Group leader resources
Yes, and here is how it works
Where the complimentary place comes from, what it covers, and what it means for the pastor or ministry leader organizing the trip.
Yes. The pastor or leader who organizes an expedition travels at no cost. It does not come out of your pocket or your church budget, and it is not a discount you have to negotiate for. Complimentary places come from the airlines, hotels and coach operators we book on your group’s behalf, which is long-standing practice in group travel.
Here is where those places come from and what yours includes.
Group travel is booked differently from individual travel. When we contract a block of air seats, hotel rooms and coach space for a group, our suppliers allow a number of complimentary places alongside the paying ones. Airlines provide them on group air contracts, hotels on group room blocks, and the same applies to coach operators and many of the services we arrange on the ground.
That allowance is why your place costs nothing. You earn it by the size of the group you bring, but it comes from the suppliers rather than from anything added to what your travelers pay.
The number of complimentary places is set for each expedition. Your expedition consultant confirms it in your trip proposal, so you know exactly where you stand before you announce anything to your church.
Because the allowance follows the size of the booking, a larger group earns more places, which is how an associate pastor, a worship leader or a spouse often travels at no cost alongside you. If you need more places than your group earns, tell us early and we will look at what is possible.
Your place includes the same land package every traveler receives, on a double occupancy basis, along with group airfare on the same itinerary as your group.
A few practical details worth knowing:
You earn it. Organizing an expedition is real work, and leading one is more work still. You are inviting your church, answering questions for months, and then spending the trip itself teaching, leading worship and caring for your people rather than on vacation.
The complimentary place exists so that the person doing that work is not paying for the privilege as well. We would rather you spend your energy on your people than on whether you can afford to be there.
It costs nothing to lead an expedition with Christian Expedition. There is no deposit, no minimum you personally guarantee, and no financial risk to you if the group does not come together the way you hoped. If the group does not reach its minimum, final payments are never collected and deposits are returned.
That is worth stating clearly, because it is the worry that keeps most pastors from ever starting. If your numbers are not landing where you hoped, we will tell you early rather than late and look at the options with you.
Our pastors’ familiarization trips let you see a destination for yourself before you invite your church. If you then lead a group of 20 or more within 18 months, you travel free and we refund what you paid for the familiarization trip.
Often, yes. If your group earns two complimentary places, both of you can travel at no cost, and couples make effective co-leaders because they invite through two networks instead of one. If only one place is available, the second traveler pays the standard rate.
This comes up most often when a pastor wants to bring an associate pastor or a worship leader. Talk to your expedition consultant. It is usually workable.
No. Your place comes from the allowances our suppliers provide on group bookings, not from an increase in what your travelers pay.
It depends on the number of complimentary places set for your expedition, which your consultant confirms in your proposal. Most of our church groups travel with 20 to 50 people.
If you are weighing whether to lead an expedition, the finances are the part you can stop worrying about. Tell us what you have in mind and we will show you the numbers before you commit to anything. For the full picture, see Lead an Expedition.