46 Travel Affiliate Programs (Hotels, Airlines & More!)
Updated on June 1, 2022
If you’re an affiliate site owner, then earning through multiple affiliate programs is the best move for you!
Diversifying your earnings makes your website a more secure business and makes it more appealing to buyers should you decide to sell it.
For travel bloggers, this shouldn’t be a problem. There is a whole host of enticing affiliate programs available for you to earn from. A great feature of the travel niche is that consumers often spend hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars at a time.
To help you narrow down your search for affiliate programs, we’ve divided the travel niche into various sub-sections. Whether you want to promote cheap flights, tour guides, or even the best travel luggage—we’ve got you covered.
General Travel Affiliate Programs
These businesses have some of the most well-known and overall best travel affiliate programs available. We call them general as most of them do it all; flights, hotel, and car rental.
Because consumers are likely to know the names of these brands, it adds trust value.
When people are purchasing high-ticket items, they are much less likely to impulse purchase. This means that well-known brands tend to convert better in this space.
TripAdvisor
One of the biggest names in the travel industry, TripAdvisor is perhaps most well known as a user-generated review site.
However, they are also a price comparison site, which is where the opportunity lies. Anytime a user clicks an affiliate link from your website to TripAdvisor and visits the site of one of TripAdvisor’s hotel booking partners, you earn a commission.
The best part is, regardless of whether they make a booking, you receive the commission for the click.
Commission: 50%
Referral window: 14 days
Expedia
Another one-stop travel site for travelers looking to book their dream vacation. They offer hotels, flights, car rentals, and more.
Expedia also gives you free rein to promote their special offers, which is potentially a great marketing opportunity. Commissions can be low, but the trade-off is being able to leverage the brand name of one of the biggest players in the travel industry.
Commission: 2–6%
Referral window: 7 days
Priceline
Although it is one of the lesser-known travel sites, its easy-to-use, search engine-style website makes it an affiliate offer worth considering.
Plus, a lengthy cookie duration makes it possible to earn up to 30-days after a user clicks your affiliate link. You can earn on a variety of vacation packages, flights, and car rentals. This travel affiliate program is available through CJ Affiliate, a well-established affiliate network.
Commission: 3–7%
Referral window: 30 days
Kayak
While the services Kayak offers is similar to our other general travel affiliate programs, their commission structure is slightly different.
They pay on a cost-per-click (CPC) basis. This means that when you direct traffic to Kayak, you earn when a user clicks out of their website onto one of the offers they promote. Because of this, the referral window is short, but it’s still an interesting way to do things.
They also offer daily reporting via CJ Affiliate, so it’s easy to test the success of the program if you like the look of it.
Commission: Up to $0.70 per click
Referral window: 30 minutes per session
Virgin Holidays
One of the most well-known travel agents in the business, who also have their own airline: Virgin Atlantic.
They specialize in higher-end trips, including destinations—such as the Caribbean and the Far East—as well as having a good range of ski packages. Although the commission is low, the prices tend to be higher, so it balances out with some of the higher-paying affiliate programs.
Commission: 2%
Referral window: 30 days
Hotel Affiliate Programs
These affiliate programs involve a wide range of places people can stay while traveling. The primary focus will be hotels, but we’ll also include options for home rentals and hostels.
This will give you more choice on the type of accommodation you can promote on your affiliate site.
Booking.com
With millions of accommodation options, booking.com gives consumers one of the best options when it comes to finding a place to stay.
Everyone with a website should be able to sign up and get started straight away. All you have to do is decide which accommodation you want to promote.
The booking.com affiliate program has a tiered structure. As you reach certain thresholds, you increase your commission.
One thing to note is that the commission comes from the referral fees that booking.com receives, not from the total cost of the booking.
Commission: 25– 40%
Referral window: Must be in the same session
HostelWorld
As the name suggests, HostelWorld is one of the leading sites for people to find hostels.
This offers something slightly different than the standard hotel affiliate program and can be tailored to the backpacker audience.
Commission: Up to 40%
Referral window: 30 days
HotelsCombined
HotelsCombined is one of the leading price comparison sites that compare deals from all the major travel sites.
The brand is owned by Kayak, so signing up for the Kayak affiliate network will allow you to promote HotelsCombined as well.
Commission: Up to $0.70 per click
Referral window: 30 minutes per session
Hotels.com
Another large travel site that not only specializes in hotel bookings but also conference rooms and facilities for business meetings.
A long tracking duration and regular promotion codes make this an affiliate offer worth considering.
Commission: 4.8%
Referral window: 30 days
Flight Comparison and Airline Affiliate Programs
Skyscanner
Not strictly an airline, Skyscanner is one of the most well-known flight comparison sites.
Most consumers know about the price difference between various airlines and so will shop around first. You can help them do just that by promoting an affiliate program like Skyscanner.
Commission: 20%
Referral window: 30 days
Wego
Similar to Skyscanner, Wego allows consumers to compare over 1000 booking sites to find the best-priced flights.
Wego’s affiliate program has two different payout structures. The first is for flights and pays out on successful bookings. This typically earns affiliates $5–50 per booking.
Hotels are paid out on the exit click from Wego’s website to the booking provider. This typically earns affiliates $0.2–0.8 per exit click.
Commission: N/A
Referral window: 30 days
Qatar Airways
Qatar Airways consistently come out on top in the airline of the year awards thanks to their premium service.
Because of these high standards, customers don’t seem to mind paying extra, with their average order value at around $1000.
There’s also an improved rate of commission for affiliates that drive a large number of bookings.
Commission: 2%
Referral window: 30 days
Emirates
Emirates is another high-quality airline that gets great reviews from travelers.
It goes without saying that, as an affiliate, you only want to promote businesses that are of a good standard. Otherwise, you risk losing the trust of your audience.
With a company as well established as Emirates, this isn’t something that you have to worry about.
This is available through the ShareASale network.
Commission: Up to 2.5%
Referral window: 30 days
Villiers Jets
Villiers Jets is an online private jet charter service that boasts a global fleet of over 10,000 private jets that can be chartered to more than 40,000 destinations worldwide.
The Villiers Jets affiliate program pays affiliates for every referred flight that is successfully booked and flown. This is tracked using a cookie that lasts for a generous 365 days.
As you can imagine, charting a private jet costs a pretty penny, so this program certainly offers affiliates the chance to earn good money!
Commission: 30%
Referral window: 365 days
Train and Coach Travel Affiliate Programs
If you only focus on airline affiliate programs, then you miss out on a large audience that travels by train and coach.
This is particularly true across Europe, where interrailing is a popular and more affordable method of travel from country to country.
Rail Europe
One of the primary resources for people traveling around Europe is Rail Europe.
They provide consumers the option to purchase individual tickets as well as passes that allow people to visit multiple countries across the continent.
Commission: 1.8% on rail passes and 1.3% on rail tickets
Referral window: 30 days
Eurail
Another service that allows consumers to travel by rail across 33 European countries.
It also offers passes so consumers can save money, which makes for a good opportunity for affiliates. This is because it generates a high average order value of over $700.
Commission: 3%
Referral window: 30 days
Omio
Omio provides trains, coaches, and even flights for consumers—with one slight difference.
All consumers have to do is enter two different locations and Omio will provide options for getting from one to the other. This includes the cheapest, quickest, and recommended routes.
We included it in this section as Omio will find travel solutions even if there isn’t an airport nearby.
Commission: 6%
Referral window: 30 days
Travel Insurance Affiliate Programs
Travel insurance is a necessity for anyone looking to travel.
This means including some kind of content to promote travel insurance affiliate programs is a must for any travel site owner.
World Nomads
Travel insurance that comes with a good pedigree, with recommendations from sites like Lonely Planet.
World Nomads offers all the typical coverage associated with travel insurance and is available for travelers from a range of nationalities. This makes it a good option if your website drives traffic from all over the world.
Commission: 10%
Referral Window: 60 days
Roam Right
This insurance provider gives US citizens protection for a range of issues, including lost luggage, canceled flights, and medical bills. They also have a mobile app that lets users store their travel documents for easy access.
It’s also worth noting that they use a tracking cookie that lasts a whopping 365 days! Something that affiliates won’t often get to see.
Commission: 15%
Referral window: 365 days
VisitorsCoverage
This travel insurance affiliate program has a large portfolio of insurance policies, including student and business travel.
This makes it one of the most diverse insurers, giving you good angles to promote it across your website.
It also has a scalable earnings system, where the commission you earn depends on the price of the policy sold. The higher the price, the higher the commission.
For affiliates that drive a large number of sales, there’s a chance to go onto a second, more lucrative tier that earns even more per sale.
Commission: Undisclosed
Referral window: Undisclosed
Tour Guide Affiliate Programs
This is a great travel sub-niche, with the potential to create travel guides for many cities and countries.
People want to get out and explore the places they visit, and what better way to do that than with an experienced guide.
Lonely Planet
Lonely Planet is one of the largest sites when it comes to travel guides.
Originally targeted towards solo travelers, it has become one of the most trusted sources for all kinds of travel information.
As a Lonely Planet affiliate, you will promote their vast range of print books and eBooks. To help with this, you can use their promotional tools and monthly sales promotions to incentivize consumers.
The affiliate program has a decent average conversion rate of 12% for travel guides.
Commission: 15%
Referral window: 30 days
Viator
Viator makes it easy for people to find day trips, sightseeing tours, and many other things to do while traveling.
It has a massive collection of events consumers can book, so you’ll never be short of things to promote. Plus, the activities they promote have a star rating so you know that what you’re promoting is of high quality.
The affiliate program is easy to sign up to, and they’ll even email you monthly reports.
Commission: 8%
Referral window: 30 days
Get Your Guide
Get Your Guide is another site that helps people find things to do while traveling. It’s set up in much the same way as Viator.
When you join, you’ll receive widgets and a dedicated support team to help you make the most of the program.
Commission: 7%
Referral window: 30 days
Take Walks
Take Walks specializes in small group tours led by passionate local tour guides.
A unique advantage of booking with Take Walks is the chance to get skip-the-line access to major attractions. This will be a good marketing opportunity for your travel blog.
Commission: 15%
Referral window: Undisclosed
Intrepid Travel
Itrepid Travel provides many different types of tours, including themed tours, such as cycling, retreats, and even polar trips.
All of this comes from an established provider with over 30 years of experience. Their tours are less about tourist attractions and more about connecting with locals and like-minded travelers.
Their affiliate program is available through Commission Junction and will reward affiliates who sell their trips. There are also promotions where you can earn bonuses on top of the commission you make.
Commission: 4%
Referral window: 90 days
G Adventures
G Adventures offers a wide selection of small-group tours, expeditions, and safaris.
They have a generous cookie duration of 90 days and have a high average online order value of $2,600.
To help you promote their site, they give affiliates marketing tools, including display ads, copy suggestions, and frequent promotions.
Commission: 6%
Referral window: 90 days
TourRadar
TourRadar is another alternative to the tour guides mentioned above.
They’ve received press mentions from the likes of The New York Times and Forbes. With over 40K tours to choose from, you’re not going to be short of things to promote.
Their affiliate program is available worldwide through Commission Junction and should be easy for most travel sites with a following to be accepted.
Commission: 5%
Referral window: 90 days
Affiliate Programs for Attractions
There are always stand out features of every city you visit. With these affiliate programs, you can promote attractions for consumers to book tickets ahead of time.
CityPASS
CityPASS is an interesting concept that gives people the opportunity to buy a pass for the major attractions in a city. This allows travelers to conveniently purchase a prepaid ticket booklet ahead of time.
Currently, it only includes places in North America but there’s still a lot of potential with places like New York. The tickets last for up to 9 days so travelers can plan their visits around their trip.
Commission: 5%
Referral window: 90 days
TicketNetwork.com
This is a marketplace that allows ticker sellers to connect with buyers.
They offer tickets for every kind of event, from music concerts to sporting events. Chances are if you’re looking for a ticket, then they’re offering one.
People are prepared to pay top dollar for events, which is evident by the average order value of $350.
Commission: 6%
Referral window: 90 days
Cloud 9 Living
Cloud 9 offers something different, giving people the opportunity to gift experiences. It could be a driving experience or a hot air balloon flight—there are over 2,000 experiences to choose from.
People can search by location or look through the different experience categories. Whatever you’re after, Cloud 9 Living will likely have something so you or a loved one can live out the adventure you’ve always dreamed of.
The 5% commission is a baseline and performance incentives are on offer for successful affiliates.
Commission: 5%
Referral window: 45 days
Car Rental Affiliate Program
Car rental makes it easy for people to arrive at their destination, throw their bags in a car, and head to their hotel. It’s also useful for people who want to go on a day trip without having to worry about public transportation.
Both of these things make it a great affiliate offer to promote.
VIP Cars
VIP Cars is a car rental broker; its users get to search through hundreds of their car rental partners all over the world. This makes a good option for affiliate marketers whose sites drive global traffic.
They have a fully built-out affiliate program with the standard tracking links as well as a customizable search box and API that can be used with your website.
This is already a good travel affiliate program to promote, and it gets even better when you see the high affiliate commission rate!
Commission: 50–75%
Referral window: Undisclosed
Avis
Avis is a leading car rental company that covers many different countries and rental types.
Whether you want a one-way airport rental or something for a few weeks while you explore a new location, Avis can provide you with it. They also have great reviews, so you shouldn’t have any hesitations when it comes to promoting them.
They’re also willing to negotiate a better rate for affiliates that perform well for them.
Commission: 4%
Referral window: 30 days
Zipcar
Zipcar is an innovative app that lets users book self-service cars in a few different countries, including the UK, US, and Canada.
Cars can be booked for spontaneous one-way trips by viewing the location of the car on the map, finding the car, hopping in, and setting off.
They can also be booked for round trips using the app to book and track the cost of the journey.
They don’t disclose how much they pay, but it looks like a referral program where you’ll earn a set fee for every new customer you send them.
Commission: Undisclosed
Referral window: Undisclosed
Cruise Affiliate Programs
The cruise industry has grown rapidly over the past decade, becoming a multi-billion dollar part of the tourism industry. New routes have emerged and humongous ships have been designed as floating resorts.
Cruise Direct
Cruise Direct is one of the premier travel agents for booking cruises online. They’ve won numerous travel awards over the past few years and have thousands of five-star reviews on Shopper Approved.
Cruise Direct also has a dedicated support team that makes consumers feel more confident when booking through them. This could be a nice marketing angle, especially as the demographic for cruise-goers tends to be older.
The Cruise Direct affiliate program is easy to join through CJ Affiliate and has a high average order value of $2,200. This means you could be earning an average of $66 for each booking!
Commission: 3%
Referral window: 45 days
MSC Cruises
MSC Cruises is one of the largest cruise lines in the industry with a fleet of ships to set sail on.
These cruises travel all across the Caribbean and the Mediterranean as well as worldwide, with some cruises costing tens of thousands of dollars.
MSC offers a flat-fee for directing users to book a cruise through them, which can be a great earner even if you convert just a few people a month.
Commission: $100 per booking
Referral window: 30 days
Boat Rental Affiliate Programs
Taking to the sea and viewing the coastline from the water can make for a luxurious vacation.
Whether you want to do that by yourself or have someone take care of it for you, there are companies that will help you with whatever your boating needs are.
Sailing Europe
Sailing Europe has thousands of boats across Europe available for hire with or without a crew.
Whether it’s a classic yacht or something with a bit more power, there’s a multitude of choices from a company that has a very high average review.
The affiliate program is straightforward with a flat-fee for getting people to book with them. They also provide you with banners as well as text-based links for your website.
Commission: €50 per sale
Referral window: Undisclosed
BoatBookings
BoatBookings is a worldwide yacht charter service that provides a range of yachts, with or without a crew.
Their affiliate program is for established sites only but has a decent commission level. One thing to note is that the commission rate is 20% for new customers. For repeat customers, you will earn 10%, which is still a decent commission rate.
Commission: 20%
Referral window: 30 days
Travel Accessory Affiliate Programs
We could write a whole other article on the accessories and gadgets that could be used for traveling.
However, we have kept it to just a few; more products like these could easily be added via Amazon Associates or ShareASale.
Tep Wireless
Tep Wireless allows people to take Wi-Fi with them wherever they go. All users have to do is purchase their desired data plan to start surfing the internet. It’s available to buy and to rent, so you could use it just for the duration of your vacation.
It’s a nifty product that’s great especially for frequent travelers and digital nomads. They have an affiliate program where you’ll earn a commission every time someone purchases or rents through your link.
But they also have a referral program where you’ll earn a $20 flat-fee for each person that orders.
Commission: 10%
Referral window: Undisclosed
Global Travel Clothing Company
This company aims to make traveling more comfortable, secure, and stress-free with its line of jackets. They are designed with plenty of pockets (some hidden) to store all your travel essentials.
Their affiliate program is available through the Reversion network and should be available for most travel sites.
Commission: 9%
Referral window: 60 days
DJI
Travel and photography go hand in hand, and there’s no better way to capture the beauty of somewhere than aerial shots.
DJI is one of the most well-known drone providers and they have a range of models, from ultra-high definition to foldable drones.
Their commission rate starts at 5%, but there is the potential to earn up to 8% for some offers.
Commission: 5%
Referral window: Undisclosed
Luggage Affiliate Programs
A staple for any travel affiliate site is recommending luggage. While it’s not the most expensive part of the journey, it can still be a lucrative way to boost your earnings.
Roam Luggage
Roam luggage allows people to design their own luggage. Everything is customizable, right down to a monograph printed on the back.
They’re eye-catching and would work well if you can use images on your site to show them off. The luggage is priced at the higher end of the market, but if users convert, it means you’re in for a nice payout.
The affiliate program is available through the ShareASale network.
Commission: 8%
Referral window: 30 day
Solgaard
Solgaard is a sustainable company that makes backpacks and luggage. For every purchase, they are committed to removing 5lbs of plastic from the ocean.
Their suitcases are also something to behold as they have a built-in shelving system, which looks awesome.
Another great feature of purchasing with Solgaard is a 10-year warranty. You have to apply via email for more details of the affiliate program, but their products look worth the effort.
Commission: 10%
Referral window: 90 days
Luggage Forward
A more left-field option, but Luggage Forward does away with the need to carry luggage as they will get your items shipped from door to door for you.
This eliminates the need to check-in bags and spend time waiting at the luggage carousel. You might seem skeptical but they have a guarantee that if your luggage is late then you’ll get a full refund and up to $500 reimbursement. Can’t ask for more than that!
Commission: 8%
Referral window: 45 days
Miscellaneous Travel Affiliate Programs
These affiliate programs are ones that don’t quite fit into any of the other categories we’ve talked about but are good nonetheless.
There are so many hotel and airline companies with affiliate programs that you can sometimes forget to think slightly out of the box. Lucky for you, we’ve included some here to help diversify your earnings further.
For more travel-specific affiliate offers, check out TravelPayouts which is a travel affiliate network. It’s a great resource for anyone involved in travel blogging.
Wise
Formerly known as Transferwise, Wise is a fast way to send money abroad.
It’s also a lot cheaper than relying on traditional banks to exchange your money, as banks will often charge you a high fee on top of a poor exchange rate.
As well as currency exchange, Wise also offers debit cards, making it easier to manage your money in over 50 different currencies.
This is a great company for frequent travelers and digital nomads alike. They don’t reveal their commission rate on their website but do state that they don’t use tracking cookies, which should mean there’s no time limit within which you can receive commissions.
Commission: Undisclosed
Referral window: None
Park ‘N Fly
Park ‘N Fly is a service that helps people find affordable and safe off-site airport parking.
Their easy-to-use website makes searching for international airports simple. With the high cost of airport parking, there’s plenty of good angles to promote this affiliate offer.
This program is available through ShareASale.
Commission: 3%
Referral window: 7 days
AirHelp
If you’ve had a delayed flight, AirHelp can help you to get the compensation you deserve.
This is good for people that don’t want to go through the hassle of doing all the paperwork themselves or are unsure of how to claim their money back.
There are also bonuses for affiliates that drive a high number of sales.
Commission: Average of €23
Referral window: 45 days
Villiers
A private jet company that aggregates over 10K private aircrafts to help consumers to find the best prices on chartered flights.
This service is available worldwide and is the ultimate VIP way of traveling. While it might not be applicable for many people, they have a very appealing affiliate program.
A year-long tracking cookie and also the ability to earn repeat commission for the lifetime of any client you connect them with. Promote this right and it could be very lucrative!
Commission: 30% profit share
Referral window: 365 days
Thought About Selling Your Affiliate Site?
Affiliate marketing can create a very valuable business. It’s common to see affiliate sites for sale earning thousands of dollars in monthly net profit on our marketplace.
To maximize the value of your website, you should try to earn from 3–8 affiliate programs. This makes a site more secure should any company decrease its commission structure or remove the affiliate program completely.
A more financially secure site is a better investment so potential buyers will be willing to pay more for your business.
If your site is profitable, then you might be interested to find out how much it’s worth. To get a free valuation in just a few minutes, check out our online valuation tool.
We sell hundreds of websites every year and would be happy to jump on a call with you to give you some exit planning advice. Even if you’re not thinking about selling yet, this can help you get a more profitable exit when you do decide to sell.
