4 entrepreneurs from Sichuan sign up for space trip in 2015

Four rich people from Chengdu, Sichuan province, including one woman, signed up Tuesday for a space trip next year.

If everything goes well, they will travel to space on the rocket-powered Lynx plane, and take in a breathtaking view of Earth.

The tour service is offered by the Dutch Space Expedition Corp (SXC), which is cooperating with a local tourism company.

However, it is not an adventure for the average person, as the five-or-six-minute stay in space cost 720,000 yuan ($120,000). The whole trip lasts about an hour.

Altogether 100 people in the world will tour space in 2015, and China has been allocated more than 10 spots. The southeast region where Sichuan is situated has taken six posts, said Guo Hui, president of the local tourism company.

The four adventurers are around 40 years old. All of them run successful enterprises.

Luo Jian, the only woman, told the West China City Daily that she had no hesitation. "The happiness of fulfilling a space dream goes far beyond buying cars or houses."

Teng Jun, CEO of a real estate company, said he enjoys challenging sports and is learning to fly a helicopter.

High-end tourism like the space trip is targeting the rising number of wealthy Chinese, according to a report from the China Tourism Academy.