Global Rocket Launch Pads

Hotels and Vacation Rentals Near Space Centers

International Rocket Launch Schedule

Global rocket launch pads. This is the best source of scheduled rocket launches by month and launch location and includes all launches scheduled throughout the world for 2023 into 2024.

The schedule is constantly updated and includes notes about the launch and explanations of any delays from original dates. Schedules by specific launch sites such as Kennedy Space Center are available at those sites.

United States Launch Sites

NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, TX

While not a launch site, the Johnson Space Center controls all space flights for the NASA launches. That includes all space capsules that travel to the International Space Center aboard SpaceX and Boeing rockets and United Launch Alliance launches.

Kennedy Space Center in Florida

The Kennedy Space Center encompasses launches from the Kennedy Space Center (KSC) and from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) which is adjacent. The private launches such as SpaceX and Blue Origin launch from KSC while NASA based launches such as United Launch Alliance (ULA) are launched from CCSFS. All of the launch sites are along the barrier island east of the main campus.

SpaceX performs launches on behalf of private companies, foreign nations, and NASA on a contract basis. SpaceX is approved for manned spacecraft and has launched one mission and getting ready to launch a second in April 2021.

Starbase SpaceX Facility in Boca Chica, Texas

This facility is located in a remote area of Texas near the Mexican border and on the coast of the Golf of Mexico. Starbase, as the facility is called by Elon Musk, is owned by SpaceX and does not permit visitors. Starbase is the launch site for Starship, the space vehicle being designed to eventually reach mars. Starship is in its early testing stages and has been launched four times so far, each successive launch being more successful.

Starbase launches however can be viewed from along the Boca Chica public beach. Hotels near Boca Chica, TX

Public Beach at Boca Chica, Texas

Boca Chica beach is always open and is an ideal place to watch launches from nearby Starbase . Its a 23 mile drive heading east on Texas Highway 4 from Brownsville and the road ends at the beach. There are no services at the beach, so you should bring your own food and water. Camping is not permitted.

Corn Ranch Blue Origin Launch Site near Van Horn, TX.

Located near Van Horn, TX in the southwest corner of the Lone Star State, about 120 miles southeast from El Paso, TX. This huge ranch, owned by Jeff Bezos, is the site for launching the Shepard Project space passenger program. This is a private area and no tours are available.

Spaceport America Virgin Galactic Launch Site near Truth or Consequences, NM

Spaceport America is the hub of the Virgin Galactic passenger space venture designed to let members of the public fly into space. This private enterprise operation allows the public to purchase tickets for a suborbital flight into space aboard an airplane like space vehicle.

Vandenberg SFB in California

Vandenberg Space Force Base is an active-duty military installation, as well as a spaceport and test range. It provides launch, landing, and range capabilities to the nation. The 30th Space Wing Public Affairs hosts a monthly windshield tour of portions of Vandenberg Space Force Base, highlighting its missions and military life. Monthly tours are on the third Tuesday of each month at 1:00 p.m.

Mid-Atlantic Regional Spaceport, Wallops Island, Virginia

After the Federal Aviation Administration last month granted Rocket Lab, a commercial launch company, a license to fly its small Electron rocket from the facility, Wallops could soon see a significant increase in launches as the company joins Northrop Grumman in launching from this remote site. While Rocket Lab is largely focused on national security missions, Northrop Grumman launches its Antares rocket to send a spacecraft to the International Space Station on cargo resupply missions at a rate of about two a year. Northrop also launches its Minotaur rocket from Wallops.

Pacific Spaceport Complex, Kodiak Island, Alaska

Pacific Spaceport is a dual-use commercial and military spaceport for sub-orbital and orbital launch vehicles. The facility is owned and operated by the Alaska Aerospace Corporation, a public corporation of the State of Alaska, and is located on Kodiak Island in Alaska. The spaceport opened in 1998 and as of January 1, 2022 has supported 29 launches, most of those for the U.S. government.

Launch Delays

On occasion there are launch delays caused by local weather or weather down range. Delays may also be generated by technical issues, but those are more infrequent than in the past. If you book your hotel for several days you may still be able to see a delayed launch and enjoy the local attractions while you wait.

Space Launch Sites and Hotels Outside of the United States

European Space Agency

Guiana Space Center ZLV, Kourou, French Guiana

The Guiana Space Center is a facility used by the European Space Agency (ESA) and the French government to launch satellites into space. The ESA contributes two-thirds of the spaceport's annual budget and the spaceport has also been used for launches for the United States, Japan, Canada, India and Brazil, among other countries.

Check the Worldwide Rocket Launch Schedule for launch dates. Hotels near Kourou, French Guiana.

Russian Space Agency

Vostochny Cosmodrome, Russia

Operated by Russian Space Agency, this is a Russian spaceport (still partly under construction) above the 51st parallel north in the Amur Oblast, in the Russian Far East. It is intended to reduce Russia 's dependency on the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

Since its inception, there have been six launches from this spaceport. It is intended that the majority of launches will be moved from Baikonur to this location.

The nearby train station is Ledyanaya and the nearest city is Tsiolkovsky. Hotels near Tsiolkovsky in Dzershinsk.

Baikonur Cosmodrome, Kazakhstan (Russian)

Operated by Russian Space Agency, this is the launch site for the majority of Soyuz rockets that carry all manned cosmonauts capsules and many supply to the International Space Station (ISS.) Russia will lease this site from Kazakhstan until 2050, but the Russians want to move most of the launch activity to Russia over the next few years.

China National Space Administration

China’s space program, led by the China National Space Administration (CNSA), has achieved significant milestones in lunar exploration. One of the most notable achievements is the successful landing of the Chang’e-4 mission on the far side of the moon on January 3, 2019. This mission marked the first time any spacecraft had landed on the moon’s far side, a region that presents unique challenges due to its rugged terrain and lack of direct communication with Earth.

Building on this success, China continued its lunar exploration with the Chang’e-5 mission, which successfully returned lunar samples to Earth in December 20202. This mission was the first to bring back lunar samples since the 1970s, providing valuable scientific data about the moon’s composition and history.

In 2024, China landed in the South Pole-Aitken Basin, the largest impact basin on the moon. This mission aimed to collect samples from the far side of the moon, a feat that had never been accomplished before.  China’s lunar exploration program is part of a broader strategy to establish a sustainable human presence on the moon.

The CNSA has announced plans to build a lunar research station near the moon’s south pole by the 2030s.

China's Space Launch Ports

China currently has five launch sites - four inland and one on the southern island of Hainan known as Wenchang.

The Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center (TSLC) also known as Base 25

The Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center is a China space and defense launch facility (spaceport). It is situated in Kelan County, Xinzhou, Shanxi Province and is the second of four launch sites having been founded in March 1966 and coming into full operation in 1968.

China Wenchang Launch Center

The Wenchang Space Launch Site is located in Wenchang on the island of Hainan, China. It serves as China's fourth and southernmost spaceport, a launch facility capable of launching spacecraft.

This site is notable for being China’s first commercial space launch facility, designed to support the growing demand for commercial satellite launches and other space missions. Construction of the Wenchang Commercial Space Launch Site began in July 2022, and the first launch complex was completed by the end of 2023. The site features two launch pads, with the second pad expected to be operational by the third quarter of 2024. This facility is equipped to handle a variety of rockets, including the Long March 8, Long March 8A, and future rockets like the Long March 12 and Tianlong-31.

The Wenchang site is strategically located near the equator, which provides an advantage for launching payloads into geostationary and other orbits. This location allows rockets to take full advantage of the Earth’s rotational speed, making launches more efficient and cost-effective. The development of the Wenchang Commercial Space Launch Site is expected to play a crucial role in China’s future space missions, including satellite launches, deep space exploration, and potentially crewed missions.

Hotels Near Wenchang, China

China Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center

Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center is located in the Gobi Desert. This site China is being used to launch personnel to the new Tiangong Space Station it launched in 2021 as well as various satellites used for communication purposes. Hotels Near Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center

China Xichang Satellite Launch Center ( XSLC )

China Xichang Satellite Launch Center ( XSLC ), also known as the Xichang Space Center, is a spaceport in China. It is located in Zeyuan Town , approximately 64 kilometers (40 mi) northwest of Xichang, Liangshan Yi Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan .

China Launch Site 5

China has started construction on a fifth rocket launch center in the county of Xiangshan, or Elephant Hill. This site will be used to launch heavy rockets to the moon and Mars. From this site China placed a space station in Orbit in 2021 that will be enhanced with additional modules over the next two years.

India's Space Program

Satish Dhawan Space Center, Sriharikota, India

The SDSC has two operational orbital launch pads. SHAR is ISRO's satellite launching base and additionally provides launch facilities for the full range of Rohini sounding rockets. The Vehicle Assembly, Static Test and Evaluation Complex and the Solid Propellant Space Booster Plant (SPROB) are located at SHAR for casting and testing solid state motors. There may be one or two launches a year from this site.

India’s space program, led by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), has made remarkable strides since its inception in 1969. Established to harness space technology for national development, ISRO has grown into a major player in global space exploration.

One of ISRO’s early milestones was the launch of Aryabhata, India’s first satellite, in 1975. This achievement marked India’s entry into the space age1. Over the years, ISRO has developed a series of successful launch vehicles, including the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) and the Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV), which have been instrumental in deploying satellites for various purposes, from communication to earth observation. ISRO’s Chandrayaan missions have been particularly noteworthy.

Chandrayaan-1, launched in 2008, was India’s first lunar probe and made significant discoveries, including evidence of water molecules on the moon. Building on this success, Chandrayaan-2 aimed to explore the moon’s south pole, although its lander faced challenges during descent. The upcoming Chandrayaan-3 mission aims to achieve a successful soft landing on the lunar surface.

In addition to lunar exploration, ISRO has also ventured into interplanetary missions. The Mars Orbiter Mission (Mangalyaan), launched in 2013, made India the first Asian nation to reach Mars orbit and the fourth space agency globally to do so. This mission demonstrated ISRO’s capability in cost-effective space exploration. Looking ahead, ISRO has ambitious plans, including the Gaganyaan mission, which aims to send Indian astronauts into space, and the Aditya-L1 mission to study the sun.

Hotels near Satish Dhawan Space Center.

Japan's Space Program

Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, Japan

Japan’s space program, spearheaded by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), has a rich history and a promising future. Established in 2003 through the merger of three separate organizations, JAXA is responsible for all civilian space activities in Japan. The origins of Japan’s space endeavors date back to the mid-1950s with the launch of the Pencil Rocket, a small experimental rocket developed by Hideo Itokawa and his team at the University of Tokyo.

Over the decades, Japan’s capabilities have grown significantly, leading to the development of advanced rockets like the H-IIA and H-IIB, which are used for satellite launches and other missions. One of JAXA’s notable achievements is its contribution to the International Space Station (ISS). The Japanese Experiment Module, known as “Kibo,” is the largest module on the ISS and serves as a laboratory for various scientific experiments. Additionally, JAXA’s HTV (H-II Transfer Vehicle), nicknamed “Kounotori,” has been crucial for delivering supplies to the ISS.

Japan has also made significant strides in planetary exploration. The Hayabusa missions, which aimed to collect samples from asteroids, have been particularly successful. Hayabusa2, launched in 2014, returned samples from the asteroid Ryugu in 2020, providing valuable insights into the early solar system.

Looking ahead, JAXA is involved in ambitious projects such as the Lunar Polar Exploration Mission (LUPEX) in collaboration with India, and the Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission, which aims to explore the moons of Mars. These initiatives have contributed greatly to global scientific knowledge.

Hotels near Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency