You Won’t Believe This Startup Is Accepting $10,000 Deposits for a Hotel on the Moon—Will You Get a Room?

A California startup is boldly charting a course towards lunar tourism, even before civilian travel to the Moon becomes a reality. Founded by 22-year-old entrepreneur Skyler Chan, GRU Space is currently accepting deposits ranging from $250,000 to $1 million for an ambitious lunar hotel project that is still in the conceptual stage.

“If we solve off-world surface habitation, it’s going to lead to this explosion. We could have billions of human lives maybe born on the Moon and Mars,” Chan told Observer. After graduating from the University of California, Berkeley, and interning at Tesla, Chan founded GRU last year with the vision of creating the first permanent structure beyond Earth.

The company's initial plan involves an inflatable hotel structure capable of accommodating up to four guests for multi-day stays, with the aim of evolving into a more permanent building inspired by San Francisco’s Palace of Fine Arts. The hotel’s anticipated opening date is set for 2032, and GRU believes it can serve as a catalyst for the burgeoning space tourism industry, which it views as essential for establishing a sustainable lunar ecosystem.

GRU's team includes key figures like Kevin Cannon, a professor at the Colorado School of Mines, and advisor Robert Lillis, who is also the associate director for planetary science at the UC Berkeley Space Sciences Laboratory. The startup has garnered seed funding from Y Combinator, joined Nvidia’s Inception Program, and counts SpaceX and Anduril among its investors.

Target customers for GRU include adventure seekers, experienced space travelers, and couples looking for unique honeymoon experiences. While final pricing has yet to be determined, a stay is projected to exceed $10 million, which includes a non-refundable application fee of $1,000.

GRU's timeline includes significant milestones, with the first lunar mission scheduled for 2029. This mission aims to assess environmental conditions and kickstart early construction experiments. By 2031, a follow-up payload is planned to land near a lunar pit, chosen for its protective characteristics against radiation and extreme temperatures. Hotel development is targeted to begin in 2032.

Chan acknowledges that GRU's timelines are estimates but emphasizes the importance of ambition in driving progress. “We need to really shoot for the literal moon,” he stated, highlighting his belief that the current space industry is dominated by governmental and billionaire-backed initiatives. He envisions space tourism as a third pillar that can help build a lunar economy.

Chan's vision aligns with broader U.S. space policy goals; lunar tourism has become a focal point in recent discussions. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman recently articulated plans to establish a permanent base on the Moon by the end of the decade, emphasizing the need to explore and harness the scientific, economic, and national security potential of lunar resources.

GRU aims to contribute to these ambitions with plans that extend far beyond a single lunar hotel. After establishing its initial lodge, the company intends to develop roads, warehouses, and other infrastructure, first on the Moon and then on Mars. Ultimately, it hopes to reinvest profits into resource utilization systems on the Moon, Mars, and asteroids.

“If we’re able to understand how to use resources on the Moon and Mars and beyond, that is going to enable us to not be tethered to Earth and start being interplanetary,” Chan asserted. He describes this moment as a “Promethean moment,” a pivotal time in human history poised to redefine our relationship with space.