Road Scholar

What Is Road Scholar?

Road Scholar, formerly Elderhostel, is America's first and the world's largest educational travel organization for adults 55 and over.

Adventures in Lifelong Learning

We are a not-for-profit organization that provides exceptional learning adventures to nearly 160,000 older adults each year. Road Scholar offers nearly 8,000 programs a year in more than 90 countries.

We believe learning is a lifelong pursuit that opens minds and enriches lives. We believe sharing new ideas, challenges and experiences is rewarding in every season of life. Our participants come from every walk of life to learn together, to exchange ideas and to explore the world.

Welcome to Road Scholar in Missouri!

SCC implemented the first Road Scholar program in 1992. Since then, Road Scholar has become one of the largest programs within the Continuing Education Department. Starting with only a few offerings in the first years, SCC provides one of the largest Road Scholar programs in Missouri, offering more than 20 programs annually. Resources for our trips. Know before you go!

Experience the World Through Road Scholar

Here is just a sampling of some of SCC’s most popular Road Scholar programs:

Signature City St. Louis

Journey to the heart of America for a comprehensive exploration of the “Gateway City.” Learn the fact and fiction of the city’s greatest landmarks, and glimpse history at Forest Park, site of the 1904 World’s Fair. Venture into ethnic neighborhoods to dine on Irish, Italian and German foods, and explore the Anheuser-Busch Brewery and meet its world-famous team of Clydesdale horses. Get the inside stories of great city icons, including the Gateway Arch, St. Louis Cathedral and Missouri’s Botanical Gardens.  Take field trips into ethnic neighborhoods to appreciate their rich heritage and dine on traditional cuisine. Cruise the Mississippi on a paddlewheel boat to absorb St. Louis's rich history.

Mark Twain and the Mississippi River, Lewis and Clark, and the Civil War

Glimpse Mark Twain, the man, as well as the author. All-day field study to Hannibal, Mo., provides insight into the geographic region. Sense Twain's passion for the Mississippi, visit his boyhood home, and learn about his family and lifestyle.

Bicycling the Katy Trail: Rails to Trails Corridor Across Missouri

Bike along the Missouri River and through dense forest, prairies, rolling farmland and wetlands as you cover 188 miles of the 240-mile Katy Trail, America's longest “rails-to-trails” project. A protected state park, the Katy Trail follows 240 miles of the former Missouri-Kansas-Texas (MKT) Railroad Corridor from St. Charles to Clinton.