????早在1914年，美國佛羅里達州某市前市長一擲千金，花了相當于如今9300美元左右的錢坐上了全球首架民航航班。從圣彼得斯堡到坦帕市這段23分鐘的旅程實在沒多大意思。那架飛機由木頭制成，最高時速為每小時60英里——但這位前市長愿意花大價錢，體驗一段在當時看來不可思議的旅程。

????而一百年后的今天，約600名旅客支付了高達25萬美元的費用，參與一項同樣看起來不現實的項目：登上首架開往太空的民航航班。這個項目由理查德?布蘭森爵士旗下的太空旅行公司維珍銀河（Virgin Galactic）推出。雖然這個設想在闊綽的冒險家看來十分離奇，甚至充滿危險，但高端旅行社Virtuoso正努力把這個設想變成現實，以滿足一小部分高端客戶的需求。

????Virtuoso首席執行官馬修?厄普丘奇說：“維珍銀河希望有一家能夠加入，為人們去處蒙在這種體驗之上的神秘面紗。”在北美、中美以及南美地區，僅有Virtuoso一家公司能幫助客戶在維珍銀河公司的航班上訂到座位。“重點在于將這個體驗人性化，拉近它與人們的距離。”

????如今，傳統旅行社似乎已是徹底的夕陽行業，然而，Virtuoso全球335家成員旅行社、7200多位旅行代理商去年的銷售收入高達125億美元。Virtuoso能在如今這個數字時代立于不敗之地，靠的就是為上至顯貴下至普通客戶創造旅行體驗。如今網絡預訂工具盛行，旅行體驗可是一個關鍵詞。

????Virtuoso擁有56位“認證太空游代理商”，或簡稱ASA。他們可幫助客戶辦理與維珍銀行簽約的一系列復雜手續，比如體檢、獲得配偶同意，以及定期更新項目進展等。盡管維珍銀河尚未開始商業運作，但它計劃最早今年就向客戶提供亞軌道飛行項目，每次飛行容納六名乘客。

????維珍銀河ASA杰伊?約翰遜說：“我是在為未來的宇航員們服務，而不是為維珍銀河公司效力。”約翰遜也是Virtuoso一家成員旅行社的社長。“我不會大肆包裝（太空旅行產品）。我只是激發客戶的興趣。我的首要任務是使客戶開心。如果他們有任何后顧之憂，我都會幫助他們解決。”

????約翰遜已經在維珍銀河未來的太空航班上為客戶預訂了八個席位。約翰遜拒絕透露自己為維珍銀河帶來旅客所獲傭金的具體數額，但他表示，自己參與ASA項目不是為了錢。不過，約翰遜通過維珍銀河項目結識的客戶中，有些后來又找他安排了其它旅行，讓他賺到了錢。事實上，他剛剛為太空旅行項目的一名客戶計劃了一次歷時14個月的環球旅行。

????通常，旅行代理商獲得的傭金是旅程花費總額的10％左右，但Virtuoso是一家高端旅行社，它的旅行代理商可以獲得更高的傭金。

????談及Expedia和Travelocity等大受歡迎的旅行工具，Hudson Crossing旅游業分析師亨利?哈特韋爾特說：“如果大家想要的是很簡單的體驗，那么用互聯網（設計旅程）就再合適不過了。但像Virtuoso這種大大改進了自身經營方式的線下旅行代理商，如今更加成功，或許是因為他們被迫成為更好的商人。他們已經從下單者蛻變成了‘造夢者’。”

????銀河項目的創始人之一、Virtuoso的厄普丘奇本人也將成為首批乘坐維珍公司航班進入太空的80名乘客之一。厄普丘奇表示，太空亞軌道飛行的高昂票價將慢慢下降，就如同1914年那次首飛后的民航票價一樣。不過，厄普丘奇還是鼓勵能掏得起錢的人士盡早預定太空旅行服務，哪怕僅僅是為了享受理查德?布蘭森為自己未來的宇航員提供的驚人特殊待遇。

????厄普丘奇笑著說：“我們這些人七年前就付了定金，都想讓花的錢都值回本。不過，我們這些年參加了好些聚會，早就值回票價了。”（財富中文網）

????譯者：項航

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????In 1914, a former mayor in Florida paid the equivalent of about $9,300 in current U.S. dollars to fly on the first commercial airline flight in the world. The 23-minute journey from St. Petersburg to Tampa was hardly glamorous -- the boat was made of wood and traveled at speeds up to 60 miles per hour -- but the man was willing to pay the exorbitant price for a trip that at the time seemed out of this world.

????One hundred years later, about 600 travelers have paid up to $250,000 to be a part of a similarly ethereal event: the first commercial flights into space, courtesy of Sir Richard Branson's space-tourism venture Virgin Galactic. Although the concept may sound completely outlandish, even dangerous, for the affluent adventurer, luxury travel network Virtuoso is working to bring the concept back down to earth for a few well-heeled customers.

????"Virgin Galactic wanted a company that could come in and demystify the experience," said Matthew Upchurch, Virtuoso's chief executive. His company has exclusive rights to book seats on Virgin Galactic aircraft for North, Central and South American passengers. "It is about humanizing the experience and making it more reachable."

????At a time when the traditional travel agent appears to be a dying profession, Virtuoso's 335 global member agencies with more than 7,200 travel agents earned $12.5 billion in sales last year. The company works to remain relevant in a digital age by creating travel experiences -- a key word in the age of the web-based booking tool -- for clients ranging from modest means to the top one percent.

????Virtuoso has 56 "accredited space agents," or ASAs, that help customers through the complicated process -- medical tests, spousal approval, regular updates on the program's progress -- of signing up for Virgin Galactic. Although the company's commercial operations have not yet begun, Virgin Galactic plans to send six passengers at a time on suborbital space flights as early as this year.

????"I work for the future astronauts, not for Virgin Galactic," said Jay Johnson, a Virgin Galactic ASA and the president of a Virtuoso member agency. "I don't sugar-coat anything. I just keep them motivated. My number one concern is to keep the customer happy and if they have any concerns I help them address them."

????Johnson has successfully booked eight seats on future Virgin Galactic flights. Although he declined to disclose the exact commission he earns from Virgin Galactic for signing up passengers, he said that he did not become a part of the ASA program for the money. Instead, the clients he meets through Virgin Galactic become profitable to him through other travel booking opportunities. For example, he just finished planning a 14-month around the world travel experience for a customer he got to know through arranging his travel into space.

????The standard commission for a travel agent is about 10 percent the total cost of the trip, but Virtuoso's positioning as a luxury agency allows its agents to earn more for their services.

????"The Internet is great if you want very simple experiences," said Henry Harteveldt, a Hudson Crossing travel analyst, of popular travel tools like Expedia and Travelocity. "But the offline agents who have evolved the way they do business like Virtuoso are probably being more successful today because they have been forced to become better business people. They have shifted from being order makers to dream makers."

????As one of Galactic's founders, Virtuoso's Upchurch will be among the first 80 people propelled into space by Virgin. Eventually, the costly price of a suborbital ticket into space will decrease, just like commercial airfare did after the first trip in 1914, he said. Still, Upchurch is encouraging everyone who can afford it to sign up as soon as possible -- even if it's just to take advantage of the incredible perks Richard Branson provides for his future astronauts.

????"For those of us who put our deposit down seven years ago and are trying to get our money's worth, we have gotten our money's worth with parties," he said with a laugh.