Have you ever heard of the Mariana Trench?
It’s the deepest oceanic trench on Earth, 36,000 feet below sea level, and to put that in perspective you could stick Mount Everest on the ocean floor an dit would rise all the way to a half mile above the surface.
That’s a long, long way down.
Believe it or not, there’s not only people that want to navigate this trench and take a deep dive to check it out, there are two people whose business it is to take them there.
Oh, I forgot to mention one thing. It will cost you $750,000…
There’s a lot of cool things you could buy for $750K, but if you are an Uber-adventurer always looking for the next big thrill, you might want to consider the deepest oceanic trench in the world as a “vacation” destination.
The people that will take your there are New York-based Roman Chiporukha and his wife Erica Jackowitz. Their team of extreme adventure guides numbers jus six people in their full-service lifestyle management company, but they stay plenty busy as they juggle trips they are working on for up to 40 clients at any given time.
They aren’t the kind of couple that you would call or email and book a trip immediately. No, Roman and Erica are going to check you out. They will vet potential new clients for as long as three months before deciding to accept a rather large check from them.
If you are accepted to do business with the couple, you pay a large retainer in advance of the trip and all the hard costs that go along with the itinerary.
They are so good at what they do that their high net worth clients call them for help when they need a miracle. For instance, the couple told InsideHook a story of one mega rich client that had a problem they couldn’t solve alone.
“I had a client call me two years ago and say, ‘Roman, I lost a bet and I need the front of a gondola. Like, a gondola from Venice. He calls me up and says, ‘I need one of these things to give as a gift. And it can’t be new. It needs to have at least 50 years of history and I want the story of the guy who has it.’”
Guess what happened next? Within four months Roman was shipping a ferro di prua to that client from Venice.
No trip is off limits, no adventure too grand for this dynamic duo. Their clients have very high expectations, and Roman and Erica are used to pleasing them.
If someone wants a seat on the first unlimited depth submarine, Roman & Erica can make it happen.
How about space travel you’re wondering? If you’ve got the funds, they’ve got the connections Roman said.
“I’m really excited to be a part of this new space industry, which encompasses travel to space and space-adjacent things like the Mariana Trench. And I can only see [it] getting bigger and more interesting and, more importantly, affordable for the rest of us. So it’s important to support the folks that are going up and paving the way, because they are the pioneers. Yes, today they will go for $50 or $55 million. [But] hopefully in 10 or 20 years our children can do it for $50,000 or for $5,000.”
There’s never a dull moment in the life and relationship of Roman & Erica. How can there be, they work around the clock all year catering to their luxury clients’ leisure needs.
Membership starts at $62,500 but the fee can go as high as $150,000 depending on how elaborate the request is.
If you’re feeling like you want to be one of the people that take that four hour trip to check out the Mariana Trench in person, you now know who to call. If you make it to the bottom, you’ll join a very elite list of just seven people who have ever made it that far.
That list includes the great film director James Cameron.
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