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Hilton Hotels Not Planning Space Hotel 36

Posted by Hemos from the there-goes-my-vacation-plans dept.
Hilton Hotels has stated that theya re not planning on a space hotel as had been initial reported. This rumour had been bouncing around for a while, apparently the child of a PR stunt gone amuck. Shoot - I had a lot of "experiments" that needed to be done in zero g.
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Hilton Hotels Not Planning Space Hotel More

Hilton Hotels Not Planning Space Hotel

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  • Didn't happen to involve a partner, did they? =)
  • why they wouldn't want to do this - how would you keep the water from leaving the in-ground swimming pool when the large guy from room 319 cannonballs into the deep end? :)

  • ... (Score:1)

    by Signal 11 ( 7608 )
    Maybe it had something to do with seeing unshaven russians on Mir...

    --
  • Ah well; the fact that they aren't planning it now doesn't mean they won't do it. If anything, I bet the reaction to the rumour was very positive, and a lot of people (myself included) got very excited about the idea that Hilton would build a hotel just like in 2001: A Space Odyssey.

    So, I say, let's keep telling them what a great idea that is, and they may just come around and do it. I'd fancy going to the Space Hilton by the time I go to my pension!

    "There is no surer way to ruin a good discussion than to contaminate it with the facts."

  • "Hilton hotels has confirmed that there are no current plans for a space hotel.

    In related news, Hilton corporation revealed they would be using some of the technology designed for use in space to create 'odourless bedding' and 'non-irritant complimentary shampoo.'

    These technologies are currently beyond the hotel industry's capabilities."

    Hotnutz.com [hotnutz.com]
  • Well, at least this pospones the time when McDonalds, SubWay and Wendy's will set up franchises in space.

    At any rate, how much would it cost to stay in such a 'space hotel'? Do rich people really need more toys?
  • As i said earlier - ventures like this wont fly. We simply dont have the payload capacity for carrying huge structures into space on chemical rockets. If some of the other technologies like nuclear/microwave-plasma or laser-plasma propulsion take off, then only will we see commercial space travel.
  • That's it; forget about these boys, I'm starting my own orbiting hotel. In a few years, you'll be able to get a clean, comfortable room for a price lower than any other national chain in orbit.

    Forget about artificial G's or overpriced little shampoos in the bathroom; my orbiting hotel will consist of a few retread dumpsters I'll lead line and spray with plastic to make air-tight. Plus you'll get free local calls.

    If I need additional revenue, I'll farm out a section to spy/military agencies from various countries. That's right! Set your wake up call for when we're over the enemy city of your choice, then just chuck those warheads out the window.

    Of course, if you get too noisy and get tossed out of the hotel, you have serious problems...

    ----

  • That sounds like a bad TV series, the adventures of a crew marooned in an intergalatic rest-stop. Too many traveling-salesman running jokes.

    Note that if the space-hotel idea was intended as a publicity stunt, it's already worked to some extent. And they're getting more publicity out of the revelation that it was for publicity.

    - Seth Finkelstein

  • The article refers to this 1967 speech where Barry Hilton expresses wish for Hilton Hotels in space [panix.com].

    Hmm... Hilton Hotels designing a Lunar hotel [usnews.com].

  • from the source (Score:3)

    by Mazzella! ( 16436 ) on Monday September 27, 1999 @07:18AM (#1656354)
    I had a long talk with my boss, Brad Hilton (Manager Systems Development for Hilton Hotels Corp) last week when the news broke about "Hilton in space". While he and I would love to have hotels in space, that we would have to install servers in ourselves, he also stated that the technology to keep people safe is not there, yet. The liability of having something go wrong is just too big of a risk right now. If we were to much of a rush to go into space industry, after the first accident, the industry would be dead for 5-10 years after, as better safety measures are engineered.
    The idea is not a new one, by a long shot. Brad's uncle, Barron Hilton gave this address [panix.com] in 1967, and if you watch 2001, you will see the space station in the beginning sporting the Hilton logo.
    Brad perdicts that there will be a Hilton in space, some day... by 2100 maybe, but when the exact date it opens depends on technology advances, funding, and demand by the public. If it costs $1,000,000 a night plus "air fare", only the richest of the rich will be able to go.
    It is not on the radar screen right now, but the idea is out there, right now Hilton is too busy trying to combine the hotel systems of acquired company Promus [promus.com] and ours [hilton.com]
  • It'll happen, and probably in our lifetimes, although maybe not Hilton, and you might not be able to afford it. Well, you will, Rob. There are far too many luxury activities that can only be hosted in zero G. Gorgeous architechture that defies earthly phsyics. Sunsets that burn themselves into your memory. Sexual acrobatics that turn even a septuagenarian into a spry young chicken...

    And the sheer novelty of flying through the air (in certain non-rotating domes, perhaps) is in my mind the greatest of all.

    There is a market for this. It's only a matter of time until the space program is sufficiently privatized and the VC are sufficiently ravenous.

    -konstant
  • Absolutely,

    It's ironic that the story above this one on slashdot is about environmental damage due to excessive printing. The potential environmental damage of sending every star trek fan with money to burn into space is horrific - It's bad enough NASA sending tourists like John Glenn up there.
    Unmanned space flight is the only way to go.
  • Yes, but exactly how do you do a cannonball is zero G? And once your done, if your like me and not so hot at seeing underwater, how do you know which was is the surface (assuming all 5 other sides are lines with concret)
  • Many of their hotels can't even make money on the ground. Imagine the overhead (pun intended) of them working in space. This was just a baseless rumor.
    Oh, by the way, did you hear that Bill Gates is suing the Hilton because he had reserved a permanent room there? He wanted to be outside the reach of the Justice Dept.
    The above was definitely not a rumor. Pure, solid fact. Yep.

  • Darn. (Score:3)

    by Wakko Warner ( 324 ) on Monday September 27, 1999 @07:50AM (#1656359) Homepage Journal
    I wanted to see a bunch of people get shot into space and die. It would have been cooler if we could elect who would get shot up there by popular vote.

    I think Ricky Martin would win.

    - A.P.
    --


    "One World, one Web, one Program" - Microsoft promotional ad

  • I've read nanotechnology articles that discussed making rocket engines out of solid, perfect, diamond. As we all know, with nanotech making a simple rectangular lattice structure with carbon atoms will be pretty easy to do. With these rocket engines made out of diamond, they could be operated at temperatures far higher than what steel engines operate at today, and higher temperatures means higher efficiency. I've read that a vehicle the size of a minivan would be able to reach orbit with passengers. Well, I don't know if that's entirely accurate, but rockets will get smaller and better with nanotech.
  • As I said when the story posted, this is impractical. Until a cheaper way is found to boost things to orbit, by a factor of 1000; the common folks on the ground will just continue to support NASA or the like with our taxes. Hmmm...perhaps folks should check their sources for accuracy too.
    The story as posted just gave everyone a chance to make a lot of off-color, crude, and banal remarks.
  • An even worse problem-- if you are underwater, and have water in your nose. You won't feel gravity telling you which way to go to get out, but I think gravity plays a big role in getting that water out of your nose...
    I don't think anyone has ever tried swimming in zero gravity. After all water is pretty damn heavy, too expensive to fire enough of it into space...

    Anyway, if you did have a pool, you would want to simulate gravity with centrifugal force (sp?). Remember Ender's Game and 2001?

  • You know how technology that was developed by NASA for the space program trickled into the consumer market? Maybe the need for Gideon Bibles in space will prompt someone to develop one of those lightweight, portable, all-purpose document viewers that so many said they wanted in the replies to the other story.
  • Well, Hilton may not be planning on building
    space hotels yet but Robert Bigelow, owner
    of Budget Suites of America, claims to be
    doing just this:
    http://www.bigelow-aerospace.com
  • One word: Space Elevator.

    Just the thought of one of those gives me tingles =) Would take some groovy materials though, a good solid tether..
  • Apparently I get a discount at Hilton hotels as they are a member of the Ladbroke group, which is the parent company of Ladbroke Racing in the UK. I was looking forward to cool $100,000 off the price... (Mind you, the chance of me having the other millions is remote, given that they won't let me place bets with the company... (Except at our greyhound tracks miles away...)
  • I recall a BBC article on this that was posted on Slashdot around May. The article was kind of vague and just said that Hilton was looking at the possibility, but there was an endorsement by Arthur C. Clarke. My question is, what happened to the endorsement?
  • Don't let anybody tell you otherwise. I'd give a lot -- sell the house, maybe -- for a chance to take my favorite girl to Zero G and see what comes up. Or goes down.

  • ...Then I guess the Howard Johnson's Earthlight Room is a no go too.

    BTW, if you want real inspiration, listen to Arthur C. Clarke's address before the LA premier of 2001. You can find it on the DVD version. My favorites:

    "I don't know if I should tell you this...but the Apollo team management has rescheduled their meeting so they could get to the press conference"

    "We are probably rather low on the cosmic totem pole."

    "There must be millions of world where life has evolved...but none of them would be significately close to us that we would mistake them for humans...except for in a gloomy or smoggy afternoon."

    Well, that explains LA all right.
  • "Hey, Mr. Gates, how about a free vacation.... In space?"

    "No, no, Mr. Torvalds, that is one vacation you DON't want to take."

    :-) The joy of humor

    watch as this gets moderated down, meanwhile, I applied (last year) to do a MS Beta test, (uart pre linux) and now they are accepting me, what should I do? I don't really want/need "Millenium OS".
  • I found the cluelessness of the article repeatedly saying the hotel would be "intergalactic" quite offensive.

    It probably wouldn't even be interplanetary, being well within the volume where the Earth's gravitational field is domimant.

    I do wish reporters would pay attention to the words they use!
  • The CDs make good coasters, especially the Alpha architecture ones -- nearly double the FP power and spill-sopping potential.

    - A.P.
    --


    "One World, one Web, one Program" - Microsoft promotional ad

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