How to go on a mission trip, if you are the one who wants to go: start with your own church, ask what trips it runs, find out what a trip costs and how people raise support, then prepare your heart as seriously as your passport. If you are organizing a trip for your church, the step-by-step planning guide is written for you.
Most short-term mission trips are sent by local churches, and your church is the best place to begin. The people there know you. They can pray for you, send you with their blessing, and receive gifts toward your trip in a way that gives your supporters a proper receipt. A trip is something a church sends, not a solo adventure you book.
Ask for the missions pastor or whoever leads the missions team. If you are not sure who that is, ask your pastor or the church office. If your church does not send its own teams, ask whether it partners with another church or a missions organization; many churches are glad to send a member along with a partner's team.
If you are not part of a church yet, that is the first step. Going with people who know you, and coming home to them, is a large part of what makes a trip worth taking.
A short conversation with the missions team will tell you most of what you need. Good questions to bring:
Some churches plan their trips in GO, the software behind this site. If yours does, each trip can have a public page with the dates, the place, the cost and who the trip is for. When applications are open, the page has an Apply button. When they are not, it has an I'm interested button: you leave your name and email, and the trip leaders are told you would like to hear more. It is not a commitment, and it does not put you on the team.
GO does not keep a public directory of every church's trips, so ask your church for the link to its trip page. Your church is still the place to start; GO just makes it easier to see what is coming up and to say you are interested.
For a trip of about a week, church teams usually pay $500 to $1,500 per person within the United States and $1,500 to $5,000 per person abroad. Airfare is the biggest part of the difference. The trip cost normally covers flights, lodging, meals, local transport, travel insurance and ministry supplies.
A few costs usually sit outside that number and fall to you: a passport if you do not have one, any visa, vaccinations or medication your destination needs, and a little spending money.
The mission trip budget guide breaks the cost down by destination and line item, if you want to see where the money goes.
Most people do not pay the whole cost themselves. They raise support: they tell the people in their life what they are doing and invite them to give and to pray. It can feel awkward at first. It is also one of the ways a trip shapes you before you leave, because you learn to ask honestly and to trust God through his people.
The mission trip fundraising guide has a timeline, thirty ideas, and an honest word on which ones are worth your time. If your church plans its trips in GO and takes gifts online, you may also get a personal page to share with your supporters.
The preparation that matters most is not in your suitcase.
When it is time to pack, the mission trip packing list covers documents, clothing and what to leave at home.
The trip does not end when the plane lands. Go to the team debrief. Thank the people who gave and prayed, and tell them what you saw. Coming home can be harder than people expect, so give yourself time, and talk with your team and your church about it.
Then ask what comes next: how you can keep praying for and supporting the partner you served, and how the everyday obedience you practiced on the trip can carry on at home.
Ask your pastor anyway. Many churches that do not send their own team partner with another church or a missions organization and are glad to send a member with them. If that is not possible, look for a trip run by a church or agency your church trusts, so someone who knows you can still pray for you, hold you accountable and receive gifts toward your cost.
For a trip of about a week, church teams usually pay $500 to $1,500 per person within the United States and $1,500 to $5,000 per person abroad, depending mostly on airfare. That normally covers flights, lodging, meals, local transport and insurance. Passport fees, vaccinations and spending money are usually extra.
Usually not all of it. Most people raise support: they tell friends, family and their church what they are doing and invite them to give and pray. Many churches also have scholarship money or cover part of each person's cost from the missions budget, so ask what help exists before you decide you cannot afford to go.
For an international trip, six to twelve months is normal. Applications often close months before departure, routine passport processing takes several weeks, and support raising goes much better with time. Trips within the United States can come together in three or four months.
Most church trips need willing, teachable people more than specialists: people who will serve under the local church's lead, work hard and be kind. Some trips, such as medical or construction teams, do look for particular skills, and the trip description or the leader will say so.
It depends on the trip. Many church trips set a minimum age for students, and anyone under 18 needs a parent or guardian to sign the forms. Ask the trip leader what the age rules are for the trip you are considering.
Keep going with these companion guides.
How to raise support: a timeline, thirty ideas, and which ones are worth the effort.
What a trip costs per person, by destination, and the costs people forget.
What to bring: documents, clothing, health items and ministry materials.
If you are the one leading a trip for your church, the planning guide walks through every step, from choosing a partner to the debrief.
Read the Planning Guide →