Is Generation Z ready to fly into the space? The future of tourism is coming

Space tourism can be considered the future of tourism, able to offer a unique experience to those brave enough to fly into space. Many private firms are competing to pioneer this new form of tourism, but the interest and expectations of potential spaceflight participants on a large scale need to be investigated in depth. This paper analyses a sample of 1748 university students to start exploring Generation Z motivations, expectations, and willingness to pay for a space experience. A cluster analysis identified six clusters with different levels of interest in space travel experiences. The paper highlights what the possible future scenarios for space tourism may be and concludes with an identification of the underlying motivations of potential future space travelers. It discusses some early considerations of how these findings might be used to market this new type of future space experience and critical opportunities for future research.