EZ Mission Travel
How To Prepare
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| Disclaimer: EZ Mission Travel makes no warranties, explicit or implied. You must investigate any agency, organization, service or product that interests you, to assure yourself that what they offer is what you are seeking. We can not assure you that the organizations which we list, or to which we refer you, are as they advertise themselves to be, or that they will meet your expectations. If you find information that is incorrect or misleading, please notify us at info@ezmissiontravel.com so that we can remove the link. Copyright 2008 EZ Mission Travel -ezmissiontravel.com. All rights reserved. |
Needless to say, the leg work you do prior to your mission/humanitarian trip is the single most
important thing you can do to have a meaningful and successful experience. And it is true, there
are a lot of steps and things that will need to be done before you leave on your mission
adventure. Whether you are a participant or leader it will be important to prepare well in advance
to ensure all your bases are covered. Here are some things to consider to start the ball rolling as
you plan missionary trips or short term missions:
What, How, Who, Where, When...
important thing you can do to have a meaningful and successful experience. And it is true, there
are a lot of steps and things that will need to be done before you leave on your mission
adventure. Whether you are a participant or leader it will be important to prepare well in advance
to ensure all your bases are covered. Here are some things to consider to start the ball rolling as
you plan missionary trips or short term missions:
What, How, Who, Where, When...
- What is the purpose of your trip? What do you want to accomplish? Typically, most
mission/humanitarian trips supply some sort of basic need or asset to a group of people in
an impoverished area of the world. Also and just as important, is to attend to the spiritual
needs of the people; both those being served and those that are the servants(participants
of the trip). So the first step is to clearly define your mission trip purpose and what you
want to accomplish.
- How will you accomplish the purpose of your mission trip? Once you know the
purpose and what you want to accomplish on the mission trip, you will need to determine
what resources you will need at your destination to plan the mission trip effectively. Will
the supplies needed on the trip need to be purchased on location or will they need to be
brought with the team or shipped ahead of time?
- Who will be the other participants of the trip? It is very important to know your team
members! How they will work with each other? What gifts and talents do the trip
participants bring to the table? What is their experience level with doing
mission/humanitarian work? What sort of special training will they need prior to the trip;
how will you accomplish this? For a mission trip to be successful, it is very important that
all of the team members get along well with each other and have a high level of
cohesiveness.
- Where will you be going on your mission trip? What country will you be visiting? If you
are going to be leading a mission trip to another country it is going to be important that you
have people that you know in the place that you are visiting to be your “guide”. It is always
helpful to have local people that you trust to help with all the logistical matters, such as
transportation, accommodations and food. There are available several destination guides
and country information (click here).
- When will you be going? This is something to consider when traveling to different parts
of the world. For most of the tropical regions of the world (which tends to be the most likely
places for mission trips) there are rainy and dry seasons. Knowing which time of the year
you will be going on your mission trip can effect what sort of work you will do and what
supplies and clothing you will need. Having the right travel gear and clothing to wear can
make all the difference in the world to help the mission trip participants feel and be
comfortable on the trip
- How will you be going? Most mission/humanitarian trip teams usually travel as a group.
How the group travels will depend if the group is leaving from the same location or from
different parts of the country. This can significantly affect the logistics and flight
arrangements. Sometimes it is helpful to met at a “hub” and travel as a group. So, if you
have people traveling from different parts of the country, it might be helpful to meet at the
airline hub airport and fly together to your destination. It might even be helpful to spend
an extra night at the hub city and fly the next morning to the destination. This is also
helpful as a way for the mission trip team members to get to know each other before
arriving at the mission trip destination. If you do have members of the team traveling from
different parts of the country, it might be to their advantage to book travel individually.
- When to plan? The mission trip planning process needs to begin at the very least 9
months prior to trip. One of the first steps is to make sure that all the people participating
in the mission trip have their passport. This is also a good time to have your airline
reservation made. Within 6 months to leaving, you will need firm commitments from the
participants of the mission trip and have their air travel reservations made.
- Immunizations – When traveling to third world countries, it is very important to have the
proper immunizations and shots. Check the CDC website to see what immunizations are
needed in the specific area of the world you are traveling. Many of the areas in which
mission work is done are areas of the world in which malaria is present. Depending on the
area you are traveling to you might need to take an anti-malaria medication such as
Cholorquine. Check with your doctor and the CDC website to see what is recommended.
- Medications – take your medications in your carry-on luggage. It is a good idea to pack
Pepto-Bismol and/or Imodium for any upset stomach or diarrhea that might occur which is
not that uncommon. It is also a good idea to talk with your doctor about getting a
prescription for an antibiotic like Cipro just in case you get a more significant bought with
intestinal distress. You will also need to make sure you have travel medical insurance as a
back up to your regular medical coverage.
- Food and water – when traveling to undeveloped parts of the world, you should always
assume that tap water is unsafe to drink. Food should always be cooked and come from a
trusted source. Milk and dairy products should be avoided unless the milk or dairy product
is canned by trusted source. Be sure to keep yourself well hydrated with bottled water
from a trusted source.
- What to pack? As a general rule, it is better to travel as light as possible. Depending on
the length of the mission trip and the location you are traveling. Try to plan what and how
you will pack very carefully. Most airlines limit to 2 checked piece of luggage with a
maximum weight of 50lbs. (Check with the individual airline or travel agent for the current
allowable limits). There are a lot of good options for luggage and travel gear; backpacks
are particularly handy for carry-ons and taking along during the day on site for your
mission work. For a sample packing list (click here). Fanny packs are also very handy to
have for keeping money, passport and valuables with you at all times. I have found too,
that by putting your money and passport in a zip-lock bag is a very good idea for keeping
them dry and protected inside you fanny pack.
