A Global Network of Kingdom-Focused Hostels
For a while now, a number of us have been incubating a dream. Scott Kwak was the first one to step out in faith and commit to it.
We believe that God wants to see His people bringing His Kingdom to dark and neglected places around the world. We believe that to do so, He wants to use a network of Kingdom-focused hostels & guesthouses run by alumni Racers and their parents.
Scott built the first one in Siem Reap. Where else are you going to pay $14 for a room just a 25 minute tuk-tuk ride from Angkor Wat? Where else can you get a bed in a top 10%-rated guesthouse? Where else can you connect with people from your tribe who can help you find ways to plug into ministry wherever you are?
Since starting in 2016, Scott and his new wife Christina have not only housed multiple World Race teams in the guesthouse, but have been breaking even and have had strong occupancy rates. A year ago our team went to Thailand and Cambodia to see how we could begin to build a global network of such hostels.
Hostels in our network will be known for their warm ambience, focus on sustainability and Kingdom-advancing relevance. They’ll be places where Racer alumni can pour into new generations of Racers seeing the world with new eyes.
New Strategies
The Bible tells us that, “He is not willing that any should perish.” (2 Peter 3:9) Jesus commissioned us to go and make disciples of all nations. The dream we share is that a generation of young people would rise up and do just that.
When just 1% of the population in places like Thailand follow Jesus, why would we do anything else? When so many young girls are caught in the sex trade, why wouldn’t we sell out to setting them free?
You may be saying, “Yes, but how?” How do you bring hope when language and culture are so different? It’s a fair question.
Old methods no longer work. We need to innovate. We need new strategies. That’s where the hostels can make a difference. Imagine a place where you can go and the concierge is more focused on helping you meet the needs of others than he is in meeting your needs. Imagine a place where it feels like home away from home wherever you are.
We all need some practical stepping stones to help us connect to our dreams. That’s why our group went to Southeast Asia. We want to make it easier for you to build the Kingdom around the world. We’re taking the Cambodia model and expanding it.
What’s Next?
Scott and Christina have turned over the reins in Cambodia and moved on to Thailand to repeat the process. We have a team of long-term missionaries there working with them. And we’re expanding into other countries.
In the next round, we’re looking at expanding to countries like Nepal, Ecuador, and Costa Rica. We’re going to ask future squads to send teams to run them and we’re going to ask parents to go or invest.
Innovation is what allows us to stay relevant as the world changes. Our mission stays the same, but our methods will constantly need to adapt as the world looks different today than it did yesterday.
What do you think? We’re looking for people who can see the vision and want to partner with us in building it. If you’d like to learn more, let us know.
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This is incredibly exciting. After the world race my wife and I have had the opportunity to run a Christian surf guest house in the Canary Islands and have since had this dream and drive to host travelers specifically in Costa Rica (skipped over a million other details). We have talked and prayed about who we would partner with and held onto this wild dream as others express their doubts and concerns. We would love to talk with you more about this, please let us know how best to contact you.
I was just in Chiang Mai two days ago catching up with Scott and checking out the business models. I am so impressed by his team! I think whatever happens there is going to big leap from Siem Reap!
Wow ! I am sitting inthe middle of a 38,000 hectare wildlife Big 5 reserve where my wife and i have worked the last year to refurbish this lodge for owners whp only care about $. We have been in the Youth Travel and Tourism in Africa for 30 years. Have owneed a 139 bed Backpacker Lodge and have brought over 45,000 young travellers into Africa over 17 years. I served on the Executive for South African Youth Travel Confederation (SAYTC) for a few years and chaired for a year. I am so blesssed to have seen this Blog I am semi retired born again Chritian and would love to assist in any way i can. You can check my two websites my comercial site http://www.williamstours.weebly.com and outreach site http://www.billythekid.co.za
Billy – how awesome! I love what God has done with your life. And you look a lot like us. We need to talk. I will connect you with my son who is heading up this project. Thanks for reaching out!
Thanks Seth, we live in exciting times !!! awesome idea
How cool. Excited to see where the Lord takes this.
Absolutely incredible! Love this concept – especially the concierge model to provide insight and guidance for local missions. We have a commission to spread this light and what a tremendous model for lighting up dark areas. Thank you to those who are stepping up and stepping out. Looking forward to a Thailand PVT in March and better understanding the capacity of the hostels! Prayers for these new ventures – for success, sustainability and lives filled with His light!
love this – so good. you should check out sir tobys hostel in prague. the owner owns a series of hostels that are sort of along the same kind of thing. prob more a financial vehicle for kingdom ventures though.
Tony – it’s been a while. I always loved the way that you pressed into innovation in the youth ministry space. Good to see you have lost your zest for that over the years.
We’ll check out https://www.sirtobys.com/
So good! Appreciate you Seth!