Christian Mission Trips for Adults

What are the best Christian mission trips for adults?

The best adult mission trips connect you with meaningful service opportunities alongside established local ministries, while preparing you to enter communities and serve in a healthy way.

Experience Mission (EM) offers week-long group mission trips for adult teams and longer IMMERSION programs for young adults, all serving alongside local partners in the U.S. and around the world.

As you weigh mission trips for adults, look for these marks of healthy service:

• Established local partners - a host ministry that knows its community leads the work
• Preparation before travel - cross-cultural training helps your team arrive as guests and learners
• Realistic scope - projects fit what a community can host in one week
• Time to reflect - daily worship and debrief help the experience shape life after the trip
• Clear costs and safety plans - you know what the price covers and how your team is supported

(Need more basic info? Check out What is a Mission Trip?)

What adult mission trips options does Experience Mission offer?

EM offers 6-10 day group mission trips for adult teams of six or more and 1-9 month cross-cultural IMMERSION programs for young adult individuals, all serving alongside local partners in communities across the United States, the Caribbean, Latin America, Africa, and Asia.

EM's short-term mission trips welcome adults of every age, from college students to young professionals to retirees. (Want to bring kids? Check out family mission trips.) Serve where you're needed most as you reflect and learn together. Click below to explore upcoming trips for these 2 programs:

1-2 WEEKS
Group Mission Trips
For teams of 6 or more adults, U.S. and internationally

1-9 MONTHS
IMMERSION & Gap Year
For young adults ages 18-30

Which 2027 mission trips can adult teams choose from?

Adult teams of 6 or more can choose from 19 group mission trip communities for 2027, with per-person costs from $475 to $1,595. Most trips last 6-10 days, depending on the community. Each community page lists its open weeks and exact dates.

Here are the communities that host adult teams:

Costs do not include travel to and from the trip, and international trips typically add entry or exit fees of $25 to $45 per person. Some communities require a larger minimum team, so check each community page for group size. Explore all 2027 group mission trips to compare focus areas, open weeks, and costs for your team.

Narrow your scope! View all Rural Mission Trips

What do adults do on a mission trip?

On EM's 1-week group mission trips, most days center on worksite projects and/or local ministry support, shaped by each host partner's ministry and outreach priorities. Each day closes with a time of worship, prayer and reflection together. IMMERSION young adult team members participate in the daily rhythm of local ministries and communities, building deeper relationships over time.

Depending on the mission trip and community, adults may serve in these areas:

• Manual labor and disaster recovery - repair, construction and rebuilding projects led by local partners
• Kids ministry, teaching and sports programs - Kids Club, educational programs and recreation alongside local leaders
• Care and support - elderly care, disability support, refugee assistance and food programs
• Skills-based service - administration, agriculture, and arts and music

Each mission trip community page lists its community's focus areas, so your team can match its gifts to work already underway.

Do adults need special skills to go on a mission trip?

No! Adult teams simply need a willingness to come with an open heart to listen, learn and serve where the host community asks. Local partners direct the work, and EM field staff guide your team on site.

EM offers all teams and programs healthy cross-cultural service training based on EM's Healthy Service Principles before traveling. EM strongly recommends it for every team as it prepares team members to arrive as guests, put people over projects, and honor the image of God in every person they meet.

Are there mission trips for older adults and seniors?

Yes. EM group mission trips welcome adults of every age, including retirees and empty nesters. Week-long group mission trips are the way older adults serve with EM. Your group of 6 or more could come from your church, a Sunday school class, or a circle of friends who want to serve together. Each community hosts different service work, so your group chooses the trip that fits what your members can do.

What does a typical day look like for older adults on a mission trip?

A typical day runs from about 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Team members serve alongside local partners through physical work projects, outreach, or ministry support. Physical demands vary by community.

How do older adults choose the right mission trip?

You decide which trip suits your group, based on how well your team members can join the work projects and outreach opportunities present in that community. Review EM's mission trip opportunities to learn the nature of the service work on each trip.

Unsure whether a community fits? Submit an interest form to connect with EM staff about a community's accessibility and accommodations before you commit.

Are there mission trips for young adults?

Yes. All week-long mission trips are open to young adult groups of any age. Young adults who want to serve longer than a week can apply on their own to IMMERSION or a Gap Year program. Both programs serve young adults ages 18-30, with some programs focusing on a narrower range. Check out each upcoming program for details.

Can our church send an adult team on a mission trip?

Yes! Any church, small group, or ministry can send an adult team of 6 or more on an EM group mission trip. Every team needs at least one leader aged 21 or older. The leader of your group chooses a community, reserves dates, and registers the team online. All adults complete a background check before travel under EM's background check policy. EM support staff are here to answer any questions you have as you plan for your trip.

Are there mission trips for adults in the U.S.?

Yes! EM hosts adult mission trip groups in communities across the United States, and trip costs currently range from $475 to $599 per person. Domestic trips can be simpler to plan, with no need for passports, cheaper transportation costs, and shorter travel days for your team.

Teams serve with EM on U.S. mission trips alongside local partners such as Sunshine Gospel Ministries in Chicago, The Salvation Army in New York City, Old Savannah City Mission in Georgia, Pikeville Presbyterian Church in Kentucky, Ark of Highland Lakes in Central Texas, and Border Perspective in the Rio Grande Valley, Texas.

Check out EM's U.S. Mission Trips

Where can adults go on an international mission trip?

EM's international group mission trips serve alongside local partners in Belize, Costa Rica, Cuba, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, South Africa, Namibia, and Indonesia. In Belize, teams serve with Family of God Church and Pastor Nelzon Guillen. In Rincon, Puerto Rico, teams partner alongside The Family Church and Pastor Jose Garcia. Per-person costs range from $795 to $1,595, plus travel to and from the trip, and all international trips outside U.S. territories require a passport.

What is EM's approach to a mission trip?

We believe that how a team serves matters just as much as (or more than) what it accomplishes. EM's 7 Healthy Service Principles set the posture we ask every team to come with: humility, curiosity, and respect. In this way, teams enter a community as visitors and guests, not consumers and tourists, ready to listen and learn from hosts, partner ministries and local community members.

Summed up: we put people over projects. Genuine love and care between us and our neighbors around the world always matters more than finishing a task, because every person we meet bears the image of God. EM teams are asked to trust that God is already present in each community, so they join what God is already doing instead of bringing God with them.

Explore all 7 principles through videos on EM's Approach to Missions

Adult Mission Trips FAQs