DENVER, Colorado, and MCLEAN, Virginia—Voyager, a global leader in space exploration, announced Hilton will be the official hotel partner of Starlab, Voyager’s planned free-flying commercial space station.
“Starlab will be more than just a destination, it will be an experience made infinitely more unique and artful with the Hilton team’s infusion of innovation, expertise, and global reach,” said Dylan Taylor, chairman and CEO, Voyager Space. “Voyager and Hilton are acutely focused on creating innovative solutions for the future of humanity and this partnership opens new doors to what is possible for comfort-focused space exploration and habitation.”
Voyager, and its operating company Nanoracks, were awarded $160 million in NASA funding in 2021 for the Starlab space station, which is set to replace the International Space Station. Starlab is planned to have the capacity to host up to four astronauts and house the George Washington Carver (GWC) Science Park, a laboratory system and the first science park in space. Starlab leverages Voyager and Nanoracks’ experience managing global customer experience and research operations on the International Space Station for over a decade.
“Hilton has been innovating to improve the guest experience and pioneering new destinations for travel for more than a century. We are thrilled to partner with Voyager to bring that expertise to Starlab,” said Chris Nassetta, president and CEO, Hilton. “For decades, discoveries in space have been positively impacting life on Earth, and now Hilton will have an opportunity to use this unique environment to improve the guest experience wherever people travel. This landmark collaboration underscores our deep commitment to spreading the light and warmth of hospitality and providing a friendly, reliable stay—whether on the ground or in outer space.”
This venture builds on Hilton’s effect in markets, its history with space, and its global lodging and hospitality leadership, welcoming more than three billion guests across a portfolio of 18 brands comprising 7,000 properties in 122 countries and territories. In partnership with Voyager, Hilton will bring this scale and focus to Starlab as it continues to serve every traveler for every trip occasion.
The research and design work being dedicated to Starlab could also lead to advancements driving sustainability and greater design efficiencies for future hotel owners in space and on Earth.
With its recently launched global platform, Hilton. For the Stay., with an ad campaign, “It Matters Where You Stay,” the company also brings consumer insights that prove the stay is an important element that can make or break a trip, even to outer space. Hilton will bring the company’s hospitality experience to support the design and development of crew suites aboard Starlab, helping to reimagine the human experience in space, and making extended stays comfortable.
Voyager and Hilton will partner in the areas of architecture and design, leveraging Hilton’s creative design and innovation team members, to develop space hospitality crew headquarters aboard Starlab, including communal areas, hospitality suites, and sleeping arrangements for the astronauts. Additionally, the teams will explore opportunities together for longer-term efforts including the ground-to-space astronaut experience, global co-marketing and branding, and other tourism, educational, and commercial efforts.
