Baja Youth Mission Trip 2027

We’re going to Ensenada!

ONCE YOU’VE REGISTERED AND BEEN APPROVED: Join our Baja Youth Mission Trip GroupMe: click/tap here.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Where are we going?
A: To Ensenada, a Pacific coastal city in Baja California, Mexico. We’ll get there by flying to San Diego on June 5, and meeting our guides from Praying Pelican Missions there. They’ll take us across the border in their vehicles, and we’ll travel through Tijuana and down the coast to Ensenada. There, we’ll meet with our local host pastors, with whom we’ll be working for our week of ministry. We’ll be back in San Diego the evening of June 11, and fly home June 12.

Q: Who is going?

A: Youth group students who will have completed grades 6-12 in May. Parents are also invited to come along! Sorry – this trip is not designed to accommodate younger kids. (Exception: students completing 5th grade in May are invited, as long as they have an accompanying parent.)

Q: How much will it cost?

A: As of now, it looks like the cost will be $1495 per person (sorry – no family discounts!). This includes airfare, ground transportation, accommodations (we’ll be sleeping on air mattresses on floors, but we will have showers available), clean food and water, ministry project funds, and insurance. You’ll need to bring your own money for things like souvenirs, etc. Also, if you don’t have a passport, you’ll need to pay to get one.

We realize $1495 is a scary amount for most teenagers to think about raising. You should raise as much of your trip cost as possible by the classic underrated method of working to earn the money! But we get that you’re not all working high-paying jobs. We’ll do a few fundraisers together as a team. If God wants you to go on this trip (I hope you’ve prayed about that), the money will come in, but you’ve got to be willing to work hard to get there.

Q: What will we be doing?

A: There are many possible ministry tasks, chosen mostly based on the needs of the host church and the skill set of our team. Basically, we’ll be serving two local pastors and churches together, in the city of Ensenada. Possibilities include kids’ ministry, music, construction, food distribution, medical help, and youth group partnering.

Q: Is Mexico safe???!?

A: Generally speaking, Ensenada is very safe for visitors. Violence against foreigners is rare. Ensenada is a large city, but not nearly as large as Tijuana. Our Ensenada partner pastors describe their city as “chill.” Local residents take general precautions like locking things up to prevent theft– but there is not a heightened sense of security precautions taken or even a significant police presence. Most of the “drug wars” violence is currently in the hot spots of Sonora, Sinaloa, and Chihuahua. Here in Missouri, we live closer to the gang violence of East St. Louis than our Ensenada host pastors do to the “drug war” areas of Mexico.

Any travel involves a degree of risk. You take a risk any time you go to Branson. But we’ve been doing this trip for years, and feel confident that we’re using good wisdom regarding the safety of our students. There are no guarantees - you can be unsafe sitting on your couch at home if a big enough tree falls on your house - but we’ve done our diligence here. We draw on years of experience traveling internationally with teenagers and take careful safety precautions.

Q: Can I drink the water?? Can I use the bathroom there???

A: You’ll have plenty of clean water to drink; just don’t drink out of the faucet. Yes, you can use the bathroom. We’ll have showers at the place we’re staying (which you should use daily please), and laundry is possible (at a laundromat) if the need arises.

Q: What will we eat?

A: The best food. Seriously. People from the churches we’re serving cook us incredible homemade meals through the trip. Fresh Mexican food made by church ladies is some of the best food you’ll have in your entire life. For real. And if you need some American snack food (Doritos, Oreos, candy, etc) that’s available too, at lots of little snack stands and shops.

Q: Can I take my PHONE???!?? WILL I LOSE MY STREAKS????

A: You seem a little anxious. Take a deep breath. You good? Okay. Yes, you can take your phone, though your data and text plan may not work in Mexico (some networks work seamlessly, some charge you extra, and some don’t work at all). Several of the trip leaders will have phones that do work for the entire trip, so emergency contact is not a problem. Wifi is available occasionally in spots, but not reliable. We recommend mostly leaving your phone in airplane mode (your battery will last forever!) and using it as your camera and portable Bible. You can also download an offline version of Google Translate’s Spanish translation to use if one of the interpreter staff isn’t available.

You might lose your streaks. That’s possible. Has God called you to go on this trip? If so, decide how important streaks are to you.

In fact, we challenge you to do this trip mostly phone-connection-free, even if your connection does work well in Mexico. If we’re on our phones the whole time, we’re tragically missing the point. Fasting from social media entirely while on the trip is an excellent idea!

Q: Do I need a passport?

A: Yes. You’ll need to start this process ASAP. You can get the cheaper passport card (instead of the full passport booklet) since we’re entering Mexico by land and not by air. BUT I highly recommend going ahead and getting the full booklet, because you never know when you or your child will have an opportunity to go on another international mission trip or do international study in the next few years. (Ask Darrin Griffin!) The best way to get a passport around here is to go to the Nevada Post Office, and get the paperwork. They can do the photos and everything right there all at one time. Your total cost for this should be $65-165, depending on options.

Q: How do I sign up?

A: Hit the link above!