31 Best Affiliate Programs For Travel Bloggers [2023 Update!]
If you’re searching for the best affiliate programs for travel bloggers, I’ve got you covered.
There are many affiliate programs for travel bloggers out there so searching for ‘the one’ can be overwhelming.
I know this, as I also run a travel blog myself!
Travel is a commitment that includes many factors. Flight and accommodation bookings, trips, and activities – it’s not a decision people make in a blink of an eye.
Also, if your blog is relatively new, their chances to click your affiliate links might be lesser than other niches.
So, how do you ensure they do? What’s the proper technique and strategy to find the best affiliate travel programs? Read on to find out.
DISCLOSURE
Some of the links on here are affiliate links and I may earn if you click on them, AT NO EXTRA cost to you. Hope you find the information here useful! Thanks.
Hello! Want to know the affiliate training that took my blog from zero to over USD10,000 a month? I keep going through it again and again as its so useful! Learn more about it here!
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What Is An Affiliate Program?
An affiliate program allows you to earn money from sending traffic to certain companies. It happens when you promote their services or products on your blog.
It goes like this:
- Insert a trackable link into your content, for example, Booking.com.
- Someone books a room through the link you provided.
- You get a commission from there.
In the quest of affiliate marketing, you’ll come across the word ‘cookie’. Besides not being edible, this cookie means a value stored on our computer. When someone visits your website through an affiliate link, the cookie is stored on their computer.
Cookies are used to track affiliate referrals and they have an expiry date. Let’s say you’re an affiliate partner of Klook and their affiliate cookie lasts for 24 hours. This means you can only earn commission from sales that take place within 24 hours after your reader clicked on the affiliate link.
What’s great about affiliate programs is all three parties ‘win’ something. Referral traffic for the company, products, or services for the readers and you – some moolah from your recommendations!
Many bloggers earn so much from affiliate programs because they can earn money even when they’re asleep. Talking about passive income, eh?
When I just started blogging, I earned zero bucks from affiliate marketing. Then I signed up for this course by Michelle. I learned how she made over $100,000 per month from affiliate partnerships. Within three months I made $300 per month and it continued to increase.
Her course is a game-changer! You can sign up here:
Learn how to build a six figure blog without millions of visitors!
Anyways… Once you’ve built trust with your readers, you’ll see the consistency in earning money from your recommendations through the affiliate programs.
So, what are some of the best affiliate programs for beginners in travel blogging? Let’s check them out.
Best Affiliate Programs For Travel Bloggers
Transportation Affiliate Programs
- Commission rate: 2 to 6%
- Cookie duration: 7 days
Expedia offers car rentals, hotels, and properties, activities, and airlines. It’s one of the best affiliate programs in the travel niche. They also provide travel insights, customizable tools, and anytime support.
According to DMR (formerly Digital Marketing Ramblings), Expedia received 750 million visitors as of 2019. Imagine how much you can make just from joining their affiliate program?
You can register for the Expedia affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: 3 to 7%
- Cookie duration: 30 days
With Priceline, you can access several affiliate avenues from rental cars to cruises. They also offer 24/7 support and their website is easy to use too.
You can register for the Priceline affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: 5%
- Cookie duration: 30 days
Bookaway mainly focuses on Southeast Asia. This website allows travelers to find, compare and book ground transportation tickets online.
They offer a 24/7 support team that aims to make travel planning easier for users.
You can register for the Bookaway affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: 20%
- Cookie duration: 30 days
Skyscanner is my go-to flight search website. The mobile app is user-friendly and I love how I can compare flights on random dates just to see which suits my time and budget.
You can promote Skyscanner through text links, banners, or travel widgets. What’s great about the Skyscanner affiliate program is that they pay your commission immediately so you can monetize your traffic quickly.
You can register for the Skyscanner affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: 3%
- Cookie duration: 30 days
This European train travel expert offers an all-in-one train ticket giving travelers flexible access to most trains across Europe.
A must-have for blogs focusing on traveling around Europe!
You can register for the Eurail affiliate program here.
- Commission per sale: 3 to 12.5%
- Cookie duration: Not stipulated
Eddy Travels is powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI) so it’s a fully automatic chatbot. This platform allows users to search flights, accommodation, and other travel products with prices and inventory in real-time by simply chatting.
You can register for the Eddy Travels affiliate program here.
Hotel Affiliate Programs
- Commission rate: 25 to 40% (depending on stayed bookings e.g. if the user books for 3 days and stayed the whole 3 days)
- Cookie duration: Per session
Booking.com has an extensive network of over 12,500 affiliates. Why is it so popular?
Because you can customize hotel recommendations based on what your readers like or their location. Whether you want to show worldwide accommodation or keep it to a specific region – it’s your call!
You can register for the Booking.com affiliate program here.
Hot tip: Booking.com fares better with North America and European markets.
- Commission rate: 4 to 7% (depending on stayed bookings)
- Cookie duration: 30 days
Agoda has over a quarter million properties, making it an essential travel affiliate program for travel bloggers.
But without a website or blog, you won’t be able to join Agoda’s in-house affiliate program although it’s open for everyone to register. The approval is done manually and within 48 to 72 hours.
You can register for the Agoda affiliate program here.
Hot tip: Agoda fares better with Asian markets.
- Commission rate: 50% of TripAdvisor’s earnings
- Cookie duration: 2 weeks
TripAdvisor is the world’s largest travel site with millions of accommodations, restaurants, and travel activities.
For those seeking reviews and recommendations, TripAdvisor is a go-to travel site.
Through your tracking link, you can source TripAdvisor’s website content and take your readers back to the original content.
You can register for the TripAdvisor affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: $0.50 to $2.00 per lead
- Cookie duration: 1 year
There are very few affiliate programs that allow partners to earn a commission for a full year and HotelsCombined is one of them.
If the same reader clicks on the HotelsCombined link on your blog come back within a year, you’ll earn another commission. Since it’s a major hotel comparison site, you’ll have endless options of hotels all over the world to promote.
You can register for the HotelsCombined affiliate program here.
Travel Gear Affiliate Programs
- Commission rate: 5%
- Cookie duration: 15 days
REI is an awesome, massive online outdoor store. If your blog focuses on adventure travel and outdoor activities, joining REI’s affiliate program is a must!
Besides a wide option of quality and trusted gear, REI also provides expert advice and in-depth information about products and outdoor recreation.
You can register for the REI affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: 8%
- Cookie duration: 30 days
Osprey is the OG in premium outdoor and traveling gear. Although slightly pricey, you know you’ll get what you pay for.
Osprey partners with Avantlink for their affiliate program, so you’ll have access to all sorts of banner and text ads focused on technical, travel and everyday carry solutions.
You can register for the Osprey affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: 10%
- Cookie duration: Not stipulated
If you love rugged, minimalistic designs, you’ll love Nomad Goods. Their products include iPhone accessories, travel gears, and lifestyle products such as laptop sleeves and photography gear.
Nomad Goods affiliate program is powered by CJ Affiliate.
You can register for the Nomad Goods affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: 4%
- Cookie duration: 30 days
Etsy is an online shop that sells mostly handmade vintage stuff suitable as gifts. Although it doesn’t focus on travel, Etsy does sell cool travel gear like passport holders, toiletry bags, neck pillows, and many more.
If you want to see what you can offer your readers, just go on the Etsy website and search ‘travel’.
You can register for the Etsy affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: 8%
- Cookie duration: Per session
From luggage to wallets, Luggage Pros has every type of bag one needs for their trip.
Some important reminders for affiliates before signing up:
- Don’t copy anything from the Luggage Pros site and use the content for your blog.
- Don’t use these terms when mentioning the Tumi brand: discount, warehouse, outlet, sale, low price, deal, coupon, free, bargain, cheap, discontinued, special, special value, or % off (maybe there are some terms and conditions that we’re not aware of).
Activity Affiliate Programs
Get Your Guide
- Commission rate: 8%
- Cookie duration: 31 days
Get Your Guide Tours is no stranger to those who wish to pack their trip itinerary with fun and activities. In case you change your mind, you’ll get your refund up to 24h in advance.
Once signed up, you can get the app called GetYourGuide WordPress, where it allows you to easily install widgets in your blog posts, sidebars, and many more.
You can register for the Get Your Guide Tours affiliate programs here.
Viator
- Commission rate: 8%
- Cookie duration: Up to 30 days
If you are the type of person who books activities impulsively, Viator is for you. There are over 340,000 activity listings you can choose from, anywhere in the world.
Viator lets you create a custom widget to insert into their blog posts. Alternatively, you can also customize a link through their affiliate networks and get 5% of the total sale price.
You can register for the Viator affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: 6%
- Cookie duration: 90 days
If you travel in small groups, you can book your activities with G Adventures. They promote traveling with confidence as you’ll be in the safe hands of their local guides.
G Adventures’ affiliate program is run by CJ Affiliate. If you manage to get people to book the two to four days program, you can collect commissions.
You can register for the G Adventures affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: Up to 5% plus bonus
- Cookie duration: 30 days
Klook offers over 100,000 activity listings in more than 300 destinations. They also partner with world-renowned brands such as Universal Studios, Disneyland, and Madame Tussauds.
With Klook, you can have access to many free promotional tools and real-time analytics and performance reports. And if the traffic you generate to their site (from people clicking on Klook’s affiliate link on your blog) increases, you’ll earn some bonus.
You can register for the Klook affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: From 8 to 10%
- Cookie duration: Unmentioned
From adrenaline hunters to adrenaline hunters, Manawa lives up to its name. It’s a hub of more than 6000 outdoor activities in 66 countries around Europe, America, Africa, Oceania and Asia.
Manawa’s affiliate program offers 24/7 support on product integration and sales management by a dedicated account manager including real-time reporting.
You can register for the Manawa affiliate program here.
Travel Insurance Affiliate Programs
- Commission rate: $17
- Cookie duration: 45 days
Travelex Insurance Services is the best because not only do they cover lost baggage, cruise, flights, and other international travel requirements, they help expedite passport services and international driving permits too.
Other benefits include:
- A waiver for pre-existing medical conditions.
- Children are covered at no additional cost.
Do you know that Travelex’s commission rate for its affiliates is around three times what some other companies offer? Yup. Go sign up as fast as you can!
You can register for the Travelex Insurance Services affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: 10%
- Cookie duration: 60 days
WorldNomads is one of the best affiliate programs for travel bloggers, this travel insurance covers people from 140 countries, with medical and evacuation cover, 24-hour emergency assistance, and over 150 adventure activities.
The brand isn’t limited to travel insurance, though. They also offer travel scholarships and other travel-related initiatives such as campaigns, donations and paid collaboration, that bring so much value to globetrotters.
You can register for the WorldNomads affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: Up to 12%
- Cookie duration: 1 year
Besides travel insurance, Allianz Global Assistance also offers corporate assistance and concierge services. So far, they’ve recorded over 35 million users who have access to 24-hour support and a TravelSmart app.
Allianz Global Assistance’s travel insurance plans cover medical emergencies, general health while abroad, and emergency medical transportation. Some plans include trip cancellation or trip interruption.
There are more amazing travel insurance programs that you can check out here.
Luxury Travel Affiliate Programs
- Commission rate: 30%
- Cookie duration: 1 year
Villiers Jet Charter aggregates over 10,000 private aircraft to 40,000 destinations. You’ll earn a lifetime commission for any private jet charter client you introduce.
For its affiliate program, Villiers Jet Charter provides a dashboard for real-time tracking of your visits, referrals, and earnings.
You can register for the Villiers Jet Charter affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: 30%
- Cookie duration: 30 days
Boatbookings is a luxury yacht charter company that offers crewed yachts, bareboat, and catamarans in some of the top destinations around the world. Their charter experts are available to support clients and customers.
As an affiliate, you’ll get access to Boatbookings’ buttons, high-quality images, inquiry forms, and real-time tracking tools. All you need to do is copy and paste the HTML codes onto your blog.
You can register for the Boatbookings’ affiliate program here.
- Commission rate: 4%
- Cookie duration: 60 days
There are several 5-star resorts under the Sandals resorts group which are located throughout the Caribbean such as in Jamaica, the Bahamas, Antigua, Barbados, and other top destination islands.
Sandals Resorts partners with CJ Affiliate network. As an affiliate, you can promote any of the resorts in these locations, including butler services, golf courses, and wedding facilities.
You can register for the Sandals Resorts’ affiliate program here.
How To Choose The Best Affiliate Programs For Travel Bloggers
Essentially, there are four things you should consider before choosing an affiliate travel program:
- Payout rate – percentage of your commission
- Product practicality – quality of the product
- Products you trust – products you have used or are using
- Genuine/legit brands you want to speak for – products you use and like
But eventually, it boils down to these two:
- Understanding the consumer buying cycle
- Treating your readers as a friend
Understanding The Consumer Buying Cycle
Let’s say you bought a backpack recently – an Osprey Atmos AG 65. Before deciding to purchase it, you probably Googled something like “Best backpack 2021” or “Best backpack for hiking”.
And then, you clicked an article from one of the blogs on the first page, read the review, and made your purchase through the author’s link.
So, this is what it means by the consumer buying cycle. In short, the process goes like this:
Awareness>Research>Evaluation>Purchase
Make sure you provide detailed information about the product and its value. How does it work? How can it help the readers? What benefit can the readers gain from buying the product?
Treating Your Readers As A Friend
How many times have you recommended a great restaurant or your new favorite hiking boots to a friend?
If you approach your blog posts with that exact same authenticity, your readers can sense that.
Of course, it takes time to build trust but solid readership and followers is a sure way to up your affiliate marketing game and earn consistent income from your blog.
Affiliate Programs VS Affiliate Networks
Besides affiliate programs, you might have also heard about affiliate networks.
In case you’re wondering, these two are not the same. But they provide the same end game – to let you earn money.
While affiliate programs are controlled by the company selling the product, an affiliate network is like a hub that houses thousands of affiliate programs.
Take Expedia or Amazon, for instance – they run their affiliate programs or in-house affiliate programs.
Affiliate networks are like intermediaries. They connect bloggers and entrepreneurs (publishers like you and me) with companies (merchants).
Here are some great affiliate networks you can join:
Commission rate: Starts at 8%
Of all the affiliate networks out there, Travelpayouts is the only one that caters to travel brands. This broad network houses more than 60 affiliate programs to choose from.
The commission rate depends on the affiliate program you choose, though. Since it was first launched, Travelpayouts has released more than $20 million in payouts.
You can register for the Travelpayouts affiliate network here.
Commission rate: Varies, depending on the rate set by partners for each offer
One of the world’s largest affiliate networks, CJ Affiliate houses hundreds of the best affiliate programs for travel bloggers, including the major ones like Expedia.
Every year, the network releases more than $1.5 billion in commissions to its affiliates.
You can register for the CJ Affiliate network here.
Commission rate: Varies, depending on the rate set by partners for each offer
For more than 20 years, ShareASale has allowed its affiliates to partner with more than 15,000 merchants of many brands.
Once you sign up with this network, you can access a custom affiliate link tool and automated reports for performance tracking.
You can register for the ShareASale network here.
Commission rate: 3 to 10%
As the largest retail affiliate program in the world, Amazon is the most popular among travel bloggers.
Being Amazon’s affiliate partner means you can earn a commission by promoting anything and everything on Amazon.
The best part is, you won’t be earning from the product you recommended only. In fact, you will earn from someone’s entire purchase in their fully-loaded cart! (even if they did not purchase the other items through your affiliate link)
You can register for the Amazon Associate network here.
How Do I Become A Travel Affiliate?
Becoming a travel affiliate is pretty straightforward. You don’t need to invest so much to set up a travel affiliate business or website. It won’t take too much of your time too.
That being said, there are several factors you need to consider before embarking on this journey.
1. Website Naming
Think of something brandable, easy to pronounce, and travel-related, preferably.
2. Website Registration And Hosting
When someone types in your website URL, Bluehost (best affiliate program for hosting) will show your blog to the person who searched for it. Use this link for a discounted price from Bluehost.
3. Affiliate Integration
Some of the best affiliate programs for travel bloggers such as Expedia, TripAdvisor, or Priceline are essential to every travel affiliate website. You can integrate the ones you find best into your website.
Here’s a comprehensive, step-by-step guide to building a travel website that you can start with.
Are Travel Affiliate Websites Profitable?
Absolutely!
Joining affiliate programs in the travel niche is an excellent decision.
The travel industry is vast, and affiliate programs don’t require you to promote any product in particular. Any travel product or service can earn you money.
Go beyond the bubble – promote traveling gears, blogging courses and tools, books, or travel gadgets.
Check out these top travel affiliates program joiners:
- Two Wandering Soles: Average income from affiliate marketing is $17,000+
- Living The Dream: Income from affiliate marketing is $600 (June 2021)
- It’s a Lovely Life: Income from affiliate marketing is $50,000+ (estimated)
- Nomad Numbers: Income from affiliate marketing: $574.59
- SFTourismTips: Income from affiliate marketing is $4,500 per month
In short, travel isn’t just about hotels or airlines, so don’t put a limit to what you can monetize.
Do I Absolutely Need A Blog To Join A Travel Affiliate Program?
Absolutely not!
You don’t necessarily need a blog to start earning from affiliate programs. One way to do this is with Pinterest – a platform for you and me to search for information using images, GIFs and videos.
If you have been wanting to embark on the affiliate marketing business but don’t think you can commit to maintaining a blog, you can check this post out: Your Step By Step Guide To Affiliate Marketing On Pinterest Without A Blog.
In this article, you’ll learn about:
- What Pinterest and affiliate marketing are about
- Starting an affiliate marketing business without a blog
- The tips and tricks to generating an income on Pinterest without a blog
- Best affiliate marketing programs for Pinterest
While affiliate programs are proven to boost blog income, they will not happen overnight. You have to spend at least once or twice a week learning how to grow your affiliate income. Understand the strategies and implement them.
The truth is, joining these best affiliate programs for travel bloggers is not a difficult task. It just takes patience and persistence to see results. Don’t give up when you don’t see progress after a couple of weeks. Good things take time.
And congratulations for reading this far. It means you’re ready to be an affiliate!
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