Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Service Robots Are Closer Than We Think
Despite the above reference about
most people really have no idea just how close we are
to having highly functional robots available to carry out many of the large number of service tasks that
tourism demands. On the one hand, robots have been in use in factories for decades—making an
enormous impact on global productivity. On the other hand, the service sector has, to date, remained
essentially untouched by robot hands. But now, a new generation of robots is minding children,
caring for the elderly, and giving people baths or doses of medicine, as well as performing more basic
tasks, like cleaning
floors and mowing lawns
''
job killer,
''
—
all tasks that are highly similar to many of those
required in the tourism and hospitality sector
such as cleaning rooms, making beds, serving meals,
and carrying luggage. Make no mistake about it, the shortage of reliable, low-cost labor, which has
been the bane of the hospitality sector, is about to be addressed. Although it remains to be seen if
robots can convey the therapeutic psychological support traditionally provided by one
—
'
s favorite
bartender, there are many other care-related tasks in which
service robots
will excel.
Hotels of the Future
Though there are lots of great hotels in most parts of the world, there are people who think we should
go even further and build hotels in space for those who can afford paying thousands and thousands of
dollars. We already know it would be an extraordinary experience, but would it be more fun and more
comfortable than on Earth? Below are six hotels that humans are proposing to build in space:
1.
Once a NASA collaborator in the building of space-based residences for the U.S. space program,
Bigelow Aerospace is now on its own, and has already released prototypes of an in
atable hotel
that should be ready (in space) in less than a decade. The company believes in its invention and
claims that in
atable modules that will use several layers of vectran (twice as strong as kevlar)
will be more solid than rigid ones, and will better sustain micrometeorite impacts. Rumors have it
that Bigelow will commence operation in 2012. A four-week orbital stay will cost $15 million and
$3 million more for another few weeks. The ultra-rich will be able to lease a full orbital facility for
one year for $88 million.
2.
Galactic Suite is a Barcelona-based private space tourism company that plans another orbital
project. It should be up and running by 2012. Total cost is estimated at close to $5.27 billion,
which explains why a three-night stay in its zero-gravity rooms will cost nothing less than
$3.51 million, including special training. For this money, the suite spins around Earth every
80 minutes, so you get to enjoy the spectacular sunrise 18 times a day (Earth days). The Galactic
Hotel is going to be small and will only include three bedrooms. The Spanish architects already
have the plans
figured out so that the hotel will include up to 22 pods (23 feet long by 13 feet
high) clustered around a central nucleus.
3.
The Lunatic Hotel is exactly what you think. It
is a hotel on the Moon that explores the unique
conditions and the building materials available there. The work of Hans-Jurgen Rombaut of the
Rotterdam Academy of Architecture in the Netherlands, the hotel is going to feature two 160-
meter-high slanting towers and teardrop-shaped
'
looking like small airships
(which, of course, are rooms). If it is entertainment you seek, the Lunatic Hotel is going to offer
low-gravity games, abseiling, and
flying using special suits with bat-like wings. It's one of the best
solutions for a hotel on the moon so far, with user concerns being fully addressed. Expect
something like that to be built by 2050.
''
habitation capsules
''
4.
Some 450 km above Tokyo, Shimizu Construction is interested in building a 64-room space hotel
that should be opened to guests in 20 to 30 years. The 7,500-ton facility will rotate three times
per minute to arti
cially produce a gravity of 0.7 g. Shimizu has been working on its Space Project
since 1989. When ready, it should offer round-trip journeys in space for $83,000.
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