Any Star Trek fan will be able to tell you that space is the final frontier and that the most famous split infinitive in science fiction reminds us that the crew of the Starship Enterprise went boldly where no man had gone before. In this year’s World Travel Market, delegates will learn that far from being science fiction, space travel has developed the common touch and is now a legitimate form of tourism.

Eric Anderson, president and chief executive officer of Space Adventures Ltd will be travelling from the United States to speak on World Travel Market’s opening day – Monday 6 November at ExCeL London - at a keynote seminar and presentation ‘Space Exploration: The Next Generation of Travel.’

His Virginia-based company has already made it possible for three space tourists to rocket up to spend eight days in the earth-orbiting International Space Station and is due to launch its first woman client on the same space adventure next week (14 September).

To anyone suggesting that space tourism is just a hugely expensive ego trip for the extremely wealthy, Mr Anderson argues that the current crop of headline-grabbing space shots are only the first step in a serious leisure industry potential.

“I will discuss the critical need for near-term space tourism in order to ensure the possibility of less expensive, more reliable opportunities for space exploration in the future,” he said.

“I will also explain what it is like to travel to space and what the next 50 years of commercial space travel will entail. Space Adventure’s goal is to open the space frontier to all private citizens by building a series of successful, privately funded space flight missions.”

Mr Anderson’s vision of the future of space tourism is backed by a poll of wealthy Americans commissioned by the Futron Corporation in 2002 which concluded that the private space exploration industry could generate revenues of over $1 billion a year within 20 years.

The space tourism market study found that orbital space exploration could grow to 60 passengers and $300 million a year by 2021 while suborbital space exploration could account for 15,000 passengers and $700 million a year in the same period. Certainly, there seems no shortage of candidates with sufficient money to buy the early tickets to space.

Mr Anderson said his company had “a healthy pipeline of clients” with reservations for orbital flights in the next three years, including Charles Simonyi, creator of Microsoft ExCeL and Word.

“In addition to our orbital programme, Space Adventures currently has over 200 reservations for our suborbital flight programme which could launch as early as 2008,” he said.

In this aspect of space tourism, Space Adventures is in a race with Virgin Galactic, the Richard Branson-backed enterprise which aims to be the first company to offer flights aboard reusable space craft.

Mr Anderson, however, seems relaxed about the challenge, saying: “Competition within the private space flight industry will promote the availability and affordability for all citizens to visit space.”

And as Space Adventures’ suborbital space flight programme draws nearer, Mr Anderson is looking forward to his own space experience.

“I would never sell anything I wouldn’t do myself,” he said. “I have dreamed of space flight since I was a child, however my poor eyesight hindered me from becoming a professional astronaut. I plan to go on one of Space Adventures’ first suborbital test flights.”

The free space tourism seminar takes place on Monday 6 November at North Gallery Room 6, ExCeL London and is part of a menu of major topics to be explored during the four days of World Travel Market.

“As part of our Insight market intelligence programme, we will tell the industry about the hottest trends and developments that will help them plan for the future”, said Fiona Jeffery, World Travel Market’s Managing Director.