Commercial space flight

Space tourism is closer than ever to liftoff, with the first flights, chartered by Virgin Galactic, set for 2008. Tickets are a steep $235,000, with a minimum deposit of $23,500, but the demand is there: Over 15,000 people have registered to pay the reservation fee. Orbiting hotels (courtesy of the Space Island Group) will come with views, we hear, that are out of this world.

Working holidays

There are those whose unused vacation days grow like interest rates from the 1970s. To counter this baffling mindset, a new breed of holiday is taking hold. The “soft holiday” allows the vacation refusenik to take his job to, say, Tahiti for a month and work a reduced load (thanks to the joys of 21st-century technology), while squeezing in some scuba diving and family time. Otherwise known as having your cake and eating it productively.

Celebrity vacation rentals

First there were celebrity-branded hotels. The next logical step: stretching out on Mick Jagger’s actual sofa. Fans can already bunk down in the singer’s Caribbean retreat in Mustique, in Bill Gates’ cabin on Sleepy Cove Island, N.S., or even in the late Mr. Versace’s Casa Casuarina. But please, no snooping in the underwear drawer.

Driverless cabs

What will become of the cabbie if ULTra has its way? The Bristol-based company is developing a transport system whereby driverless, podlike “cabs” run along a rail, allowing people to preset their destination. They’re clean, fast and squash any doubt about whether the taxi is on the right track.

Rethinking the cabin interior

With aircraft design in supersize mode, the aircraft cabin is about to get an overhaul. More airborne mall than people carrier, it will come complete with cushy lounge, gym, food counters and on-board duty-free boutiques. In the far future, aircraft may even become “clubs in the sky.” Who wouldn’t want to dance the flight away?

The single pair of shoes trip

Ladies, rejoice: The soon-to-be-produced KitShoe, “the universal shoe for all occasions,” lets you go from stilettos to flats in, well, a snap, courtesy of clickable, interchangeable heels.