This is a guest post by Jon Neal, Executive Pastor of Hope Community Church in Minneapolis, MN. He has nothing to sell or promote, he just spent a lot of time researching this and thought he would share his efforts to be a blessing to you. 

There is something very powerful in getting outside your normal context. Maybe you have an upcoming sabbatical. Or maybe you are looking for a place to take a quiet/planning retreat. Or maybe you’re just looking for a place to take the family for a few days. There’s just one problem – lots of those options cost a lot of money!

While you could still scour Airbnb or VRBOs, there are many “off-market” properties available to pastors, some completely free of charge! The difficulty is that they often take a bit more effort than a simple Google search, so many rarely do it. However, these simple strategies don’t take you much time, and could save you hundreds if not thousands of dollars over the years.

Ask Other Pastors

Profound, huh? However, almost every single pastor has asked the same question, “Where can I find free lodging for retreats or getaways?” Why do all the research yourself when someone may have already done so? Asking fellow pastors or ministry leaders in your area could be a huge resource for free getaway options.

Ask Denomination or Affiliation Leaders

Again, you’re not the only person to ask this question. Those who oversee churches or church leaders are often some of the first to hear or learn about getaway options. See this curated list by Ed Stetzer some years ago. Many locations that have space available reach out to them, assuming that they would be the best positioned to share with other pastors.

Ask People in Your Congregation

Many people have, or know someone who has, a second home or vacation home. It never hurts to ask people in your church who may have connections to options you would never find otherwise. You’ll be shocked by the joy people get from their generosity. 

Reach out to Camps or Retreat Centers

Give a call or email to local camps or retreat centers in your area. This is literally their industry! They are in the business of lodging and getaways! Many Christian camps even have separate facilities specifically for pastors going on a retreat or on sabbatical.

Google Can Still Work

Imagine you have a heart for hospitality and you invest a lot of time and money into a property for the purpose of providing a place of retreat. If you want to get the word out, what will you likely do? Make a website. SEO will still pick up on keywords, so it never hurts to try “Free lodging for pastors” or other variants in your search bar.

Other Creative Options

Beyond that, there are a handful of creative ideas that you could employ. Some have done house swapping with others in different areas. Some have leveraged camping and national parks as a money-saving alternative for lodging. If you’re looking for a vacation, there are websites where people sell their nonrefundable or unwanted vacation/travel packages for fractions of the original price. The sky is the limit!

If you’ve made it this far, you are likely underwhelmed by the profoundness here. But here’s the thing – people RARELY do this. There are many people who invested a lot of time and money into places to offer them to pastors and their families free of charge, yet sometimes they rarely get used because no one takes the time to ask and find them. Don’t be one of those people!