American Christian Tours

What American Christian Tours does

American Christian Tours (ACTS), founded in 1984 and headquartered in Rice Lake, Wisconsin, is a privately held, independently owned educational travel company that designs and operates curriculum-connected, historically immersive U.S. travel programs integrated with a biblical Christian worldview. The company serves four primary customer segments — K-12 schools and students (primary), church groups, families, and adult groups — through a catalog of program itineraries covering destinations such as Washington D.C., the Eastern Seaboard, the Creation Museum and Ark Encounter, Chicago, Texas, the Deep South civil rights trail, and Arizona, alongside specialized worldview-immersion programs co-developed with Summit Ministries (e.g., 'Worldviews in the Wild' in NYC, 'Survey of World Religions' in Boston).

ACTS operates as a full-service, sales-led organization. Its go-to-market runs through dedicated Education Program Consultants who run a 'Request a Quote' funnel culminating in a 15–20 minute intro call and a customized program proposal. Pricing is quote-based and bundled (transportation, accommodations, meals, admissions, program leadership), with a multi-stage payment schedule (registration fee plus installments at 150, 120, 90, and 60 days pre-departure) and complimentary organizer spots scaling with group size. An E-Office web portal (bookings.acts-tours.com) handles self-service registration, payments, and participant communications, and the proprietary ACTS Explorer digital learning tool and Next Steps resource platform extend the customer experience pre- and post-trip. Trip protection insurance (CFAR) is offered as an optional add-on through an insurance carrier partnership.

The underlying business model is asset-light service revenue from per-participant program fees, supplemented by insurance commissions. Distinctive structural differentiators include a Cognia accreditation (obtained 2015 via NCA CASI), ACSI Platinum Partner status, an FDIC-insured client trust account independently administered by Anderson, Hager & Moe S.C., CPAs (described as unique in the student tour industry), and a complement of licensed Program Leaders who accompany groups 24/7. Memberships in NTA, SYTA, and FTA provide industry credibility and standards alignment. The company operates in the United States and Canada, has 11–50 employees, and shows no disclosed external funding, M&A, or institutional investor involvement.

Name

American Christian Tours

Legal name

American Christian Tours

Website

https://acts-tours.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1984

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

American Christian Tours (ACTS) is a privately held, faith-based educational travel company founded in 1984 that designs and operates curriculum-connected U.S. travel programs with biblical worldview integration for K-12 schools, churches, families, and adult groups.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Educational Travel Services

NAICS

Tour Operators (56152), Tour Operators (561520)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

School Group & Curriculum-Led Trips (THAKAGAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Student & Youth Educational Tours (THAKAGAA), Educational & Student Multi-Day Tour Operators (THAKADAJ), Faith-Based Group Travel (Church/Mosque/Temple) Organizers (THAKAHAH)

Keywords

• Educational travel services
• Student tour programs
• Faith-based group travel
• Curriculum-connected tours
• School field trip programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Rice Lake

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Educational Travel Programs: American Christian Tours generates revenue through program fees charged to schools, churches, families, and organizations for curriculum-connected educational travel experiences. Programs are priced as packages including transportation, accommodations, meals, admissions, and program leadership. Payment structure includes a registration fee upon booking followed by installment payments at 150, 120, 90, and 60 days prior to departure.
2. Trip Protection Insurance: Optional Cancel For Any Reason (CFAR) trip insurance available for purchase at time of registration, provided through an insurance carrier partnership.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

American Christian Tours designs and delivers curriculum-connected, historically immersive educational travel programs that integrate a biblical worldview, packaged as all-inclusive tours covering transportation, accommodations, meals, admissions, and 24/7 licensed program leader support. The company serves K-12 schools, churches, families, and adult groups with U.S.-based destinations such as Washington D.C., the Eastern Seaboard, Chicago, Texas, Arizona, the Creation Museum/Ark Encounter, and Civil War/Civil Rights heritage routes, plus specialized worldview-immersion programs co-developed with Summit Ministries.

Product overview

American Christian Tours (ACTS) operates as a full-service educational travel organization offering curriculum-connected, historically immersive programs with biblical worldview integration. The core product portfolio includes Student Education Programs (K-12), Family Tour Programs, Adult/Church Group Programs, and specialized Worldview Immersion Summit Tour Programs developed in partnership with Summit Ministries. Standard tour packages include licensed program leaders, transportation (motorcoach/air), hotels, meal packages, admissions, 24/7 emergency support, and professional liability insurance. ACTS also provides supplementary resources through its Next Steps platform offering devotionals, Bible reading plans, and recommended reading materials, as well as the ACTS Explorer digital learning tool for program participants.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Student Education Programs

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Six partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Summit MinistriescoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAmerican Christian Tours partnered with Summit Ministries to provide immersive worldview travel programs that complement Summit's Worldview Library curriculum. ACTS offers hands-on, immersive experiences for students who have gone through the Summit curriculum, including specialized programs like 'Worldviews in the Wild' (NYC) and 'Survey of World Religions' (Boston). Summit's Dr. Roger Erdvig serves as Director of the Center for Biblical Worldview Formation.
• Anderson, Hager & Moe S.C., CPAscoreOthersIndependent CPA firm administers the FDIC-insured client trust account where program funds are held. This provides transparent, accountable financial protection for families and schools - a unique differentiator in the industry. The firm pays major trip expenses directly to service providers, with American Christian Tours paid only five business days after program completion.
• Destiny RescueminorGTM or Marketing PartnerAmerican Christian Tours introduces Destiny Rescue, a faith-based organization dedicated to rescuing children from sexual exploitation and trafficking. ACTS promotes Destiny Rescue's 'Rescue Op 1/20' fundraising initiative to students, providing an opportunity for student travelers to make a difference in the lives of children trapped in human trafficking.
• National Tour Association (NTA)minorOthersMembership in the National Tour Association for industry best practices and networking. ACTS follows NTA's detailed emergency response plan developed in partnership with NTA and SYTA.
• Student Youth Travel Association (SYTA)minorOthersMembership in SYTA, the leading association for student and youth travel. ACTS participates in SYTA's emergency response planning standards.
• Faith Travel Association (FTA)minorOthersMembership in the Faith Travel Association serving the faith-based travel market segment.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• EF Educational Tours: EF Education First's student tour division is the dominant US student-educational travel operator, offering curriculum-linked multi-day tours for K–12 schools. Directly competes with ACTS for the same school-buyer persona and tour-program structure.
• Road Scholar: Road Scholar (formerly Elderhostel) is the largest US educational travel provider for adults, offering learning-focused itineraries. Comparable to ACTS' Adult/Church Group Programs in experiential learning positioning.
• ACIS (American Council for International Studies): ACIS organizes educational student tours mainly to international destinations, with curriculum-aligned itineraries. Competes with ACTS for K–12 group-leader bookings and curriculum-tour positioning.
• Explorica: Explorica (a WorldStrides brand) specializes in curriculum-connected student tours to North American and international destinations. Closely comparable product/market overlap with ACTS' school group programs.
• Bob Rogers Travel: Bob Rogers Travel is a long-standing faith-based group tour operator serving churches and religious organizations. Directly overlaps ACTS' Adult/Church Group Programs and faith-tour positioning.
• WorldStrides: WorldStrides (now including Explorica) is one of the largest US K–12 student travel companies, offering educational, performance, and sports tours. Competes head-to-head with ACTS for school contracts and group-leader relationships.
• Premier Travel Media: Organizes Christian-themed group tours, mission trips, and faith-based travel programs. Overlaps with ACTS' adult/church group travel and biblical-heritage tour products.
• Travel for Credit: Travel for Credit organizes student tours with curriculum and academic-credit alignment, serving K–12 groups. Directly comparable to ACTS' curriculum-connected school tour product.

Broad incumbents

• Holbrook Travel: Holbrook Travel is an educational travel company with a strong natural-history and science focus, serving schools and adult groups. Comparable in educational-tour model, though less faith-aligned than ACTS.
• Globus Family of Brands (Globus / Cosmos): Globus and Cosmos are large multi-brand tour operators with US domestic and international itineraries. Incumbent in the broader tour-operator category against which ACTS competes for adult and family group travel.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/AmericanChristianTours
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/american-christian-tours
• Instagraminstagram.com/americanchristiantours
• Pinterestpinterest.com/ACTSTours

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about American Christian Tours