In February, the Artemis II mission will orbit the moon, marking the first time in 50 years that a crewed mission does so.
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A crew of four astronauts will spend ten days orbiting the moon in order to test a new Orion spacecraft and its SLS rocket systems. But there are plans for a subsequent Artemis III mission to actually make a moon-landing as soon as mid-2027.
Should the mission go through, it will mark the first human landing on the moon since Apollo 17 touched down back in 1979. And though it’s unlikely that humans will live on the moon anytime soon, some companies are already making plans.
Forget trips to space in specialized airplanes—some people are thinking about weekend getaways on the moon. And there’s one startup that has a plan on how to build it.
Meet Galactic Resource Utilization Space, INC, aka GRU. It’s a startup that was founded in 2025 by UC Berkely graduate who wants to use on-site resources to create building materials—which could be used to build a hotel on the moon.
Inside GRU’s plan to build a hotel on the moon
The concept of building a hotel on the moon—or any permanent structure—is pretty far-out. But GRU is further ahead in its plans than you might think. The new startup has fleshed out plans for a 2029 demonstration mission that will convert lunar soil (called regolith) into ‘moon bricks’ that can be used to construct livable habitats.
The moon bricks are just the start. Aside from building materials, GRU will also use additional materials to create large, pressurized habitats. In other words, you won’t need an astronaut suit to get around. The goal is to build this habitat in a lunar pit that will help shield guests from radiation.
So, how much will the trip cost? GRU plans to deploy its first mission in 2029, then have the first hotel opening in 2032. The hotel will house up to four guests and cost a cool $10 million to book. The final hotel design will be inspired by San Francisco’s Palace of the Fine Arts.
If you want to learn more, I recommend diving into this article from Design Boom.
