Experience zero g on the third rock from the sun

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Most of us might not set foot on the moon or be able to take a trip to Mars but for a little or more money, at least get the space experience of a lifetime, on terra firma.

Richard Branson's Virgin Galactic's space flights for non-astronauts set to take off in 2009 are already booked solid. But an intrepid traveller doesn't let his lust for discovering new vistas be hampered by such a small matter as no tickets.

So, if you really want to experience the feeling of travelling to space without leaving the third rock from the sun, aka planet Earth, there are other options.

Atlas Aerospace in Russia gives PLUs (people like us) an 18-minute programme on the Atlas centrifuge that recreates the space experience including launch, weightlessness and the return to Earth. The cost for this joyride is $6,850. For more details visit their website: www.atlasaerospace.net.

If you are planning to visit the UK, then take a trip to Leicester where at the National Space Centre you can take a six-minute 3D ride that recreates a rocket launch from the surface of the moon and a ride through space to one of Jupiter's moons. You can also sit inside a spinning dome that puts you through the experience of space sickness (as if one needs that).

And do not miss the Soyuz capsule that is on display there. Adults are charged $22 and children have to pay $18. For more details visit: www.spacecentre.co.uk.

Another option worth exploring is the US Space and Rocket Centre in Huntsville, Alabama. Children in the 9-11 age group can be part of a six-day space camp course that familiarises them with the kind of food astronauts eat in space (who needs that either?), how they sleep and manage bodily functions while in space.

Children also get to sit in the spinning chair that was used by astronauts on the US Gemini programme. For three days, the cost is about $395. Their website www.spacecamp.com has more details. The Euro Space Centre in Belgium also has something similar. Their website is www.eurospacecenter.be.

A more expensive option is offered by a company called Go Zero G that operates flights from Las Vegas and Kennedy Space Centre in Florida, US.

As the name of the company implies, the experience on offer here is all about feeling (or not, as the case may be) zero gravity. A three-hour trip on their plane will set you back by about $3,645. A look at their website www.gozerog.com may be helpful.