Virgin Galactic reports successful first commercial spaceflight with 3 Italian specialists

A crew of three specialists from Italy boarded a rocket plane Thursday bound for the edges of space in the first commercial flight for billionaire Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic space tourism company.

The two Italian Air Force officers and an aerospace engineer from the National Research Council of Italy successfully embarked on 90-minute flight to conduct a series of suborbital scientific experiments, the company said in a media release . The crew was joined by a Virgin Galactic astronaut instructor and the spaceplane's pilots for a flight dubbed Galactic 101.

The mission represents the dawn of commercial space travel for private citizens with deep pockets who can afford the hefty $450,000 price to purchase a ticket aboard one of Branson's rockets. Now that the scientific excursion was completed above the New Mexico desert, commercial space flights for ticket holders will begin in August and continue monthly, the company has said .

More: What does the Titanic submersible implosion mean for extreme tourism?

How to re-watch the launch

Virgin Galactic offered a livestream of the spaceflight on its website, virgingalactic.com .

The livestream remains available for those interested in viewing the launch.

Who was on board?

The crew consisted of two members of the Italian Air Force: Col. Walter Villadei , who wore a smart suit to measure his biometric data and physiological responses; and Lt. Col. Angelo Landolfi , a physician who conducted tests to measure cognitive performance and how liquids and solids mix in microgravity.

Pantaleone Carlucci , an engineer with the National Research Council of Italy, also was aboard to conduct tests that involved wearing sensors to examine his heart rate, brain function and other metrics.

Colin Bennet , a Virgin Galactic astronaut instructor who carried out the training and preparation for the mission, also flew with the crew.

The crew took off aboard the VSS Unity, which is piloted by Mike Masucci and Nicola Pecile, according to Virgin Galactic.

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Launch is culmination of years-long billionaire space race

The launch occurred amid a years-long billionaire space race that has seen Branson competing with the likes of Elon Musk's SpaceX and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin to take civilians to space.

Branson himself was aboard a 2021 test flight, the completion of which led the the Federal Aviation Administration to ground Virgin Galactic for 11 weeks and conduct an investigation amid concerns that the rocket deviated off-course.

Two years later, Virgin Galactic  completed its final test flight on May 25, landing at Spaceport America in southern New Mexico after a short flight to space that included a few minutes of weightlessness.

"We're honored to have been selected by the Italian Air Force and the National Research Council to support their first space research mission," Virgin Galactic CEO Michael Colglazier said in a statement. "Virgin Galactic's research missions will usher in a new era of repeatable and reliable access to space for government and research institutions for years to come."

Eric Lagatta covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter @EricLagatta.

Virgin Galactic announces international crew for flight on new Delta class space plane

V irgin Galactic has named one of the first commercial astronaut crews for its Delta-class planes, set to fly no earlier than 2026.

The crew, announced on Thursday (June 20), includes past Virgin Galactic American private astronaut Kellie Gerardi, who flew aboard Galactic 05 in November 2023, along with Canadian Shawna Pandya and Ireland's Norah Patten. All three are part of the non-profit International Institute for Astronautical Sciences (IIAS), whose mandate includes testing technologies in suborbital aircraft and performing educational activities.

The three crew members will expand on research that Gerardi (also IIAS director of human spaceflight) performed during Galactic 05, focusing on fluid behavior with applications to human health, Virgin officials said in a statement .

Virgin, founded by Richard Branson, announced the news two weeks after the final flight of its VSS Unity spaceplane on June 8. That flight carried a Turkish researcher and three private astronauts to space after being released from the VSS Eve carrier vehicle. Delta will allow for more frequent flights than the earlier generation once it flies, Virgin has said repeatedly, but as the upgrade happens no spaceflights will occur.

Related: Virgin Galactic launches VSS Unity space plane on final suborbital spaceflight with crew of 6 (photos, video)

"Beyond honored to lead the next IIAS research mission, advance the scientific knowledge gained from my first spaceflight, and to introduce my fellow payload specialists," Gerardi wrote on X , formerly Twitter.

Pandya, director of IIAS' space medicine group, thanked the organization for nine years of support so far. "It is not lost on me that I am the first named Canadian female commercial astronaut, and the fourth Indian origin female astronaut," she wrote on LinkedIn . "These communities have shaped who I am, and I promise to do you proud."

Patten, an aeronautical engineer and bioastronautics researcher who currently expected to be Ireland's first private astronaut, reposted Virgin Galactic's announcement on X with the message: "This", along with emojis for a rocket and a star.

The European Space Agency also has an Irish astronaut, Rosemary Coogan, who has not yet flown to space as she only graduated from her approximately two-year basic training in April. Former NASA astronaut Daniel Tani, who is married to an Irish citizen, has also called himself an astronaut from Ireland .

The Delta vehicles should be able to fly up to twice a week , Virgin representatives have said, and test flights are expected in 2025 with commercial operations beginning the following year. Virgin's tickets currently cost $450,000, but other passengers bought at lower prices over the decades.

The main competitor for Virgin in suborbital space tourism is Blue Origin , founded by Amazon creator Jeff Bezos. The company sends people to space on a rocket and capsule both called New Shepard. Blue Origin has not revealed its ticket prices.

Blue Origin most recently sent its seventh group to space, including Ed Dwight, a 90-year-old first U.S. black astronaut candidate . Blue Origin had a two-year pause in crewed operations after an uncrewed research mission failure in September 2022.

Watch Virgin Galactic's 1st commercial spaceflight launch live online in this livestream today

Four passengers will join four crew on the flight.

Update for 12:20 p.m. ET, June 29: Virgin Galactic's SpaceShipTwo space plane, VSS Unity has successfully landed, completing the company's first commercial spaceflight. See more images, video and read our full wrap story .

Virgin Galactic will livestream its first commercial spaceflight for free, and you can watch it online.

The company, which is part of billionaire Richard Branson 's Virgin Group, will send its first commercial mission to suborbital space on June 29. Events will begin at 11 a.m. EDT (1600 GMT, or 9 a.m. local time in New Mexico) on Virgin Galactic's website, which we will stream here on Space.com if possible.

Virgin Galactic plans to send six people into space (four crew and two pilots), with two people also in the carrier aircraft that will send the space plane aloft. The mission will launch from New Mexico's Spaceport America , the location of Virgin Galactic's commercial hub.

Photos: Meet the crew of Virgin Galactic's 1st commercial spaceflight Galactic 01

Virgin Galactic's spaceflight system includes four pilots across two vehicles: Two pilots aboard the carrier plane VMS Eve, and two pilots aboard the SpaceShipTwo space plane VSS Unity that flies into orbit.

The co-pilots of Eve this time around are commander Kelly Latimer and pilot Jameel Janjua, while the co-pilots of Unity are commander Mike Masucci and pilot Nicola Pecile.

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Four passengers will fly on board Unity as well: 

• Pantaleone Carlucci, an engineer at the National Research Council of Italy;
• Colin Bennett, an astronaut instructor at Virgin Galactic;
• Col. Walter Villadei of the Italian Air Force, who is training for a "future orbital space mission" to the International Space Station, according to Virgin Galactic materials;
• Lt. Col. Angelo Landolfi, a physician with the Italian Air Force.

Virgin Galactic calls this mission Galactic 01, which supports a joint Italian Air Force and National Research Council (of Italy) research study called "Virtute 1." It will last about 90 minutes and include 13 experiments, mostly for medical applications.

Based on past flights, Eve will take off from the runway with Unity attached underneath. The two vehicles will separate at 50,000 feet (15,000 meters) and Unity will fly on its own to suborbital space using a rocket motor. Everyone aboard Unity will experience weightlessness for a few minutes and see Earth's curve against space.

 —   Photos: Virgin Galactic's 1st fully crewed spaceflight with Richard Branson

— Virgin Galactic trio, including the 1st woman, receives their commercial astronaut wings

 —   The first space tourists (photos)

Unity can hold at most six passengers at a time, and made its most recent flight on May 25 after nearly two years of fleet upgrades for maintenance and upgrade work . Virgin aims to fly commercial flights monthly, with the next one expected in early August.

If you want to join a flight, you'll need deep pockets as a ticket aboard VSS Unity costs $450,000 . Virgin Galactic plans to launch a new "Delta-class" space plane capable of flying to space once a week in 2026 to boost service.

Blue Origin , which has not released per-seat pricing, is also bringing tourists to space and is led by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. Blue Origin's New Shepard vehicle hasn't flown since September 2022, however, when it suffered an anomaly while flying an uncrewed research effort.

Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: [email protected].

Elizabeth Howell (she/her), Ph.D., is a staff writer in the spaceflight channel since 2022 covering diversity, education and gaming as well. She was contributing writer for Space.com for 10 years before joining full-time. Elizabeth's reporting includes multiple exclusives with the White House and Office of the Vice-President of the United States, an exclusive conversation with aspiring space tourist (and NSYNC bassist) Lance Bass, speaking several times with the International Space Station, witnessing five human spaceflight launches on two continents, flying parabolic, working inside a spacesuit, and participating in a simulated Mars mission. Her latest book, " Why Am I Taller ?", is co-written with astronaut Dave Williams. Elizabeth holds a Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Space Studies from the University of North Dakota, a Bachelor of Journalism from Canada's Carleton University and a Bachelor of History from Canada's Athabasca University. Elizabeth is also a post-secondary instructor in communications and science at several institutions since 2015; her experience includes developing and teaching an astronomy course at Canada's Algonquin College (with Indigenous content as well) to more than 1,000 students since 2020. Elizabeth first got interested in space after watching the movie Apollo 13 in 1996, and still wants to be an astronaut someday. Mastodon: https://qoto.org/@howellspace

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• oriolbcn74 I believe the GMT time stated in the article is wrong; it reads 16:00 GMT and it should be 15:00 GMT. Am I right? Reply
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You Can Now Buy a Flight to Space on Virgin Galactic — for $450,000 Per Seat

The price has nearly doubled since the last round of sales.

As the saying goes, space is hard — hard on the wallet, that is. Following Virgin Galactic's successful test flight on VSS Unity last month, which saw the company's founder, Richard Branson, finally achieve his dream of traveling to space , the private spaceflight business has reopened ticket sales for its suborbital flights.

Between 2013 and 2018, when Virgin Galactic tickets were last on sale, 600 prospective passengers bought seats on the spaceplane. Turns out, the early bird got the worm — those pioneering purchasers bought their tickets for $200,000 to $250,000 apiece. Today, Virgin Galactic's starting price is $450,000 per seat, though it will also sell "couples/friends/family" packages, as well as full-flight buyouts.

Why the increase? Well, like any startup, Virgin Galactic is burning through cash and currently sits in the red, so higher ticket prices mean more revenue. "We believe this experience is so unique and compelling that it will drive multiple repeat experiences with friends and family across multiple spaceports around the world," Virgin Galactic CEO Michael Colglazier said in the company's Q2 earnings call yesterday.

Compared to a trip to the International Space Station (ISS), for which some space tourists have paid $55 million , Virgin Galactic's $450,000 price tag seems like a steal. That said, a multiday orbital flight with a stay on the ISS is quite a bit more intense than a two-hour suborbital flight with Virgin Galactic.

In the earnings call, Colglazier also announced that commercial operations (that is, flights with customers on board) will likely commence toward the end of next year, late in Q3. This is a slip in the previously announced timeline, which anticipated space tourists to fly early next year.

Between now and then, there will be at least two more test flights, the first of which is scheduled for September and will carry researchers from the Italian Air Force. A second test flight is planned for mid-2022 to test new upgrades to VSS Unity.

So, if you're looking to buy tickets now, go ahead and make your move — but you'll still have to wait quite some time before your flight departs.

Stefanie Waldek is a freelance space, travel, and design journalist. Follow her on Instagram and Twitter at @stefaniewaldek.

Related Articles

Watch CBS News

Virgin Galactic launches rocketplane on first commercial sub-orbital flight to space

By William Harwood

Updated on: June 29, 2023 / 3:52 PM EDT / CBS News

Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic launched its first commercial space flight Thursday, sending three Italian researchers, two company pilots and an astronaut trainer on a high-speed thrill ride to the edge of space aboard a winged rocketplane.

"Incredible experience, from the takeoff to the landing," said Pantaleone Carlucci, representing Italy's National Research Council. "The acceleration, the climb and then suddenly, the microgravity. ... I had the opportunity to look outside, and the view was amazing. Fantastic! I'm speechless."

Said Italian Air Force Col. Walter Villadei, the mission commander: "You can be told during the training what kind of experiences you may have, but in the end, when it's your body and your senses, it's completely different."

"The microgravity went very fast, but we did all the experiments we were supposed to run, and we also had an opportunity to ... really enjoy the beauty of the view outside."

Cheered on by Virgin employees, family members and friends gathered at Spaceport America in New Mexico, the twin-fuselage VMS Eve carrier jet took off around 10:30 a.m. EDT, carrying the company's VSS Unity spaceplane and its six passengers up to an altitude of about 44,500 feet.

After final checks, clamps opened and Unity detached from Eve's mid-wing attachment mechanism at 11:28 a.m.

Seconds later, the spacecraft's hybrid rocket motor ignited with a rush of flame, instantly propelling Unity up and out of the lower atmosphere on a near-vertical trajectory. Cameras mounted on the hull of the ship showed the Earth dropping away and the sky changing to deep black as the ship gained altitude.

One minute later, now traveling 2.8 times the speed of sound at an altitude of 136,000 feet, the rocket motor shut down, leaving the six crew members weightless as Unity coasted up to an altitude of 52.9 miles, just above the somewhat arbitrary 50-mile-high "boundary" between space and the discernible atmosphere.

Along the way, veteran pilot Mike Masucci and rookie co-pilot Nicola Pecile "feathered" the ship's wings, folding the swept-back wing-tip fins up about 60 degrees in a unique procedure invented by legendary aircraft designer Burt Rutan to minimize heating and speeds during re-entry.

In the meantime, Villadei, Carlucci and Italian Air Force Lt. Col. Angelo Landolfi began carrying out or monitoring 13 experiments designed to collect data about the effects of weightlessness on themselves and a variety of technological processes.

Amid switch throws and experiment activations, Villadei took a moment to unfurl an Italian flag as he floated above his crewmates.

The researchers were assisted by Colin Bennett, a Virgin Galactic astronaut trainer. It was the company's sixth piloted sub-orbital space flight and the first to carry paying customers, a milestone that has taken the company more than a decade longer than expected to achieve.

"Che volo fantastico (what a fantastic flight)!" Branson tweeted. "An historic moment - @virgingalactic's first commercial spaceflight completed. Ben fatto (well done)."

Che volo fantastico! An historic moment - @virgingalactic ’s first commercial spaceflight completed. Ben fatto #Galactic01 https://t.co/eWHfISJjz0 pic.twitter.com/7NU5JdoyDT — Richard Branson (@richardbranson) June 29, 2023

As with all such sub-orbital flights, the crew only had about three minutes of weightlessness as the ship arced over the top of its trajectory and began falling back to Earth, weightlessness giving way to increasing "G" loads as the vehicle rapidly slowed during re-entry.

Finally, back in the dense lower atmosphere, Unity's two wings rotated back down to their normal positions and the pilots manually flew the spaceplane through a spiraling glide to landing on Spaceport America's 12,000-foot-long runway. Total time between Unity's air launch and landing: just under 14 minutes.

Villadei, who is in training for a flight to the International Space Station, said that was more than enough time for the crew's research agenda.

"You can either fly (weightless) for a few seconds in parabolic (airplane) flight or you have to fly to the International Space Station for six months. There's nothing in between," he said. "The real interesting point for all of us, it was not only just to fly the payloads we developed, but to try how this kind of new platform can provide us a kind of gap filler.

"It was really beneficial to us. ... The fact that you are flying within a plane, you can have more power, more upload mass, you can expand the possibilities for the research community."

Virgin has now launched 25 people to the edge of space, several of them more than once, including Masucci, making his fourth flight, and Bennett, making his second. Arch rival Blue Origin, owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos , has launched 32 people on six sub-orbital spaceflights using its more traditional New Shepard booster and capsule.

The competition between the two companies in the space tourism marketplace has been fierce.

Virgin's first space flight came in 2018 when two company pilots flew Unity to an altitude of 51 miles. That initial launch to space came four years after a catastrophic test flight that destroyed Virgin's original spaceplane, killed the co-pilot and seriously injured the pilot when the feather mechanism was unlocked earlier than planned.

After addressing that issue, Virgin launched four successful test flights in a row before standing down for two years to upgrade the Eve carrier jet and carry out more modifications. A fifth successful test flight on May 25 cleared the way for Thursday's launch.

Blue Origin, meanwhile, began commercial operations in 2021. But the company's most recent launch in September 2022, an uncrewed research flight, experienced a booster malfunction and while the capsule's abort system operated as planned and the ship landed successfully, launches currently are on hold.

The six-member crew of Blue Origin's fifth flight in June 2022 included Hamish Harding , a billionaire pilot and explorer who was killed along with four others when the submersible Titan imploded June 18 during a commercial dive to view the wreckage of the Titanic. The mishap has raised fresh questions about the risks of private ventures into inherently dangerous environments.

Commercial spaceflight is monitored by the Federal Aviation Administration, which is responsible for licensing and ensuring minimal risk to the public. But legislation forbids the FAA from regulating crew safety procedures during a so-called "learning period" as as the commercial space market matures. Instead, passengers must provide "informed consent" that they understand the risks.

That learning period expires October 1, and the FAA is considering steps it might take if Congress does not extend the deadline.

"This includes the establishment of an Aerospace Rulemaking Committee to provide recommendations on the scope and costs of future regulations," the FAA said in a statement. "The FAA also is updating its recommended practices for human spaceflight occupant safety and is working with international organizations to develop voluntary consensus standards."

• Virgin Galactic
• Blue Origin
• Richard Branson

Bill Harwood has been covering the U.S. space program full-time since 1984, first as Cape Canaveral bureau chief for United Press International and now as a consultant for CBS News.

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Money blog: How to split housework fairly - and the things you shouldn't say

Welcome to the Money blog, your place for personal finance and consumer news and tips. Enjoy our Weekend Money content below and we'll be back with live updates on Monday. Let us know your thoughts on any of the topics we're covering using the comments box below.

Saturday 29 June 2024 09:20, UK

Weekend Money

• How to split housework fairly with your partner
• Price of popular food at Wimbledon has stayed same for 14 years - and it's fairly affordable
• Ofgem urged not to lift ban on acquisition-only energy tariffs
• Your comments : Paying off a mortgage into retirement and new cars turning faulty

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• Women in Business : How accident in cafe and £400 turned into a genius business idea that's about to go global
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• How to stop your car from being stolen - or even 'cannibalised'
• Best of the Money blog - an archive

Ask a question or make a comment

By Jess Sharp , Money team

Splitting up household jobs, whether that be cleaning, washing or life admin, is an issue that affects a lot of couples. 

Starling Bank found women do a total of 36 hours of household tasks and admin per week - equivalent to a full-time job. 

This is nine hours more than men - and yet men believe they do the majority in their household. The average man estimates they do 52% of work overall.

It's the discrepancy between perception and reality (and, of course, this can work both ways) that leads to arguments.

Couples who don't divide the housework equally have roughly five arguments about housework each month - rising to eight for couples who rely on just one person for the work.

We spoke to relationship expert Hayley Quinn about the best ways to split household work - and how to deal with arguments should they arise with your partner. 

She explained that it's necessary to be "transparent" when deciding how to split the workload - but also to be flexible in order to find a solution that suits all involved. 

While a 50/50 split might be your idea of perfection, Hayley said it was "almost inevitable that one partner may take on slightly more of the load" at different periods of time. 

"Striving for perfect 50/50 fairness at all times is a really nice ideal, but it just may not be that practical for modern life," she said. 

She said some jobs may be more visible than others, like cleaning, sorting out the washing, and taking the bins out.

Other jobs can take up just as much time and resource, but will fly under the radar. She gave the examples or sorting out travel insurance or changing over internet provider. 

How should you approach a conversation with your partner about splitting the work? 

To start off, Hayley said you should enter the conversation with a positive mindset - think how you are both contributing to the relationship in different ways.

"When you're having these conversations, it's not that many people are sitting around feeling like they're not contributing," Hayley said. 

"In fact, I think if there's a discrepancy in how people contribute, it's just due to a lack of awareness as to what the other partner does, and some chores are just more obviously visible than others."

Try to avoid starting the chat with the perspective that you are working a lot harder than your partner and they're not pulling their weight. 

"That way, you start from a place of we're all on the same team," she said. 

"When you're doing that as well, it's really important not to make statements which assume what the other partner is thinking, feeling, or contributing. 

"So, for instance, saying something like 'I'm always the one that's picking the kids up from school and you never do anything',  becomes easily very accusational, and this is when arguments start.

"Instead, most partners will be much more receptive if you simply ask for more help and assistance." 

When asking for help, Hayley said it's important to ask in a way that's verbal and clear - don't assume your partner is going to intuitively know what share of household chores to take on if you just complain. 

"In a nice way, explicitly ask for what you want. It could be something like saying, 'Look, I know that we're both working a long week, but I feel like there's so much to do. It would be really helpful if... I'd really appreciate it if you take over lunch,'" she explained. 

"Again, start from a place of appreciation. Acknowledge what your partner contributes already, and be explicitly clear as to what you would like them to do. Phrase it as a request for their help." 

She also said some people can feel protective of how jobs are completed, and learning to relinquish that control can be helpful. 

"If you want it to feel more equitable, you have to let your partner do things in their own way," she said. 

What happens if that doesn't work? 

If you find the conversations aren't helping, you can always try organising a rota, Hayley said. 

She recommended using Starling Bank's Share the Load tool to work out your chore split. 

However, she said if you feel there are constant conversations and nothing is changing then the issue is becoming more about communication than sharing the workload. 

"It's actually about someone not hearing what you're trying to communicate to them, so it's more of a relationship-wide issue," she said. 

She advised sitting down and trying to have another transparent verbal conversation, making it clear that you have spoken about this before and how it's making you feel in a factual way, without placing blame. 

Using phrases like "I've noticed" or "I've observed" can help, she said. 

If after all that, the situation still isn't getting better, she said it's time to consider confiding in friends or family for support, or seeing a relationship counsellor. 

The oldest and most prestigious tennis event in the world returns on Monday, with the best of the best players to battle over two weeks to be named champion.

Crowds in their thousands will flock to Wimbledon to enjoy a spot of sport - as well as the range of food and drink on offer.

It's not the cheapest day out, with a cool cup of Pimms setting you back just under £10 and a bottle of water coming in at nearly £3.

But did you know that despite souring inflation in recent years sending food prices through the roof, one fan favourite - the quintessentially British strawberries and cream combo - has stayed at the same price since 2010?

A pot of the sweet snack costs just £2.50, making it one of the more affordable offerings at the All England Club. It has been served up there since the very first Wimbledon tournament in 1877.

Perdita Sedov, Wimbledon's head of food and beverage, previously told The Telegraph the price freeze "goes back to a long-standing tradition" of strawberries and cream being associated with the championship.

"It's about being accessible to all," she said.

According to the Wimbledon website, each year more than 38.4 tonnes of strawberries are picked and consumed during the tournament.

Ofgem is being urged not to lift a ban on acquisition-only energy tariffs (deals that are available only to new customers, not existing ones).

A coalition of consumer organisations and energy companies led by Which? has penned a letter to the government regulator for electricity and gas warning it of the risk of a "return to a market which discriminates against loyal customers". 

They have also raised the potential impact on customers in debt, who may not be able to switch but could also find themselves struggling to access a better deal with their current supplier under the plans. 

The letter also notes the "very recent history" when more than 30 suppliers went bust - many after trying to win customers with unsustainably cheap tariffs.

Ofgem has said it could remove the ban on acquisition-only tariffs from 1 October but consumer choice website Which?  has research that shows the public are opposed to cheap deals that exclude existing customers, with 81% feeling it would be unfair if their supplier was offering cheaper deals to new customers only. 

The consumer champion has signed the letter to Ofgem alongside E.ON, Octopus, So Energy, Rebel Energy, End Fuel Poverty Coalition, Citizens Advice and Fair by Design.

Two topics dominated our inbox this week.

Many readers got in touch about our Weekend Money feature on older Britons who face having to work past pension age to pay off long-term mortgages.

Lots of you share the fears of those we spoke to in the feature...

I am in my 70s with still about five years to go on my mortgage. It stands at 30k on a 300k house. The mortgage repayments are £800 a month, this doesn't sound much but on a static pension it is massive and I am literally on the point of not having sufficient money to pay it. Red

I was supposed to retire in 2.5 years at 66 and 4 months, my mortgage finishes when I'm 70. I was paying off extra (double) on my previous rate to reduce an interest only mortgage, but the recent increases in mortgage rates have meant I'm paying off hardly any. AVB

I'm 67 and still trying to pay off a mortgage that has another five years to run. I can't stop working and do over 10 hours a day, 5 days a week. Keith

My problem is going to be paying off an interest-only mortgage. More than anything I wish I hadn't changed when I had my twins but we couldn't make ends meet at the time. Sazavan

Six years ago I reached the age of 70 and my interest-only mortgage ended - to extend it was impossible with the conditions attached. This then threw me into the rental market, paying more than my mortgage. Now I am facing eviction from the rental due to it being sold. Marianj

We also heard from a mortgage adviser, whose recommendations matched those of Gerard Boon, the managing director of online mortgage broker Boon Brokers, who we spoke to for the feature...

I am a mortgage adviser in Leicestershire and have found an increasing number of people asking to go as long as possible past normal retirement age. I always point out that it's great to have lower payments in the short term but you will need to work to 75. There's no choice. Semaine

Onto the second topic that dominated your correspondence, and we were sorry to learn that lots of you face similar issues as reader Adam, who has had to take his faulty car back to the garage six times - and is still not convinced it is fixed. 

Scott Dixon, from The Complaints Resolver , was on hand to help break down what Adam could do for our Money Problem feature - read his advice here:

Same thing happened to me, except that they didn't let me refund the vehicle and claimed it was my fault even though I told them about the issue during the six months' warranty multiple times... they barely replied. K

I have bought a used car and there is an engine management light on. The garage where I bought it from has since changed name and moved premises (found out by accident). When I call to book in I am told to expect a call back or the mechanic will ring me but they never do. Andy D

I have taken my car to Halfords four times in the last 14 months. Each time they guarantee me it's fixed and within a week it's back to normal. Can I get it repaired elsewhere and bill Halfords? Simon

I have a JAG SVR that's been faulty since day one, the garage sent me home with it faulty and not working correctly. I have tried to reject it but the finance company are playing David versus Goliath... we can prove issues from day one, we have two vehicle reports to back it up. Jezza

Have a Nissan Juke, which has a seat issue where it sinks on its own… Nissan saying it's not a manufacturing fault, but "user error". Where do I stand in getting it fixed? Technical team keeps fobbing it off as our fault. Esmith97

If you're in a position like this, do check out Scott Dixon's advice in the feature above.

The Money blog is your place for consumer news, economic analysis and everything you need to know about the cost of living - bookmark news.sky.com/money.

It runs with live updates every weekday - while on Saturdays we scale back and offer you a selection of weekend reads.

Check them out this morning and we'll be back on Monday with rolling news and features.

The Money team is Bhvishya Patel, Jess Sharp, Katie Williams, Brad Young, Ollie Cooper and Mark Wyatt, with sub-editing by Isobel Souster. The blog is edited by Jimmy Rice.

Starting from next month, gamers will be able to play Xbox titles like Fallout 4, Starfield and Fortnite using Amazon Fire TV.

A new upgrade coming to the Fire TV 4K devices transforms your television into a console, thanks to Xbox Cloud Gaming.

You'll need to be a member of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate to take advantage, plus you'll need a compatible controller and a solid internet connection.

"One of the biggest benefits of cloud gaming is the ability to play premium games without needing a console," Amazon explained.

"The Fire TV Stick may be compact, but it can stream and run graphically intense Xbox games like Senua's Saga: Hellblade II.

"This portability also means you can easily move your cloud gaming setup from the living room TV to a different room or even take it on the road.

"As long as you have a solid internet connection and your compatible Fire TV Stick, and a compatible controller, you can take your Xbox Game Pass games and saved progress travels with you."

Once downloaded, the Xbox app is designed to offer a smooth and seamless experience. Here’s how it works:

• Install and launch the Xbox app from your Fire TV device;
• Sign in with your Microsoft account to play. If you’re an Xbox Game Pass Ultimate member, you’ll have instant access to hundreds of cloud-enabled games;
• Connect a Bluetooth-enabled wireless controller. Controllers like the Xbox Wireless Controller, Xbox Adaptive Controller, PlayStation DualSense, or DualShock 4 controller are all compatible.

A new Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K will set you back £59.99 on Amazon, while a new Xbox Wireless Controller costs £49.59.

Xbox Game Pass Ultimate currently costs £1 for the first 14 days for new members, then is billed at £12.99 per month.

House prices are overvalued by thousands of pounds, according to a major property company.

The typical property is £20,000 more than is affordable to the average household, says Zoopla.

But rising incomes and longer mortgage terms mean the "over-valuation" is expected to disappear by the end of the year.

Zoopla's report said: "House prices still look expensive on various measures of affordability.

"We expect house price inflation to remain muted, likely to rise more slowly than household incomes over the next one to two years."

The average house price is around £264,900 – but according to Zoopla's calculations, the affordable price is £245,200.

"A new government will add a dimension of political stability when the autumn market starts in September and even if the [Bank of England base] rate is not lower by then, a cut will be imminent," said Tom Bill, head of UK residential research at estate agent Knight Frank.

"Given that mortgage rates will steadily reduce as services inflation comes under control, we expect UK house prices to rise by 3% this year."

Zoopla's over-valuation estimate was reached by comparing the actual average house price in its index with an "affordable" price, which was calculated based on households' disposable incomes, average mortgage rates and average deposit sizes for home buyers.

It's one of the most iconic and popular music festivals in the world, and it's notoriously hard to get a ticket.

Glastonbury has rolled around once again and roughly 210,000 people have flocked to Somerset this year as Dua Lipa, Coldplay and SZA headline the UK's biggest festival this weekend.

Those in the crowd are in the lucky minority — an estimated 2.5 million people tried to get tickets for this year's event, meaning the odds really aren't in your favour if you fancy going.

Tickets routinely sell out within an hour of going on sale, and that demand is unlikely to decrease next year, given the festival will likely take a fallow year in 2026.

So, if you're feeling jealous this year, how do you get tickets for Glastonbury 2025, and how can you give yourself the best possible chance?

We've run through all the available details as well as some tips so you're best prepared when the time comes.

Registration details:  Before potential festivalgoers get the chance to buy tickets, they must register on the official website.

One of the reasons this is done is to stop ticket touting, with all tickets non-transferable. Each ticket features the photograph of the registered ticket holder, with security checks carried out to ensure that only the person in the photograph is admitted to the festival.

Registration is free and only takes a few minutes. You will be asked to provide basic contact details and to upload a passport-standard photo.

Registration closes a few weeks before tickets are released.

Where to buy tickets:  Tickets can be bought exclusively at  glastonbury.seetickets.com   once they become available.

No other site or agency will be allocated tickets, so if you see anyone else claiming to have Glastonbury tickets available for purchase, it's most likely a scam.

When tickets go on sale: We don't know the details for next year yet - but Glastonbury ticket sales usually take place in October or November of the year before the festival. 

This year's ticket sales began, following a delay, in November 2023. Coach tickets typically go on sale a few days before (traditionally on a Thursday), with general admission tickets following on the Sunday morning a few days later.

For those that miss out, there's also a resale that takes place in April for tickets that have been returned or for those with a balance that has not been paid.

This year's April resale took place on 18 April (for ticket and coach travel options) and 21 April (general admission tickets and accommodation options).

How much it costs:  General admission tickets for this year's festival cost £355 each, plus a £5 booking fee. That's an increase on last year's price of £335 each, which was also an increase on the 2022 price of around £280.

So, we can probably assume that ticket prices will go up once again for next year's festival. 

Remember, there are options to pay for your ticket in instalments, so you won't have to pay the full price in one go if you don't want to. All tickets are subject to a £75 deposit, with the remaining balance payable by the first week of April.

It's also worth noting that Glastonbury is a family festival, and that's reflected in the fact that children aged 12 and under when the festival takes place are admitted free of charge.

TIPS FOR THE BIG TICKET SALE DAY

The scramble for tickets when they go on general sale is nothing short of painstaking, with demand far outweighing supply.

Here are some tips to give you the best possible chance of bagging tickets:

Familiarise yourself with the website: You may see a reduced, bare-looking version of the booking page once you gain entry. The organisers say this is intentional to cope with high traffic and does not mean the site has crashed, so be sure not to refresh or leave the page.

Once you reach the first page of the booking site, you will need to enter the registration number and registered postcode for yourself and the other people you are attempting to book tickets for.

When you proceed, the details you have provided will be displayed on the next page.

Once you have double checked all of your information is correct, click 'confirm' to enter the payment page, where you will need to check/amend your billing address, confirm your payment information, accept the terms and conditions, and complete the checkout within the allocated time.

Timekeeping: You can get timed out if you don't act fast, so it's a good idea to have your details saved on a separate document so you can copy and paste them over quickly.

You might also have to approve your payment, which could mean answering security questions from your card issuer. Have a device on hand to ensure you're ready for this.

Internet connection: This should go without saying, but you won't stand a chance without a solid internet connection.

Avoid trying to rely on your mobile phone signal, and politely ask those you might share the internet with to delay any online activity that might slow your connection.

Don't give up: Until the page tells you that tickets have sold out, you still have a chance. 

Shortly before that point, there will be a message saying 'all available tickets have now been allocated,' which users often think means their chances are up. 

What it actually means is that orders are being processed for all the tickets that are available. But if somebody whose order is being processed doesn't take our previous advice and runs out of time, their loss could be your gain.

Multiple tabs and devices: Glastonbury advises against its customers trying to run multiple tabs and devices to boost their chances of getting a ticket.

Glastonbury's website says running multiple devices simultaneously is "a waste of valuable resources, and doesn't reflect the ethos of the festival".

"Please stick to one device and one tab," it adds, "so that you can focus on entering your details without confusing your browser and help us make the ticket sale as quick and stress free as possible for all."

Shoppers have been buying bigger TVs to enjoy this summer's European Championships, according to the electrical retailer Currys.

The chain said UK sales were up by more than 30% in the past month, with "supersize" screens — 85-inch and above — selling well in the run-up to the Euros.

"Having a third of the TV market and the Euros being a big event for many people, we're seeing that super-sizing trend keep on giving," said Currys chief executive Alex Baldock.

The most popular, and also cheapest, 85-inch TV on the Currys website costs £999. 

The most expensive super-size TV is a 98-inch offering from Samsung that will set you back £9,499.

Currys reported adjusted pre-tax profits of £118m for the year to 27 April. That represented a 10% increase from the previous year's profits of £107m.

Like-for-like sales for Currys UK and Ireland declined by 2% to £4.97bn in the 12 months to 27 April, with consumer confidence knocked by high inflation levels and rising interest rates.

"We can see our progress in ever-more engaged colleagues, more satisfied customers and better financial performance," Mr Baldock added.

Selling your home can be expensive, with the range of fees that come as part of the selling process meaning costs can really rack up.

Those costs are usually present whether you visit a bricks and mortar estate agents on the high street or if you go online, although Purplebricks has marketed itself as an exception to the rule.

Since December, it has launched a new pricing structure that enables sellers to list their homes without paying a penny, making it the only completely free online estate agent in the UK.

Purplebricks previously charged a fixed fee of £1,349 (including VAT) to sell your house, with that figure rising to £2,999 for those based in and around London. 

That needed to be paid upfront or not later than 10 months after the property was first advertised, even if it went unsold.

Now, after being bought out by rival online estate agency Strike last year, Purplebricks is offering a free service, no strings attached.

Is there a catch, though?

There's no such thing as a free lunch or, it seems, a totally free way to sell your house.

If you'd like to pay more to unlock extras and upgrades, you can do so, with a 'Boost' and 'Full House' package costing £899 and £1,499 respectively.

All estate agents are also required by law to carry out anti-money laundering checks on everyone selling a property.

Typically, that cost is incorporated by estate agents into their service fees. However, as Purplebricks' service is free, it has implemented a separate £60 Anti-Money Laundering (AML) fee for sellers.

What's more, there's also no Rightmove listing included as part of its free service.

As the UK's biggest property portal market, attracting more buyers and sellers than anyone else, Rightmove can help sell your home much faster. 

Purplebricks does include a free Zoopla listing, but adding Rightmove is an optional add-on that will set you back £299.

So, how does Purplebricks make money?

Add-ons and extras. 

Purplebricks will be hoping to make money by customers opting for optional extras or premium services.

As well as the Rightmove example mentioned above, professional photographs and a floorplan will cost £699, while hosted viewings of your property will come at a charge of £899.

Purplebricks can also work with sellers and buyers to help them find the right mortgage deal and by offering them conveyancing services. 

It's important to remember that there is no obligation to buy any of the add-on services, though some will undoubtedly come in handy.

Purplebricks is clear about its up-selling tactics too. This is what its website says:

We’re fully transparent about what little extras we offer and where your money is going – so it really is your choice. When our agent speaks to you, they’ll talk you through the options, and then you can decide if it’s right for you.

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