10 Most Expensive Bucket List Activities

Posted on August 5, 2011 - By Michael

Travel On Virgin Galactic

Tickets cost $200,000 and deposits start from $20,000. Space travel, even the commercial version like this, if no small feat, and before you go anywhere you’ll spend 2-3 days preparing with the flight crew. If you thought you knew speed in the past, forget it, with this flight you’ll reach over 3 times the speed of sound within a matter of seconds, soaring out of the earth’s atmosphere at 2500mph.

When you’ve reached space, the rocket engines turn off and everything goes very silent. You’ll experience zero gravity for what will likely be the very first time, while staring out the windows at the stars and earth that surround you. You’ll have plenty of time to experience weightlessness in the roomy cabin, before facing the extreme G-forces that you’ll experience on the re-entry into the earth’s atmosphere, where you’ll drift into a smooth glide back down to earth. Certainly an expensive experience, but one that will be unmatched by anything else you’ve ever done.

Photo credit: Jeff Foust

Climb Mount Everest

First climbed in 1924 by an English team of two climbers, Mallory and Irvine, roughly 1500 climbers have followed them since to the sum of about 2000 climbs in total. Advancements in technology has made it a lot easier and safer to climb over the past 20 years, but Everest still remains the tallest mountain in the world and one of the most dangerous challenges you can set yourself, with roughly 1/15 climbers dying for every successful attempt. If you still thinking about climbing, then you should bear in mind that it can cost anywhere up to $100,000 to attempt, after all, you need a lot of special equipment, transport and guides, just to get started. We rate this as one of the most hardcore pursuits you can set yourself, and it takes a hell of a lot of courage.

Photo credit: Michael Foley

Fly in a Private Jet

Nothing says luxurious travel, quite like flying in a private jet, where even flights within the country can cost over $10,000. If you’re looking to cut your costs a little bit, but still want to try this, consider flying in January/February where extravagant services like this tend to lower their prices to balance out for the lack of business post Christmas. Enjoy what the flight has to offer from spa treatments and gourmet food, to wireless internet, state of the art entertainment and an awesome view. One of the best parts of flying in a private jet is that you can do it from just about anywhere, get down to your local airport and hop on a flight to Paris, or Rome, or Vegas, or anywhere; the world is your oyster.

Photo credit: 2010 World Cup - Shine 2010

Take Part In the Gumball Rally

The Gumball rally has been going on since 1999 and now costs £25,000 to enter which buys entry for 2 people and one car. The fee covers luxury hotel rooms from the night of the 25th May to the night of the 31st May, food at the hotels and check points, entry to all the amazing Gumball parties and tickets for you and your co-driver to the one and only Indy 500!

“Gumball is about challenging tradition and taking a non conventional approach to exploring and developing cultural and creative boundaries” Maximillion Cooper, Founder & CEO, Gumball 3000 Group.

The 2012 rally starts from New York on the 25th of May and ends in Los Angeles on the 31st of May. Other then paying the rather expensive entrance fee, you’re responsible for your car, insurance, petrol, extra food and drinks and any extra passengers you’re planning on bringing along. It’s a truly amazing experience with a whole host of celebrities taking part and film crews to follow you around.

Photo credit: Tony Harrison

Restore A Classic Car

We’ve all got our favourite classic cars, from old TV shows that we used to watch as kids and dreamt about driving. The problem is, now that you’re old enough to enjoy them and can start to afford them, a lot of the old cars aren’t in a very good condition anymore. If it was a car from the last 10 years, you might write it off as a waste of time and money, but classic muscle and sports cars have so much character, it would be a waste not to restore them.

Take the time and effort to learn how to fix a car, and starting your own repair project becomes a very likely possibility. The trouble with old cars though is that parts aren’t easy to find and when you do find them, they’re usually very expensive, hence why it’s on this list. It’s incredibly easy to start getting carried away with new parts and fancy paint jobs and leather interiors, so this may well be expensive, but not in terms of the enjoyment you’ll get out of it and the finished product.

Photo credit: Dave Parker

Fly A Mig Jet

Flying in a MIG fighter jet isn’t just about taking a flight through the air, it’s about experiencing space and flight up to 14 miles above the the earth’s surface, all in a piece of fighter jet history at supersonic speeds. Some companies will actually let you take control of the jet yourself and we strongly recommend that you find one of these – it’s not often that you’re actually allowed to fly a fighter jet.

All necessary equipment and clothing will be provided for you at the base, so that’s one less thing to worry about and a camera man will be provided to take photos for you. If you decide to do this, the cheapest we could find was  EUR 12,499.00 for a 40 minute flight, which is by no means cheap, but still a lot cheaper then funding space flight through other means. The only place we could find this was Russia, but it’s worth the trip if you want to live out your Top Gun dreams.

Photo credit: D. Miller

Visit Every Continent

They say travel broadens the mind, and I’m inclined to agree. Most people haven’t even seen their whole country, let alone visit another continent, and there’s a very good reason for that; it’s expensive. Thankfully, over the past 10 years or so, air travel has become a lot cheaper and it’s made it possible for people to explore the world much more easily, but this is where the financial advancements stop.

If you managed to get together enough money and could find the time out of your life and work to travel the world, it’s still going to take a few months if you really want to make the most of it. You’ve got North America, South America, Europe, Asia, Australasia, Africa and Antartica to visit before you can say you’ve done them all, and just getting to these continents (particularly Antartica), is not going to be cheap or easy. But don’t let any of that stop you, set yourself the goal today to visit them all within the next 10 years and then you can fully prepare yourself for multiple trips.

Photo credit: Kenneth Lu

Go To The Superbowl

In America, this is without a doubt, the biggest sporting events of the year and watched by roughly 100 million people, and you can be one of the few people there in person. An average price range for Super Bowl tickets is between $2,100 and $8,000 for a seat or an incredible $200 to stand outside the stadium and watch it on a TV screen. This just goes to show what a momentous occasion the Super Bowl is for Americans. The whole idea of spending that much on a ticket to a sporting event in the UK is a bit unusual to us; events like Wimbledon which sell out the year before the event due to the huge demand, only costs us about £54 a ticket. 2012‘s event will take place at the Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, so start booking your flights, accommodation and tickets now.

Ride Orient Express

The Orient Express is a range of trains that travel all over the world and are considered to be the ultimate in rail travel luxury, worldwide. They’ve been running since 1883 and are known for their decadent features and lavish stylings and service. The original Orient Express stopped running in 2009, but you can still travel in original carriages from the 1920s and 30s, in a service which runs from London to Venice and to other destinations in Europe, including the original route from Paris to Istanbul.

Ticket prices generally range from £525-£7,300 depending on how many days and nights you’re staying, the part of the world you’re travelling in and which train you’re on. The great thing about train travel is that if you look out the window, you actually get to see the country that you’re traveling though, because, lets face it, there’s not a lot of beauty to be seen from your can windscreen on a motorway.

Photo credit: Simon Pielow

Eat at a Michelin Star Restaurant

For a table of 6 of us, we spent $2000 on some of the most amazing food and drink I’ve ever eaten, in a 3 Michelin Star restaurant. Personally, we went for a full 7 course meal with all the trimmings; if you’re probably only going to do it once in your life, you might as well do it right. Book plenty in advance for top restaurants, but depending on the time of year and city, you can get away with just a couple days notice. And don’t fill up on bread (even though it’s amazing).

If you’re only going to do this once, find somewhere that you really want to go, and there’s plenty of choice all over the world. Japan has a huge amount of restaurants with Michelin stars, but if you’re not in the area, London, Paris, New York, Hong Kong, California and Vegas all have multiple restaurants too. If you’re a food lover, and not a fussy eater, then you have no excuse but to try this at least once in your life.

Photo credit: Joshua Dunlop

Complete an activity on the Bucket List 500

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The Facts: Go See The Superbowl

How much:

An average price range for Super Bowl tickets is between $2,100 and $8,000 for a seat or an incredible $200 to stand outside the stadium and watch it on a TV screen. This just goes to show what a momentous occasion the Super Bowl is for Americans.

Who should do this:

This one is set aside for hardcore football fans only, as you’d have to be a really big fan to pay the prices they’re asking.

Description:

In America, this is without a doubt, the biggest sporting events of the year and watched by roughly 100 million people, and you can be one of the few people there in person.

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