TripAdvisor

Anyone who ever dreamt of interplanetary travel will now be eligible to join TripAdvisor’s otherworldly expedition without even leaving Earth!  

TripAdvisor Experiences is launching ticket sales for the adventure of a lifetime, which happens to actually be in a Spanish Cave. Working with interplanetary agency, Astroland, TripAdvisor is bringing you the chance to experience a world-first for a taste of what life on the Red Planet would be like. Based on years of research and development, Astroland has created “Ares Station” a scientific space station developed to replicate the hostile conditions of Mars within a specifically selected cave, 60 meters high and 1.5km long, in Arredondo, Spain, totally isolated from human contact.

The idea is to learn more about not just the physical, but the societal impact living in such a colony would have. Candidates have to apply for their position on the expedition and pass physical and psychological tests before they are accepted. Special equipment has to be worn and no contact is allowed with the outside world.

This unique experience will last for a full 30 days. Although the time spent in the cave is up to three days, it requires a comprehensive three-week remote training program and another three days of physical and psychological training at the Astroland facilities. Each mission has a maximum capacity of 10 people.

The chosen team will also have at their disposal direct online access to aerospace experts and reputable psychologists, such as Gabriel González de la Torre, Doctor of Neuropsychology at the University of Cádiz and one of the few leading astronaut psychologists from Spain, as well as Iñigo Muñoz Elorza, instructor of astronauts in the European Astronaut Center, part of the European Space Agency.

Once the first phase of the mission is completed in accordance with the previous remote preparation, the Astrolanders move to the Astroland Space Center, located in the Science and Technology Park of Cantabria. Over the course of three days, the future mission protagonists learn how to carry out spacewalks by participating in speleology (caving) training, natural buoyancy tests that simulate the states of weightlessness and will also receive training in emergency plans allowing them to act in the case of adverse circumstances.

After this second stage, the fully-prepared crew enter the cave. Inside, they will have the basics for survival during the three-day period, while they experiment and test what human life would be like on Mars. Specially-designed astronaut suits, technical clothing, laboratories for the growth of plants under impossible conditions, life capsules, lyophilized food and a long list of tools will make life in the cave much easier for our Astrolanders.

However, price to admission is roughly $6,600 and would-be participants are welcome to apply by accessing the link below. Happy trails!

One-of-a-kind Astroland TripAdvisor experience