man at laptop researching the Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

The 55+ Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers (According to a Travel Blogger)

disclosure policy

Ready to join the best travel affiliate programs?

Youโ€™ve landed on the right article because the Top 55 best affiliate programs for travel bloggers are all listed here.

How do I know they’re the best and highest paying travel affiliate programs?!

As a seven-figure travel blogger who makes about half my income from affiliate marketing, and teaches classes on affiliate marketing, these are the ones I use myself โ€” so I know they are the best, most lucrative options.

From the best hotel affiliates for travel bloggers, to travel insurance, physical products, car rentals and the best tour affiliates for travel bloggers, itโ€™s all here.

Ready to discover them all? Letโ€™s dive in!

Quick Guide: What are the Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers?

person on laptop researching the Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers
Want to monetize your travel website? Affiliate marketing is one of the fastest ways.

Donโ€™t have time to read the whole article? No worries โ€” Iโ€™m including the cliffโ€™s notes here so you can get the info you need fast!

There are the affiliates I use personally, and the ones I always recommend.

What are the best affiliate programs for travel bloggers?

1. Discover Cars: Best car rental affiliate program
2. Safety Wing: Best travel insurance affiliate program
3. Travelpayouts: Best affiliate network for travel bloggers
4. Viator: Best tours affiliate program
5. Booking.com: Best hotel affiliate program
6. Amazon Affiliates: Best affiliate program for physical products

Each of these travel blog affiliate programs (and many more) are listed below with in-depth info about the programs.

Keep reading to learn about all your options so you can make money from affiliate marketing fast!

The 55+ Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

1. Discover Cars Affiliate Program: Best Car Rental Affiliate

discover cars affiliate marketing program sign up
Discover Cars is my #1 choice when it comes to a rental car travel affiliate network.

When it comes to car rental affiliate programs with high earning potential, Discover Cars is always my top choice.

Here’s why I recommend them above all other transportation affiliate programs:

โญ๏ธ Discover Cars Affiliate Program Highlights & FEATURES

  • 365 day cookie: The longest cookie of any affiliate marketing program Iโ€™ve ever seen
  • 70% commission: The highest commission rates among car rental affiliates โ€” and you can earn even more with this hack
  • 30% added commission: Earned with the sale of Full Coverage Program
  • Single tier, cost per sale (pay per sale) commission structure means you get paid on every sale made
  • Monthly payout sent by PayPal or ACH bank wire transfer
  • Minimum payment threshold is $200 USD

Discover Cars partners with 380 car rental companies worldwide, meaning you can recommend it to your readers consistently, regardless of your target audience or location.

Affiliate content creators see an average of $20-$50 USD commissions per sale, with average monthly payouts hovering around $2,500 per 100K visitors. Not bad for passive income โ€” though not everyone gets those results.

It’s easy to see why Discover Cars is one of the best affiliate programs travel bloggers love โ€” and why it’s one of the most-used travel blogger affiliate programs out there today.

discover cars affiliate marketing program reviews
Discover Cars is a trusted among users and affiliates alike. Join the affiliate program today!

The Discover Cars affiliate program is available across multiple affiliate networks, including Travelpayouts, Share A Sale (now Awin), and CJ Affiliate.

You can also sign up for their direct affiliate program, bypassing the affiliate networks โ€” which is what I have done.

Going direct is typically more lucrative, as Discover Cars pays 70% commission rates, whereas joining the program through an affiliate network often means different commission rates.

I love that Discover Cars offers great support for affiliates, and tips for new travel bloggers to boost sales via their newsletter.

They also have a quick response time, thanks to their dedicated account managers.

Since I use personally Discover Cars for my own car rentals when traveling, I can speak to their service with confidence and experience โ€” which goes a long way in boosting conversion rates.

Also, their cookie period is amazing! (No idea what I’m talking about? I included info about website cookies and third-party cookies below.)

The affiliate program Discover Cars has offers a generous 365 day cookie window. This means youโ€™ll get credit for any bookings made within a year of a user clicking your link. Join the program today!

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

2. Safety Wing Affiliate Program: Best Travel Insurance Affiliate

safety wing affiliate marketing program sign up
In the Safety Wing Ambassador Program (AKA affiliate program), you have access to fun graphics you an use to promote them.

โญ๏ธ Safety Wing Affiliate Program Highlights & FEATURES

  • Recurring commissions when someone buys a policy
  • 10% commission rates on sales
  • 365 day cookie
  • Specialized in digital nomad health insurance
  • Unique features that appeal to your audience and generate more sales

SafetyWing is one of the highest-rated travel insurance companies for policy holders.

With 10% commission rates on policy sales, you can easily supplement your income while helping travelers protect themselves against unexpected expenses while they’re away from home.

They offer one of the top affiliate programs for travel bloggers โ€” especially if you have long-term travel, moving abroad or digital nomad content.

(If you don’t, I recommend joining the Travel Insurance Master affiliate program).

Safety Wing is unique among the travel insurance providers in that they only offer health insurance as opposed to cancellation insurance, coverage of possessions, and the like.

Their insurance affiliate programs are excessively marketed to digital nomads living outside of their home country.

Policies begin at monthlong coverage, with recurring monthly payment from then on.

Safety Wing has one of the best paying travel affiliate programs, as you’ll earn commission on all purchases made by a customer for the first 364 days of service.

With their recurring monthly payment plans on policies, this means you have the potential to earn month after month โ€” all from just one sale through your referral link.

safety wing travel insurance affiliate marketing program reviews
If you have a lot of digital nomad content, SafetyWing is the best travel insurance affiliate for you.

Additionally, if your referred customer purchases insurance for shorter trips repeatedly with Safety Wing within that first year of sign-up, you will continue to receive commission accordingly.

They also has a generous 365 day cookie window, which is gold in the travel blogger affiliate world.

Safety Wing’s policies are quite appealing and easy to talk-up. They offer unique benefits like free insurance for up to two children under 10-years-old per family, or the ability to start a policy even if your journey has already started.

Their policies are priced quite competitively, and travelers leaving the country for less than a month will often find Safety Wing’s monthlong price to be cheaper than competitors covering a shorter period of time.

The Safety Wing Ambassador Program is available worldwide. Regardless of where your readers are planning to go, youโ€™ll be able to recommend the best travel insurance solution while making pretty generous commissions.

Safety Wing has a minimum monthly payout threshold of $10 USD, so you wonโ€™t have to wait too long to start seeing affiliate money come in.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

3. Viator Affiliate Program: Best Tour Affiliate

viator affiliate marketing program sign up
Viator is one of the most popular affiliate programs for tours.

โญ๏ธ Viator Affiliate Program Highlights & ADDITIONAL FEATURES

  • 8% commission on all experiences sold
  • More than 300,000 diverse experience worldwide
  • 30 day cookie window
  • No qualifications to join
  • Weekly payout available
  • Join Viator through Travelpayouts

Viator is one of the most well known tour and excursion booking platforms in the world.

Operating under Tripadvisor and offering more than 300,000 experiences in more than 200 locations, Viator is a staple travel site for travelers looking to make the most of their vacations.

One of the best things about this affiliate program is the variety of experiences offered and the trusted name of the company to drive higher click through rates and convert more sales.

Viator pays a commission rate of 8% on all experiences booked within a 30 cookie window.

This commission rate and cookie window is pretty generous, particularly when we’re talking about high ticket items.

Many tourist destinations have a huge variety of excursions available, ranging from $15 walking tours to multi-day tours costing multiple thousand dollars.

Depending on what you choose to promote and how well you can sell it, you could easily bring in hundreds to thousands each month through this program alone.

viator affiliate marketing program for travel bloggers

Even if you haven’t experienced the specific tour you’re promoting, the millions of customer reviews in Viator’s database will help you to find the best experiences for your readers.

Likewise, your readers can turn to dozens, often hundreds, of honest reviews to help complete their sale.

There are no requirements to join the Viator Affiliate Program.

You can either join direct through Viator, or you can join through an affiliate network like Travelpayouts, Awin, CJ Affiliate, or Share A Sale.

Be mindful of the commission rates when joining through a network though, as some offer less than the 8% you’ll get directly through Viator.

Despite being owned by Tripadvisor, Viator’s affiliate program differs greatly from that of Tripadvisor.

We’ll explore Tripadvisor’s affiliate program in more depth later, but for now know that most bloggers make more money through the Viator Affiliate Program.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

4. Booking.com: Best Hotel Affiliate Program

booking.com affiliate marketing program sign up
Booking.com is among the best programs for hotels because it has so much brand awareness.

โญ๏ธ Booking.com Affiliate Program Highlights & FEATURES

  • High conversion rates, especially for North American audiences
  • 25%-40% of Booking.com’s earned commission
  • Lots of potential for high-ticket sales
  • One session cookie window
  • Monthly payouts with no minimum earning threshold
  • Accepted worldwide

โš ๏ธ Update: They have closed their direct program, but you can join the Booking.com affiliate program through Travelpayouts.

Booking.com is one of the best affiliates for travel bloggers for one really good reason: It’s the hotel booking platform that often converts best for travel bloggers.

That said, most travel bloggers will agree that which platform converts best is really dependent on where your readers are coming from.

For a European or North America-focused audience, Booking.com typically performs quite well. However, those with a lot off Asia content or a lot of Asian traffic may prefer Agoda, which is owned by Booking.com.

With hundreds of thousands of partner hotels, airlines and car rental companies, Booking.com’s worldwide reach and reputation as one of the largest travel marketplaces in the world is a major benefit to you and your readers.

It’s a name your readers have learned to trust, and most don’t hesitate to book through their platform. Within the affiliate marketing travel niche, Booking is a go-to.

๐Ÿค” booking affiliate program: Is it Worth it?

booking.com affiliate marketing for travel bloggers
While it has a lot of pros, the Booking Affiliate Program has some cons as well.

There are three reasons people seem to dislike the affiliate program from Booking.com.

First, their customer service isn’t great; some might even call it awful (or worse).

Second, they aren’t clear on how many sessions you need to join.

Many affiliates are rejected from their program the first time they apply for “insufficient traffic,” but they don’t actually say how much traffic you need.

Third, Booking.com’s one session cookie window ๐Ÿช is the shortest you’ll find among any affiliate program.

However, their rapport of trust outweighs this con, in my opinion โ€” and my blog readers still love Booking.com the most.

Their commission structure is tiered, ranging from 25%-40% commission on Booking.com’s earnings from hotel bookings.

Where you fall in this scale depends on the number of bookings you generate each month.

If your readers are booking multiple nights, multiple different stays or even a single night at a high-price accommodation, the commission you can earn adds up pretty fast.

On the other hand, because people often book days in advance of travel, and because Booking.com makes it easy to reserve without paying upfront, the cancellation rates can also be quite high.

When it comes to an online travel agency, that’s just the nature of the beast. Booking.com still wins out as the top hotel affiliate for me because they have the highest conversions of any hotel affiliate program I’ve used.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

5. Amazon Associates Program

amazon affiliate marketing program sign up

โญ๏ธ Amazon Affiliate Program Highlights & ADDITIONAL FEATUREs

  • The largest and most well-known e-commerce retailer in the world
  • High click through rates and conversion rates
  • Commission rates between 1%-10% on physical products
  • 24 hour cookie window
  • Separate affiliate programs for different countries
  • Amazon API allows you to load real-time product details

The Amazon Affiliates program is one of the largest affiliate programs in the world, and often a great place for new travel bloggers to get their feet wet in affiliate marketing with ecommerce.

Likewise, you’ll be hard-pressed to find someone who doesn’t know of Amazon and who hasn’t bought something from their online marketplace.

From cameras to luggage, Amazon has a plethora of travel products to promote.

Amazon Affiliate’s commission rates are notoriously low.

However, the program is still worth signing up for because it converts really well โ€” because so many people know, use and trust Amazon.

Because buyers can purchase almost anything on Amazon, earning commission is really a numbers game.

With enough traffic and the right affiliate keywords, you’re likely to start earning commissions fast.

After someone clicks your affiliate link and makes a qualifying purchase, even on something you haven’t linked to, within a 24 hour period, you’ll earn commission from it.

Commission rates on physical products range from 1%-10%, with most product categories ranging between 1%-4%.

Again, this is low, but it adds up because so many people shop on Amazon.

๐Ÿ“ Amazon Affiliate Program Requirements

amazon affiliate marketing program sign up
There are Amazon Associates Program pros and cons, but they do have great support for affiliates.

Amazon also has some specific requirements that you’ll need to be mindful of.

They are very strict on avoiding personal purchases through your link, and have even been known to disqualify purchases made by people you know.

Amazon also has a strict disclaimer policy, requiring you to disclose when your posts contain Amazon Associates links.

They do guide you with acceptable language to use, so following their recommended disclaimer statements is important.

Because product prices can change at any point, you won’t be able to promote product prices on your site unless you input the Amazon API which loads real-time product information and prices.

This might be the way to go if you really want to advertise prices to your readers.

To join Amazon Associates as a blogger, they state that you’ll need to prove that you have robust, original content, with a recommended threshold of 10 posts on your site.

You’ll also need to have at least three qualifying sales within 180 days of signing up for Amazon Associates, or your account will be deactivated.

If it is, you can always reapply.

If you’re promoting products to readers in multiple countries, you’ll want to sign up for the Amazon Associates account for each target country (like Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.ca, etc) so you can capture sales made in each.

โš ๏ธ Update: They created Amazon One Link for to make this easier. Now, with one click, you an integrate all your Amazon affiliate accounts into one.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

6. World Nomads Affiliate Program

World Nomads has long been a leading travel insurance affiliate program for bloggers and content creators, with big name travel bloggers and travel companies backing their reputation.

With flexible plans you can extend or change to account for changing travel plans, and insurance plans covering extreme sports like skydiving and scuba diving, World Nomads used to be a great option.

๐Ÿšจ Here’s Why I no longer recommend World Nomads Affiliates

world nomads travel insurance affiliate marketing program
World Nomads has great protection for domestic and international travelers โ€” but I no longer recommend the World Nomads affiliate marketing program.

World Nomads recently switched from a direct affiliate program to partnering with CJ Affiliate, making pretty significant changes along the way.

They had to do this, as laws in Australia (where they operate) changed.

World Nomads Change #1

One of the biggest changes they made is that you now earn commission when someone obtains a quote from them, even if they don’t complete a purchase.

However, the quote commission earned is just $0.85 per quote.

This is very quite low compared to commissions they used to offer on policies sold, which was 10% of the total policy price.

If you’re someone who does well on getting readers to obtain a quote, but doesn’t do well on conversions, you might actually do better with this new structure.

However, if you do well with conversions, you’ll likely do better overall using a competitor like the Safety Wing travel insurance affiliate program. Unlike World Nomads, SafetyWing rewards on sales.

World Nomads Change #2

Also, there is this long list from World Nomads of what you can and can’t say in your blogs.

Violating these rules will result in termination from the program, so read it carefully.

This is due to Australian law, so it’s not their fault โ€” but as a blogger, if I can’t tell my audience “I recommend World Nomads,” it’s hard for me to sell it.

That’s right, you’re not allowed even to use the word “recommend” ๐Ÿ˜” when promoting them.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

7. Travel Insurance Master Affiliate Program

travel insurance master travel insurance affiliate marketing program

The Travel Insurance Master (TIM) Affiliate Program is a great affiliate program for bloggers who have a primarily American audience.

What makes Travel Insurance Master unique and appealing to your audience is its function as an aggregate search tool for travel insurance providers.

Users answer three simple questions and quickly and easily get a range of suitable insurance options to choose from.

TIM values transparency, a no-hassle experience, and a user-friendly dashboard for its affiliates.

They specifically target travelers from the United States going abroad (requiring insurance to be purchased before leaving the country), while also offering plans for international visitors to the USA.

TIM has a direct affiliate program, as opposed to operating through an affiliate network.

This means you see great customer service and higher than average commission rates.

Referral fees are fixed according to a tiered structure, which are dependent on the value of the policy that’s purchased, with commission rates of up to 10% of the sale price.

Depending on the price of the policy, referral earnings are anywhere from $5-$55 USD per transaction.

TIM’s 365 day long cookie duration of one year also makes this an appealing travel insurance affiliate program to join.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

8. Wise (Formerly Transfer Wise)

wise travel insurance affiliate marketing program

If you’ve been a digital nomad for any length of time, there’s a good chance you’ve heard the name Wise (formerly TransferWise) pop up in conversations on social media or among fellow nomads.

When it comes to banks that offer the best currency conversion rates, Wise wins every time.

As far as fees, they tend to be significantly lower than PayPal โ€” and this good reputation carries over into its affiliate program as well.

The Wise Affiliate Program, run through the Partnerize network, offers generous commission rates and an unlimited cookie window.

Again, long cookie windows in affiliate marketing travel companies are gold.

Referral commissions are accrued as soon as new sign-ups convert or transfer money.

Wise openly states their commission fees may change in the future, but they’re currently set at ยฃ10 for individuals, and ยฃ50 for businesses.

Commission is paid monthly and is available in five currencies.

If you need to convert your earnings to a currency that isn’t currently paid out, you have the easy solution of signing up for a Wise account and converting at incredible rates.

Joining the Wise Affiliate Program is easy once you’ve created a Partnerize account.

From there, you’ll need to email Wise to request they review your application.

Once you have access to their program, you can use your affiliate link as well as their rates API, calculator and comparison widgets.

It’s important to note that the Wise affiliate program is different from their “Invite a Friend” referral program, which offers incentives for referring people you know directly.

๐Ÿค‘ Here’s my link if you want to sign up as a Wise user.

Wise is the perfect travel blog affiliate marketing program for digital nomads looking to make some extra income while promoting (and even personally using) Wise’s reliable money transfer services.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

9. Expedia Affiliate Program for Hotels

expedia affiliate program sign up

โ†’ Join Expedia through Travelpayouts here

Partnering with hotels, airlines, car rental brands, and cruise lines around the world, Expedia’s trusted reputation makes it another one of the top aggregate travel service affiliate programs for travel blogs.

The Expedia Group includes big name travel sites like Hotels.com, VRBO, Orbitz, Agoda, Stayz and Travelocity, which also carry a strong reputation of trust among readers.

Expedia pays a commission rate ranging from 2%-6%, depending on the brand and location of your readers. Cookie durations also vary, with some brands providing 7 day cookies and others offering 30 day cookies.

You’ll have to join the Expedia Group affiliate program through Travelpayouts, Commission Junction (CJ) or Partnerize, as they don’t offer a direct affiliate program.

This also includes the Hotels.com Affiliate Program, and any Expedia brand.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

10. Agoda Affiliate Program: Best Hotel Affiliate for Asian Countries

agoda hotel affiliate program sign up

โ†’ Join Agoda through Travelpayouts here

For travel bloggers targeting an Asian audience, the Agoda Affiliate Program is one of the hotel affiliate programs I often recommend.

With its main office in Asia, they tend to convert better in this region than other hotel booking affiliates.

If you like an incentive to earn higher commissions, then Agoda’s tiered commission structure is something to take into consideration.

Their commission rates start at 4%, with the potential to earn up to 7% depending on the number of monthly bookings you make.

The Agoda booking platform is available in 38 different languages, making it a truly global platform with the potential to target a wide breadth of countries and customers.

They offer an easy onboarding process, and equip you with free tools to help you increase your bookings and track your analytics more effectively.

While some of the other big name hotel booking platforms tend to do better in other parts of the world, Agoda is my top choice for the Asian market.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

11. Get Your Guide Affiliate Program

get your guide affiliate program sign up
Looking to be an affiliate travel agent? Get Your Guide has a program for you.

โ†’ Join Get Your Guide through Travelpayouts here

Get Your Guide is another major player in the world of aggregate tour services, promoting more than 68,000 tours, attractions and activities around the world.

It is a German company, and typically more popular with European markets.

If you have a high European audience or are looking for an affiliate program to target that market specifically, Get Your Guide is worth considering.

The downside to Get Your Guide compared to some of the other best affiliate travel programs like Viator is that it offers less tours and generally fewer reviews to base your recommendations off of.

However, they do pay out reliably each month and have good customer service, as well as an easy-to-use dashboard with good analytics tracking.

If you’re looking for a tour booking affiliate program with a European focus and prioritization of customer service, then Get Your Guide is a great option.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

12. VRBO Affiliate Program for Home Rentals

VRBO affiliate program for travel bloggers

โ†’ Join VRBO through Travelpayouts here

Besides Airbnb, VRBO is the world’s largest and top marketplace for holiday homes, with more than two million properties across 190 countries.

Sadly, Airbnb doesn’t have an affiliate program (see below), but VRBO does.

Since it focuses on vacation homes opposed to hotels, VRBO is a particularly appealing affiliate program for travel niche bloggers promoting unique stays or slow-travel.

The affiliate commission rates range from 2%-4%, depending on the affiliate network you use to access this program.

You can also qualify to earn a $20 bonus if you refer a new property owner to list for rental on VRBO.

VRBO is a trusted name in the travel industry and has built up a reputation of safety and reliability over its lifetime.

If your audience values authentic stays or slow-travel, then VRBO could be a great affiliate program for you.

Does Airbnb have an affiliate program?

No โ€” They did have one, but on March 31, 2021, they ended the Airbnb affiliate program for good.

If you see any other articles that mention the Airbnb Associates Program, know that article is very out of date.

Now, Airbnb did keep their affiliate program for high volume sites that have more than one million in monthly traffic.

However, for everyone else, they closed the program. You can read their closure statement here.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

13. Travelocity Affiliate Program

travelocity affiliate program

The Travelocity Affiliate Program is worth considering if you’re targeting travelers looking for a one-stop shop to buy all their travel related services in one go.

With the way this platform works, travelers can score the best deals when booking several travel services as a packaged deal.

This translates into you receiving commission on multiple services at once, and your readers getting low prices on their travel.

On the other hand, if your readers are just looking to book a flight, car rental or hotel on its own, they’re more likely to book with a competitor who can offer better deals.

Travelocity’s cookie duration is also quite short at 7 days, meaning you’ll have to drive a lot of clicks and conversions in that time frame to earn a substantial cash flow.

With all this in mind, Travelocity can be a great travel affiliate program if your readers are looking to get great deals on several services at once while still staying within their budget.

However, before you commit to this program, be sure that it is the right fit for your readers, otherwise you might be leaving good money on the table with different travel affiliate partners.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

14. REI Affiliate Program

avant link affiliate program sign up
The REI Affiliate Marketing Program is available through AvantLink.

For bloggers with outdoor niche travel sites, the REI Co-Op Affiliate Program is undoubtedly on your radar.

With more than 20 million members, REI Co-Op is one of the largest outdoor recreation gear and apparel retailers in the world.

They sell all the best brands, like Arc’teryx, Black Diamond, Columbia, and Patagonia.

The REI online site is filled with expert advice and detailed product information, as well as an extensive selection of top quality items.

They also offer a 100% satisfaction guarantee on products, so your visitors can shop in confidence.

On the downside, the fact that the REI store requires membership to shop, there’s a chance you won’t reach quite as many buyers as some of the other affiliates mentioned.

This program is offered through the AvantLink Network, and offers a base commission of 5%. The REI cookie duration is 15 days.

REI is a great affiliate for bloggers looking to target an audience of passionate and loyal outdoor enthusiasts who are willing to invest in industry-leading gear and apparel.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

15. Skyscanner Affiliate Program: Best Flights Affiliate

skyscanner affiliate program for flights
Skyscanner’s affiliate program is available through the Impact affiliate travel site.

Skyscanner has easily one of the top airline affiliate programs, and is my choice as the best for travel bloggers who want to earn commissions on flights.

(On average, however, this is not one of my top revenue generating programs.)

With more than 1,300 airline and hotel suppliers, a service reach of more than 52 countries, and a reputation of trust among travelers worldwide, Skyscanner offers an incredible opportunity for travel bloggers to make affiliate commissions.

By joining this affiliate program, you’ll have the chance to earn competitive base commission rates of 20% of their sales profits, with the opportunity for greater cuts as you refer more users.

Though it is known primarily as a flight booking service, Skyscanner also now offers commission on hotels purchased through their interface.

You can apply to Skyscanner’s affiliate program through the Impact Affiliate Network.

Here, you’ll get access to their travel widgets, Flights API and deep links for flights on all the top airlines, like Virgin Atlantic and Qatar Airways.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

16. Going (formerly Scottโ€™s Cheap Flights Affiliate Program)

โš ๏ธ Update: Scott’s Cheap Flights has been bought, so you’ll not be joining the Going Affiliate Program.

Looking for popular affiliate programs in the budget travel niche?

Scott’s Cheap Flights is a great affiliate opportunity for travel bloggers who want to help their readers find cheap flights.

This popular flight deal-finding service is recommended by some of the biggest name travel bloggers, like Nomadic Matt and Thrifty Nomads, and comes with exclusive discounts available only to their members.

If you join the Scott’s Cheap Flights Affiliate Program, then you’ll get $3 for every new member you bring in, plus incentives to earn more cash when certain goals are reached.

You can join the program through the Impact affiliate network.

With more than two million members already using Scott’s Cheap Flights to find their next great getaway, this affiliate is another great way for travel bloggers to start making passive income.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

17. Kayak Affiliate Program

kayak affiliate marketing program for travel bloggers
Kayak’s affiliate program is available through the CJ affiliate travel site.

Kayak is one of the leading aggregate travel booking networks for flights, hotels, cars and travel packages.

When you join the Kayak Affiliate Program, you will have access to all of the Kayak brands including HotelsCombined, Momondo and CheapFlights.

This program allows you to earn commissions not only through actual bookings, but also through clicks and ad revenue.

You have the option to join Kayak’s direct program when they are accepting new publishers, or you can join through an affiliate network like CJ Affiliate, FlexOffers or TradeTracker, a UK affiliate marketing company.

The direct affiliate program offers commission rates up to 50% of Kayak’s profits on your sales, whereas commissions through affiliate networks range from $0.06-$1.90 for every sale you make.

While other affiliate programs offer more earning potential, Kayak has more than 15,000 publishers signed up for its affiliate program.

The brand is trusted among travelers worldwide, and a good option for travel bloggers.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers
skimlinks affiliate program sign up

When it comes to finding a unique and time-saving affiliate network, Skimlinks is just that.

Skimlinks is known for the way it helps you to find new merchants and easily and quickly create affiliate links for them.

One of the primary ways it does this is with the Skimlinks Editor Toolbar.

This toolbar is free to install, and when you begin searching the web for things to post on your site with an affiliate link, it alerts you if that product has an affiliate program.

It will then provide you with a simple link to paste into your blog posts.

The Skimlinks affiliate marketing program is used by more than 60,000 publishers.

They have partnered with more than 48,500 merchants and 50 different affiliate networks, so there’s great variety beyond just travel affiliates.

It’s officially the biggest commerce content monetization program, and offers exclusive commission rates with many of its merchants, often even double that of other networks.

It’s free to join Skimlinks, which offers a great opportunity for bloggers who want to monetize their content without having to become affiliated with multiple merchants at once.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

19. Tripadvisor Affiliate Program

tripadvisor affiliate program sign up

โ†’ Join Tripadvisor through Travelpayouts here

Tripadvisor is the largest travel site in the world, so naturally their affiliate program should be on your radar.

Tripadvisor connects its users to more than 1.4 million places to stay around the world, and has hundreds of millions of reviews for reference.

Even though Tripadvisor promotes various types of travel services, you can only earn commission on accommodations.

Commissions are structured in different ways than most others: You get a minimum of 50% of the commission that Tripadvisor receives from the accommodation site, even on clicks that don’t result in a sale.

There’s also a 14-day cookie window, meaning you’ll earn commission on sales made within that time period even if the customer returns on a different device or through a different channel.

There are no minimum traffic requirements to join the Tripadvisor Affiliate Program, and you can find it on the CJ affiliate network.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

20. Hostel World Affiliate Program: Best Hostel Affiliate

hostel world affiliate program sign up

โ†’ Join HostelWorld through Travelpayouts here

It’s no secret that hostels are a popular accommodation choice for budget travelers and social solo travelers.

If that matches your readership then you’ll want to join the HostelWorld affiliate program.

HostelWorld has more than 36,000 properties in 179 different countries and is one of the biggest hostel booking websites in the world.

You’ll earn commission on any bookings made directly through HostelWorld or their mobile app, with a 30 day cookie window to track sales.

Payments are accepted in 60 currencies, and the affiliate program is managed through the Partnerize network.

If you’re looking for a great way to connect your travel blog readers with the best hostels, then this is the HostelWorld Affiliate Program for you.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

21. Eurail Affiliate Program (Interrail Affiliate Program)

train in europe

If you are in the European travel niche, the Eurail Affiliate Program (AKA Interrail Affiliate Program) for travel sites is worth looking into.

Through this company, your readers will have access to more than 40 different train and ferry companies across Europe, with the opportunity to purchase either single-country passes or global passes.

With the global pass, travelers have access to ferry and train tickets across 33 different countries, making for a highly flexible way to see the whole European region.

As an affiliate through the AWIN network, you can earn up to 3% commission with a 30 day cookie window.

The average order value is over ยฃ300 with this affiliate program, leaving some substantial room to bring in good commissions.

If you want to introduce your readers to a worthwhile and budget-friendly way of exploring Europe while earning that passive income, the Eurail/Interrail Affiliate Program could be a win-win for you.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

22. NordVPN Affiliate Program: Best VPN Affiliate

Nord VPN affiliate program sign up

As an experienced traveler, your readers will trust your advice on the top travel services to maximize safety and security.

If you have a digital nomad readership, you’ll want to start promoting the invaluable product of a Virtual Private Network (VPN).

VPNs can enhance the security and privacy of your online activities while giving users access to content that may be geographically restricted or blocked.

NordVPN is one of the most trusted VPN brands, and their affiliate program offers one of the highest commissions in the VPN market, with lifetime revenue sharing.

Commission rates are 40% for new sign-ups (or 100% for a 1-month offer), and 30% commission on renewals.

You can join the Nord Affiliate Program directly here, or through the CJ Affiliate network (though I’m in the direct program, and prefer that).

With NordVPN’s global market and individual support provided through a dedicated account manager, this can easily become one of the most lucrative affiliate programs for travel bloggers.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

23. Klook Affiliate Program

โ†’ Join Klook through Travelpayouts here

With more than 100,000 amazing experiences and activities from tours to dining deals, hotels, and more, Klook is another popular aggregate travel booking platform.

Klook has an especially strong presence in Asia, and with an online platform available in 13 different languages. It’s one of the leading travel booking platforms in the region.

Commission rates range from 2%-5%, depending on the activity or service booked.

The Klook Affiliate Program is available through affiliate networks like Travel Payouts and AWIN, where payment in various currencies is supported.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

24. Outdoorsy Affiliate Program: Best RV Affiliate

Outdoorsy Affiliate Program sign up

If you’re in the RV travel niche, then the Outdoorsy Affiliate Program will help you connect your readers with the world’s largest and most reputable RV rental marketplace.

Available through AvantLink, CJ Affiliate or HasOffers affiliate networks, you can refer both RV owners and renters, while earning amazing commissions of $60 or more for every qualified referred booking.

Outdoorsy RV Share has a reputation of putting customer needs at the forefront of their service, even providing liability and comprehensive collision insurance with every approved rental.

Their satisfaction rates are high, making this program easy to talk up to your readers.

With its simple and easily accessible online platform, Outdoorsy’s unique marketplace is a great affiliate program for bloggers in the North American RV travel niche.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

25. RentalCars.com Affiliate Program

best rental cars affiliate program signup

DISCOVER CARS VS RENTALCARS.COM: WHICH IS BETTER?

My short answer is Discover Cars โ€” but I’ll expand on why I say it’s one of the best travel affiliate sites below.

There are a few big players in the car rental affiliate space.

Aside from Discover Cars, another travel affiliate company option is RentalCars.com, the official rental car partner for the Booking.com Affiliate Program.

When comparing Discover Cars vs RentalCars.com Affiliate Program, there are a few key differences to consider:

  • Commission Rates โ€” Discover Cars has a higher commission rate of up to 70% of profits (this includes 30% added commission from a sale on their Full Coverage Program), while RentalCars.com pays out 40% of profits, or a flat rate of 6% per sale.
  • Cookie Duration โ€” Discover Cars’ 365 cookie window far exceeds the RentalCars. com 30 day period for cookies.

Overall, both Discover Cars and RentalCars.com offer some of the top travel affiliate programs that help you make money from travel blogging quickly and easily.

However, if youโ€™re looking for a higher commission rate and ease of use, I recommend Discover Cars as your go-to car rental affiliate program.

Of course, you can also join the RentalCars.com affiliate program through Travelpayouts here.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

Best Affiliate Marketing Networks for Travel Bloggers

computer, cell phone and tablet looking at the best affiliate marketing programs for travel bloggers

What is an affiliate marketing network?

An affiliate marketing network is a “one stop shop” platform with several affiliate partners that fall under it, and one dashboard you can use to track your sales and commissions.

Affiliate marketing networks connects advertisers, brands and companies looking to promote their products or services, with publishers, bloggers and influencers who have the audiences those advertisers want to reach.

Advertisers pay commissions to the affiliates when someone purchases a product or service through their link.

Many of these networks will also provide tracking tools and resources to help affiliates track their performance and optimize ads for higher conversions.

Affiliate marketing networks are a popular option for travel bloggers as they offer an easy and convenient way to monetize a blog, without having to directly manage relationships and payment processes with each individual advertiser.

While an internal application to individual advertisers is still required in most cases, joining an affiliate network takes away a lot of the legwork of each application.

Some networks, like Travelpayouts, focus solely on travel brands, whereas other networks, like CJ Affiliate and Awin, partner with advertisers across various markets and are not limited to travel.

Each network has its own set of rules, regulations, and commission rates for each brand.

It’s best to familiarize yourself with all of these terms so you can find the networks that are right for you.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

Affiliate Networks vs Affiliate Programs: Which is better?

woman at a computer comparing two things

Which is better comes down to personal preference โ€” so let’s examine the two options closer.

It’s important to note the difference between an affiliate network and an affiliate program.

An affiliate network is a platform that connects multiple advertisers with affiliates, while an affiliate program is a specific agreement between one advertiser and its affiliate publishers.

For travel bloggers, the Travelpayouts Affiliate Network like can be a great resource for finding multiple popular brands to work with without having to search through individual in-house affiliate programs.

You may even find that brands within your network reach to request you join their program, which gives you exposure to some of the best options you may not have otherwise considered.

It is important to note brands may have different terms and conditions, such as commission rate, cookie duration, and payment options, for affiliates who join their program directly compared to those who join through an affiliate network.

To add to the confusion, a brand’s terms and commission rates can even differ from network to network.

Comparing terms between networks and individual affiliate programs can be a lot to keep track of, but is worth doing to find the highest paying affiliate programs.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

26. Travelpayouts (Best Overall for Travel Bloggers)

Travel Payouts Affiliate Program sign up

Without a doubt, Travelpayouts is my favorite affiliate network platform for travel bloggers. โ†ณ You can join here for free.

Why? Because they only work with travel companies, so they have streamlined the process.

The Travelpayouts Affiliate Network also has a great reputation for customer service.

Targeting solely the travel sector, this platform provides you access to more than 100 applicable travel service companies, making it easy for you to discover a brand that fits you content, all in one convenient affiliate network.

Travelpayouts works with travel companies of all scales in multiple countries, from global brands like Booking.com and Tripadvisor, to small or unique brands like EatWith, a platform for booking culinary experiences around the world.

Travelpayouts Affiliate Marketing promotes itself as being the first online partnership platform specifically for travel brands, and is used by more than 350,000 content creators and influencers worldwide (me included).

For more than 10 years they have partnered with travel services to cover all aspects of travel, including travel accommodations, tours, vehicle rentals, trains, buses and transfers, cruises, flights, travel insurance and more.

The Travelpayouts dashboard is easy to use and reader-friendly, showing the number of impressions, clicks, and sales from each partner.

While cookie duration and commission rates vary by company, details for each are easily accessible once you’ve joined the network and begin browsing the brands.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

27. CJ Affiliate (Formerly Commission Junction)

CJ Affiliate Program sign up

CJ Affiliate is the largest and most established affiliate marketing network in the world (though they’re my least favorite, and I recommend joining Travelpayouts instead).

Home to more than 3,800 brands worldwide, it’s a great source for travel bloggers looking for multiple options to monetize their website.

With such a wide selection of advertisers, however, comes the potential for overwhelm when searching out travel-specific brands.

Furthermore, the CJ dashboard is more complex and cumbersome than many of its competitors, making it a bit less user friendly for those new to affiliate marketing.

Some bloggers also find that because CJ attracts a lot of larger companies compared to other affiliate networks, content creators sometimes find lower acceptance rates into individual brands’ programs.

Nevertheless, there is great potential for earnings with CJ Affiliate if you have the time and patience to wade through the thousands of brands and pinpoint the ones that are a good fit for your content.

Cookie duration and commission rates vary by advertiser, but you can find specific details on each once you are accepted into the network.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

28. AWIN

AWIN is currently the fastest growing affiliate marketing network, with more than 20,000 different advertisers and 240,000 publishers on their platform.

It’s well known for its wide selection of travel-related brands, making it an ideal fit for any travel blogger.

The main downside to AWIN is that it can be a bit complex to use at first and there’s a bit of a learning curve โ€” especially when compared to other smaller or more simple networks.

However, once you get used to navigating its online dashboard, AWIN has some excellent features that make it one of the best affiliate marketing networks for travel websites.

One thing AWIN does particularly well is provide detailed statistics on each program within their network to help you select the right ones.

You can choose programs based on click through rate, approval rate, average time for payment, earnings per click, and more.

This makes it much easier to find the programs with a high earning potential best suited to your content.

AWIN Affiliate Marketing Network also has an incredibly useful glossary of terms which helps explain any acronyms or industry jargon you may come across.

Finally, you can browse through all the affiliate programs that you havenโ€™t yet joined and read their overview, terms, performance ratings, and more before deciding whether to apply.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

29. Share A Sale

Share A Sale Affiliate Program sign up
Though they operate as separate affiliate marketing networks, Share A Sale is owned by AWIN.

โš ๏ธ Update: Share A Sale was acquired by AWIN, another big name affiliate network, and will be ceasing operations at the end of 2025.

Share A Sale is one of the oldest and most established affiliate networks, with thousands of partnered brands across various verticals, including travel.

When compared to larger networks like CJ, the ShareASale Affiliate Marketing Network tends to attract and find smaller companies to partner with, offering diversity and often more unique options for your readers.

The sign up process for Share A Sale is straightforward and quick, a positive feature you shouldn’t overlook.

When searching for brands in the network, their website has quite a few search box features and filters, such as searching by auto-approval, cookie duration and commission rates, to help you find those with the top earning potential.

As Share A Sale tends to work with small and medium companies (though they’re partnered with many big names as well), newer bloggers often find high acceptance rates by brands are eager to get their name out there.

For newer travel bloggers, Share A Sale is a great all-around choice for affiliate marketing networks to join.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

30. Impact Radius

Impact Affiliate Program sign up

Impact Radius, also known simply as Impact, is an affiliate network with more than 1,000 brands and thousands of publishers that connect through their powerful, flexible and intuitive platform.

Partnerships span multiple verticals and are easy to join once you’ve been accepted to the network.

Impact has made a name for itself as being a top affiliate marketing suite with easy tracking and tag management within its platform, allowing for better and more complete performance statistics.

The downside to Impact Radius is that the sign up process can be quite lengthy.

Once you’re in though, you’ll have access to top performance insights that help you understand how successful your affiliate campaigns are.

The Impact Affiliate Marketing Network also offers flexible payment options worldwide, which makes it easy to get paid in a way that works best for you.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

If you’re looking for an affiliate network that emphasizes quality over quantity, then AvantLink is a great choice.

They have more than 800 high quality advertisers and promote their dedication to customer support, regardless of how long you’ve been in the blogging game.

If you’re looking for outdoor travel gear affiliate programs, especially for those in the hiking niche, camping niche or road trips niche, AvantLink is where you’ll find the coveted REI affiliate program.

AvantLink touts their high-conversion tools, tracking and reporting systems, and performance marketing technology as being top-of-class among affiliate marketing networks.

The AvantLink dashboard is quite user-friendly, making it easy to navigate once you join.

They have three international networks of advertisers, USA, Canada and Australia, with additional partners in Europe and the Asia Pacific region.

They also pay out in these three currencies, making them a convenient option for Australian and Canadian travel bloggers who won’t have to convert their income.

The downside is that the AvantLink Affiliate Marketing Program has a rigorous application and vetting process, which can be quite lengthy for those who want an easier sign-up process.

But on the upside, once you’re part of AvantLink you’ll be able to apply to high-quality advertisers, including brands like REI and Patagonia.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

32-61. A Few More of the Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

affiliate marketing infographic

While this has been a pretty long list so far โ€” it is by no means an exhaustive list of affiliate marketing programs for travel bloggers.

These days, nearly every company has an affiliate marketing program, so if you want some more options, here are 20 more:

โœˆ๏ธ ๐Ÿฉ Flights, Hotels, Etc.

  • 32. Momondo Affiliate Program
  • 33. WayAway Affiliate Program โ€” Join it through Travelpayouts
  • 34. Priceline Affiliate Program
  • 35. Hotels Combined Affiliate Program
  • 36. Priority Pass Affiliate Program for airport lounges โ€” Join it through Travelpayouts

๐Ÿ“ธ Tour Affiliate Programs

  • 37. Civitatis Affiliate Program Travel Co.
  • 38. G Adventures Affiliate Program for group tours
  • 39. Tours By Locals Affiliate Program
  • 40. Intrepid Travel Affiliate Program for small groups tours
  • 41. Go City Pass Affiliate Program for tickets to attractions โ€” Join it through Travelpayouts
  • 42. Cookly Affiliate Program for cooking classes

๐Ÿจ Accommodations Affiliate Programs

  • 43. Plum Guide Affiliate Program for luxury ome rentals
  • 44. RV Share Affiliate Program for RV rentals
  • 45. Stay 22 Affiliate Program for hotels, home rentals and more

๐Ÿš• Transportation Affiliate Programs

  • 46. FerryHopper Affiliate Program
  • 47. Bookaway Affiliate Program
  • 48. BusBud Affiliate Program โ€” Join it through Travelpayouts
  • 49. Omio Affiliate Program โ€” Join it through Travelpayouts
  • 50. 12Go โ€” Join it through Travelpayouts

๐Ÿงณ Misc. Travel Affiliate Programs

  • 51. Rakuten Affiliate Program, an affiliate networkย ย 
  • 52. Express VPN Affiliate Program, a Virtual Private Network (VPN)
  • 53. Cruise Direct Affiliate Program for cruises
  • 54. Heymondo Travel Insurance
  • 55. Lonely Planet Affiliate Program, for travel guides and travel guide books

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers: FAQ

What is affiliate marketing?

Affiliate marketing is a type of performance-based marketing in which an affiliate (the โ€œpublisherโ€) is rewarded for referring customers or visitors to a merchant (the โ€œadvertiserโ€).

what is affiliate marking infographic

The affiliate earns a commission for each referral, typically based on the number of sales, clicks or sign ups generated from the referral.

Affiliate sales are generally tracked using affiliate links, which contain a unique tracking code that allows the affiliate to track and monitor their referrals.

With affiliate marketing, there are little to no upfront costs for either the advertiser or the publisher, so itโ€™s a great starting point for making money without spending in advance.

While affiliate marketing may feel daunting at first, and the thought of selling to your readers may seem uncomfortable, itโ€™s one of the most reliable and natural ways to monetize your blog.

Affiliate marketing doesn’t have to be salesy and pushy โ€” you can find companies that align with your blogโ€™s values and promote them in an authentic way.

If you’ve ever used a product or service and then recommended it to friends and family, you’ve essentially done affiliate marketing without even realizing it.

You’ve already proven you have what it takes to be an affiliate marketer and start monetizing your travel blog.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

What is a travel affiliate program?

A travel affiliate program is a type of affiliate program specifically for bloggers and influencers in the travel niche.

Through these programs, you can earn commissions for referring customers and visitors to partner companies such as airlines, hotels, tour operators and more.

Travel affiliates may also receive exclusive discounts or perks for themselves or their readers.

This can be an excellent way to demonstrate the value of travel products or services to your readers while also earning commissions.

Travel is one of the top niches for affiliate marketing and there are many great programs to choose from.

Be sure to do your research and pick the one(s) that fit with your blogโ€™s values and audience.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

How do I become a travel affiliate?

The first step to becoming a travel affiliate is to find the right programs for your blog or social following.

affiliate marketing infographic chart

Once youโ€™ve chosen the right ones, you can request to sign up and wait for your approval. They usually take a few days, but can take months sometimes ๐Ÿ˜ฉ

After you’re approved, you can and start promoting their products or services.

When choosing an affiliate program, be sure to pay attention to any requirements such as minimum sales thresholds, or restrictions on content or promotion methods.

Youโ€™ll also want to make sure you read the terms and conditions of each program carefully before signing up.

Some programs may not allow certain types of promotion or may require you to make specific types of disclaimers to your readers.

The key to success with affiliate marketing is to be honest and transparent with your readers by using disclaimers.

You’ll also only want to be promoting high-quality products that you genuinely believe in.

This way, you can foster trust and loyalty among your followers while earning commissions for yourself.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

How do affiliate programs help travel bloggers?

Affiliate programs can provide travel bloggers with a great way to monetize their blog or social media following.

Through affiliate marketing, you can earn commissions for referring customers and visitors to partner companies in the travel industry.

Recommending the best travel affiliate products for your readers helps you to satisfy user intent and build trust with your followers, all while monetizing your blog.

Additionally, many affiliate programs offer exclusive discounts or perks to bloggers that can help you stand out from the competition.

These discounts may be passed on to your readers as well, adding even more value to their experience.

Affiliate marketing for travel bloggers is often the most lucrative monetization strategy, but it’s much more than simply adding a few text links to your content.

I teach bloggers how to find keywords with big potential to earn affiliate income in my How to Find Affiliate Marketing Keywords Class.

You can read more about me class in this Best Courses for Travel Bloggers article.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

How do bloggers get affiliates?

Finding affiliates to promote to your audience is quite simple and starts with understanding your readers’ needs and desires.

books about affiliate marketing

Consider the pain points and issues that your readers face as they travel to your target destinations.

Assess what products and services could help mitigate these struggles and look for affiliates to match them.

By doing so, you can provide immense value to your readers while building a lucrative revenue stream through affiliate marketing.

Once you have identified the right affiliates, reach out and inquire about their program.

Many companies have an online application process that you can complete to become approved as an affiliate.

Other times, you may need to contact a representative directly if the company does not yet have an established program.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

What is an affiliate marketing cookie?

An affiliate marketing cookie is a small piece of data stored on an internet userโ€™s computer when they click a link or advertisement leading to the website of an affiliate partner.

The cookie allows the advertiser to track purchases and activities of the customer over time, even after they leave the site.

This allows advertisers to reward affiliates for any purchases that their readers make as a result of their link or advertisement.

Affiliate cookies last anywhere from zero to 365 days or longer, depending on the program.

Most of the best travel affiliate marketing programs use cookies to track sales, as they provide an accurate way to measure the success of each partnerโ€™s efforts.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

How do I pick the right travel affiliate programs?

Youโ€™ll want to look for programs that offer generous commission rates, easy tracking and reporting systems, and a wide variety of products or services that align with your audience’s needs.

Choosing the right travel affiliate program for your blog can be both exciting and daunting โ€” so here is an example to help make some sense of it.

If you’re in the luxury travel niche, you can find a variety of luxury travel affiliate programs through popular affiliate networks like the Plum Guide Affiliate Program. They bill themselves as an upscale Airbnb.

If you’re in the budget-friendly travel niche, luxury programs won’t suit your audience and you’ll instead want to stick with what you know your readers will be interested in, like the HostelWorld Affiliate Program.

Additionally, one of the most important things to look for is programs that have a positive reputation and active community of affiliate marketers, so you know your readers are getting quality products, and that you’ll be paid reliably.

A great way to start affiliate marketing is by signing up for one or two programs of products or services that you already use and would recommend to others.

As you build up your skills and following, you can expand to include more programs to diversify your income streams.

Here are four things to consider when pocking the best travel affiliates and best best travel affiliate networks to join.

๐Ÿช What is their cookie policy? 

affiliate marketing cookie
๐Ÿช Wondering, What are cookies? An affiliate marketing cookie is not the same as a cookie you eat!

Tracking cookies are an integral part of any affiliate program. Cookies help ensure that you get paid for all the leads and sales generated from your blog.

Every affiliate program should have a clear cookie policy, stating how long their cookies last and what kind of data is collected.

Read each cookie policy carefully and make sure you understand the cookie duration (or cookie window), what happens when customers clear their cookies, and what kind of data is collected through them.

Knowing these details can help you choose the best travel blog affiliate programs and ensure that you get paid for your hard work.

It’s also important that you disclose tracking cookies in your privacy policy and provide the opportunity for your readers to opt out of cookies if they choose to do so.

A cookie opt-out pop-up is a great way to tackle this.

๐Ÿ’ฐ What are their commission rates? 

When selecting the best travel programs for affiliate marketing, commission rates should be high on your priority list.

While there are some pay per click travel affiliate programs, most programs pay a percentage of the sale. The exact rate varies depending on the product or service.

Online marketplaces like Booking.com, DiscoverCars.com and many others that act as a middle-man between you and the companies you are promoting often pay commission on their portion of profits from the sale.

While the percentage of commission may appear to be higher for these such programs, the actual rate you receive may be lower than that of a direct affiliate program.

Other programs may have tiered commission rates with higher percentages for larger or more sales.

Itโ€™s usually worth your time to compare different programs and affiliate networks and find the ones that offer the highest commission rates for the same great products.

This way, you can maximize your earnings from each sale and make sure that your time is spent wisely.

๐Ÿ™‹ Do they have a dedicated Affiliate Manager? 

affiliate marketing manager at their computer

Many travel affiliate programs now offer dedicated affiliate managers who are available to help you promote their products and services.

A good affiliate manager will be able to answer any questions you may have about the program, provide creative assets and tailored promotions for your blog, and help you get the most out of the affiliate program.

Having a dedicated affiliate manager can make it much easier to quickly launch and maximize your campaigns, and can sometimes help you to negotiate higher commission rates based on top performance.

Itโ€™s worth considering whether a program has a dedicated affiliate manager when you are making your selection, as this can be a great asset to you.

๐Ÿ—๏ธ Can they give your readers a discount code or special offers?

One of the best ways to increase conversions is to offer your readers a discount code or special offer.

Look for affiliate programs that have regular promotional offers and discount codes, as this can be a great way to increase your affiliate income.

Make sure you check the terms of each offer carefully, as you will be responsible for providing the code and ensuring that it is applied correctly.

Additionally, many programs have restrictions on where they can be advertised, so make sure you read the terms and conditions before promoting any offers.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

Is travel a good affiliate niche?

Travel is one of the most popular and profitable niches for bloggers, especially if you can focus on promoting travel services in a specific destination or for a specific audience.

affiliate marketing stats on a tablet

Doing so can help you scale your readership faster and create content that resonates with your readers.

Travel bloggers tend to enjoy higher engagement and more loyal readers than many other niches, making it a great choice for affiliate marketing.

By targeting the right affiliate keywords and joining relevant, high-converting affiliate programs, you can easily make income from your travel blog while also providing great value to your readers.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

What is the best program to promote as an affiliate?

Sourcing out the best travel affiliate programs online for your blog begins with you clearly defining your blog’s niche, your audience, their pain points and their longed-for goals.

Finding lucrative affiliate programs begins with finding ones that are most relevant to your readers, as this will always maximize your chances of making a sale.

After you’ve done that, start sifting through affiliate programs and networks to find those with the highest commission rates and most favorable terms.

It’s also always important to choose programs that have a good reputation and reliable customer service, as this will ensure that your readers will have a great experience and will continue to trust you as an authority in your niche.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

Is travel affiliate marketing profitable?

It can be โ€” The travel industry is an incredibly lucrative affiliate market and can be highly profitable for those who know how to market their content correctly.

In fact, affiliate marketing is often the top monetization strategy for travel bloggers, accounting for over 60% of revenue for many top travel bloggers.

By targeting the right affiliate keywords, implementing marketing best practices, and maintaining the trust of your readers, travel bloggers can earn substantial commissions from their affiliate marketing efforts.

Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

When should I start affiliate marketing?

Immediately โ€” If not sooner! Affiliate marketing is a great way to monetize your blog and generate passive income, and with the right strategies you can start earning instantly.

green key on a computer keyboabrrd that says affiliate marketing

Now is the best time to start, as the sooner you begin the sooner you will find the best methods for successfully marketing to your audience.

Additionally, joining affiliate networks and programs as early on in your blogging career as possible can give you an advantage down the road when it comes to negotiating higher commission rates and better promotional offers.

What are the average affiliate network conversion rates?

Affiliate conversion rates can vary tremendously based on a number of factors, but many affiliates see their programs convert at an average of 1%-3%.

My Final Thoughts on the Best Affiliate Programs for Travel Bloggers

affiliate marking infographic

In my opinion, and from my experience growing my travel blog to multiple six figures, affiliate marketing is the right place for travel bloggers to start monetizing through passive income.

By joining the right programs, targeting the right keywords, and taking the time to invest in learning the art of affiliate marketing, it is more than possible to generate substantial passive income through your travel blog.

Now that you have my list of the best affiliate programs for travel sites, start brainstorming what your audience needs and what travel niche products or services would make their travel journey easier.

Find an affiliate program from this list that fits your blog niche and start telling your readers about it.

As you continue to build your audience and hone your strategies, the sky’s the limit for what you can achieve with affiliate marketing through your travel blog.

For example, I made more than $330K from affiliate marketing in 2023.