Ultra expensive flights to space now possible for the mega rich

This is not "science fiction", and it's not what a Hollywood blockbuster can conjure up. Nor is it a snapshot lifted from a science textbook. It is space travel.

Travelling to space "will be a life-changing experience", says Alex Tang, CEO of SXC Asia, one of a handful of companies looking to offer commercial space flights within the next couple of years.

"It will change our vision of the earth. Looking at the earth from above will allow travellers to see exactly how beautiful it really is. It will make them want to protect it," Tang says. "Space travel isn't science fiction anymore."

Space has always been a vast piece of real estate for many nations.

Remember the bad, old days of the cold war, when the race to space was a matter of national pride? The United States and the former Soviet Union locked horns in their attempts to boldly go where no man had gone before. The first man to break through the earth's atmosphere was late Soviet cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin, who in 1961 made an orbit around the earth aboard the Vostok 1 spacecraft.

Eight years later, Neil Armstrong became the first astronaut to land on the moon. He famously said: "That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind." Since then, we've made leaps and bounds in research and technology into travel, making space tourism a dream come true.

SXC Asia, part of the Amsterdam-headquartered Space Expedition Corporation (SXC), is the latest firm to join the "space race" following Virgin Atlantic's bold move to offer civilians a chance to reach for the stars.

It was six years ago that Richard Branson announced Virgin Galactic, the spaceship that will carry tourists to the heavens. SXC is one of the first space travel companies with a branch based in Asia.

There are two types of trips offered by SXC Asia: One journeying 100km into space (HK$780,000) and another venturing 60km (HK$700,000). From mid-2015, SXC hopes to take aspiring astronauts on a one-hour flight from the Caribbean island of Curaçao into space. Then, travellers can experience zero gravity and enjoy the black calm of space for six minutes, before gravity starts pulling them back down.

If you are one of the company's lucky 100 passengers, or snag one of the 12 reserved spots from the Asian market to be part of the "founding astronauts" with SXC, a special package at HK$1.68 million includes being part of a documentary, capturing the first commercial spaceflights launched by the Dutch company.