Who wants to be a space tourist? As insurers gear up to insure the fledgling commercial space travel industry, take a look at who wants to be a space pioneer.

So, you'd like to go to space? You're not alone. The National Space Society, a nonprofit organization, reports that 60% to 80% of people surveyed in Japan, Canada, the United States and Europe are interested in going to space and would be willing to spend one month's salary to do so.

The society predicts two types of people will be the first private astronauts: extreme sports fans and wealthy leisure travelers.

"While some will seek out space tourism for the thrill of it, the fact remains that this activity will remain expensive for some time, with single tickets estimated to cost $25,000 to $100,000," the society said in a paper on space tourism. "Space itself--followed by an eventual orbital hotel--could be the ultimate getaway in the next decade."

Insurers will play a vital role in establishing a viable commercial space travel industry. In addition to third-party liability, which operators are required to have in order to launch commercial space vehicles on U.S. soil, commercial space businesses also would likely need additional insurance, including property insurance, customized life insurance and trip insurance.

But insurance is likely to be the last thing on the minds of those brave souls who choose to be the first civilians to touch the stars.

Henry Bolley, a 60-year-old stock market trader from Polk City, Fla., paid $5,000 to do a zero-gravity flight in Russia with Space Adventures in October 2001.

"Now you can do the same thing in Florida for $1,000 and get four times the flight. Suborbital flights will run the same way. I'm waiting for the prices to come down some more; then I will do it again. I'd recommend it to anyone," Bolley said. The zero-gravity flights are given on airplanes that travel in a high-speed parabolic pattern, which delivers several haft-minute episodes of weightlessness. NASA has trained astronauts on such flights, nicknamed the "Vomit Comet."

Bolley said he purchased insurance for the trip, but doesn't recall the specifics.

"Do rock climbers take out insurance if they are rock climbing? Or scuba divers take out insurance? If they're hurt, do they blame the ocean? Even if it's someone else's fault, it's ultimately my fault that I got into the situation," Bolley said.

Bolley said he did the first trip because "I wanted to experience the simulation of going into orbit. I wanted to experience weightlessness to see if I liked it or not."

And did he?

"It's wonderful," Bolley said. "It's hard to describe. It's a little bit like being in water, with a scuba tank, but it's not like that at all. That's what I thought it would be like. It's just floating. The odd thing is you have to learn to control your movements. In water, as you swim, you push against water and have resistance. There's no resistance when you are floating in the air, and the slightest muscle movement can cause you to spin rather dramatically. When you try to do something and your body doesn't do what you expect it to, you get disoriented. That's where the 'Vomit Comet' gets its name."

Floating weightless isn't Bolley's only goal. He said he hopes to make it into orbit by the time he's 70.

"I'm hoping the cost of orbit will come down. I'd be willing to shell out 10% of my equity for a trip like that. I'd do it in a heartbeat. If I won the lottery, I'd do it tomorrow," Bolley said.