Circus chief to be space tourist - BBC News

[Yrys]

Circus chief to be space tourist (with a price tag between 20 to 35 millions)

Guy Laliberte will become the seventh
private citizen to go to the ISS

The founder of Cirque du Soleil, the circus performance group, is set to become Canada's
first space tourist in September. Guy Laliberte, 49, will travel to the International Space
Station (ISS) on a Russian Soyuz for a flight estimated to cost at least $25m (£15m; 18m
euros).

The Quebec-based billionaire will become the seventh private citizen to visit the ISS since
April 2001. Past visits by paying space tourists have lasted from a week to 13 days. Laliberte
has said in past interviews he wanted to travel into space one day.

He follows in the footsteps of other successful entrepreneurs, including California businessman
Dennis Tito and American software executive Charles Simonyi. Mr Simonyi, the latest tourist to
visit the ISS, took his second trip in March, spending an estimated $60m (£37m; 42m euros) on
both space voyages.

Laliberte has built a fortune estimated at $2.5bn (£1.5bn; 1.8bn euros) from the Montreal circus,
which has grown into a global organisation with $700m (£432m; 495m euros) in sales.

The flights are organised through the Virginia-based company Space Adventures.

 

[dapaterson]

... I guess that's one way to escape your ex-wife...

 

[Yrys]

:rofl:

Though (?t) in his case, it's ex-girlfriend.
And she lost the law suit for half his money...

 

[Kat Stevens]

Just goes to show you, any clown can be an astronaut.

 

[Harley Sailor]

So when I convert $25m at what he makes a year to what I make a year it would be like me paying $5k for a two week vacation.  I'd do that if it was fun enough.

 

[Gunner98]

Jeez, I thought this was a topic/thread related to Mike and what he does with our subscription money.

 

[kratz]

Jeez, I thought this was a topic/thread related to Mike and what he does with our subscription money.

That was worth a smile. Thank you for the post.  ;D