The Best Travel Affiliate Programs to Earn Big in 2023

Last Updated on November 28, 2022 by Chimezie Chidi

The Best Travel Affiliate Programs to Earn Big in 2023

As an Independent travel agent or a travel blogger, there are thousands of affiliate programs available to you.

In this post I will be covering the best travel affiliate programs you should consider to join to earn big in 2020.

Travel Affiliate programs offer some of the most excellent opportunities to make high levels of commissions.

The travel industry is huge with lots of potentials to make money for affiliates. 

Travel bloggers can monetize their blogs through the following ways:

1. Display Ads like Google and Mediavine
2. Sell e-books and online courses about travel
3. Become an independent travel consultant
4. Affiliate marketing and many more.

Affiliate marketing opens the way for more viable options to make money online if you are a blogger or somehow involved in the travel industry.

There are many options and routes you can following to make money online.

You can recommend:

1. International and domestic flight offers from airlines and online flight search booking engines
2. Hotel and Accommodation bookings
3. Travel insurance
4. Family Vacations Packages
5. Car Rentals
6. Tour activities
7. Cruises
8. Safaris
9. Travel clothing, gear and accessories
10. and many more.

Indeed the options are vast.

So there is a compelling need to seek travel affiliate programs that will give the best commissions for the least effort.

These are some of the best affiliate programs in the world, based on high payouts and popularity.

#1. Expedia Travel Affiliate Program

The Expedia Travel Agent Affiliate Program shortened to the TAAP program is a unique blend of well over 500,000 hotels and more than 400 airlines across major cities and countries in the World.

When you signup with this affiliate program, you are sure to reach a wide range of endless possibilities because the exposure and visits to your site would be quite extensive.

Think about it, 500,000 hotels and airlines just for you.

Also, the kind of commissions you will make would range from 3% to 11% of transactions through your website.

However, this depends so much on the type of transaction you make.

When you join Expedia, your application will be reviewed by their customer support, and once your website has been approved, you can start using their affiliate program to monetize your site.

However, you should note that only US Travel agents can use this program, other than that you must be registered under IATA, ARC, CLIA and True ID to get signed up.

Overview

There are many kinds of commission rates; you can get, here are some of them regarding transactions or sales:

• Car rental transactions (per transaction): 6%
• Premium hotel transactions (per transactions): 9%
• Vacation packages:
  • • Flight +hotel + car rental or Flight + hotel with a minimum of 3 hotel nights: 5%
    • Flight+ hotel or Flight + car rental + hotel with less than 3 hotel night: 3%
• Expedia Premium Plus hotel transactions: 11% but dependent on monthly Merchant hotel sales
• Activities transactions (per transaction): 10%
• Basic hotels transactions:3%
• Payment schedule: A minimum of $50 from your commission to be paid at the 15th of every month.

Pros

• With Expedia, you have access to the biggest travel inventory in the world, so there is so much to pick from and recommend to your audience. With over 500,000 hotels and 400 airlines, there is just something that should appeal to your market.
• It is a legitimate platform, and you will receive up to 11% payouts, which is, in fact, one of the highest payouts available
• Expedia also has a dedicated affiliate call centre for you, so when you have challenges or wish to make inquiries, all of this can be done without any added stress on your part.

Cons

• Efforts are never direct, only through intermediaries such as CJ or AWIN
• Customer must validate their bookings before your commissions are confirmed
• API is only available only after strict selection.

#2. Hotels Combined Travel Affiliate Program

Another very large network for you is the Hotel Combined.

You will receive access to over 1.4 million hotels as there are no car rentals and other travel needs on this platform.

When you sign up with Hotels Combined, you can earn as much as $0.50 to$2 for every lead you get to their website through your platform. Also, any visitor who clicks on your referral links will be tracked for up to 365 days, thereby ensuring that you continue receiving more commissions for every repeat visit.

Your commissions will be processed before the end of the month and will be made to you.

However, you must reach a minimum payout of $100, before you will be paid and this payment will take place via your PayPal account.

Pros

• With Hotels Combined, you can make a lot of money without owning a travel agency. This platform is quite excellent even as a travel blogger because the demand for hotels remains high. There are thousands of hotels to pick from and promote to your audience and travellers around the world.
• Hotels Combined also offers you an excellent affiliate support group which is available at any time to give your assistance with any challenges you are having. They also have a dedicated multilingual team in case you wish to handle your problems in a different language than English.
• 365days Cookie: Think about, having a medium that tracks all previous visitors and ensures you keep receiving commissions on that same person.

Cons

• Minimum payouts are very high
• It is often difficult to measure or monitor your statistics

#3. Amazon Associates Affiliate Program

The Amazon Associates Program is not exactly the best medium if you only wish to concentrate on recommending cars and hotels.

However, you will be recommending all kinds of travel gear, clothing and accessories to the rest of the world.  

If you look at it, you will find that it is a win-win situation for you, because your audience would also be requiring such equipment.

Payouts are made once have up to $100 within a month of confirming payments. For instance; commissions received in January can be paid in March.

Overview

You will earn 4% flat fee for commission; however, some products might get you a higher or lower commission.

Here is a list of the products:

• Televisions, Digital Video Games: 2.00%
• Toys: 3.00%
• Video Games & Video Game Consoles: 1.00%
• PC, PC components, DVD & Blu-Ray: 2.50%
• Digital Music, Grocery, Handmade, Digital videos, physical music: 5.00%
• Amazon Fire Tablets Devices, Amazon Kindle devices, dash buttons: 4.00%
• Musical equipment, business & Industrial supplies: 6.00%
• Outdoor tools: 5.50%
• Home, Lawn & Garden, Pantry, Pets products, furniture: 8.00%
• Amazon Element Smart TV, Amazon Fire Devices, Luggage, Shoes, Handbags & Accessories, Watches, Amazon Echo Devices, and other apparels: 7.00%
• Other categories: 4.00%

Pros

• There are a lot of products that can be added to your platform. As a travel agent affiliate or blogger, you can also have products that have nothing to do with travelling but will be appealing to your subscribers
• Amazon also provides pre-designed links and banners for a lot of travel-related products to ensure that your campaigns are seamless.
• You will also access a dedicated support team which is available 24 hours straight for you.

#4. Booking.Com Travel Affiliate Program

With the Booking.Com Affiliate program, you can have up to 40% commissions. This is by far one of the most substantial commissions. Also, since a lot of people book hotels and accommodations online, there will be lots of earnings for you.

You will earn up to 25% on any stayed booking, and this can be increased if the person who books the room stays longer. Also, all payments will be made via PayPal, a month after the guest gotten through your referral has completed their stay.

Pros

• Booking.com receives at least 1. 2 million bookings every day. Therefore there is a high chance of a lot of payouts for you.
• Also, Booking.com provides you with a wide range of promotion tools, so your marketing s are more effective.
• There is also a dedicated affiliate support team available anytime you need help.

Cons

• Commissions are received on an individual split model
• You will have to wait until your visitors check out before you can receive payments.

#5. Cruise Direct Travel Affiliate Program

With Cruise Direct, you will have access to affiliate links to cruise vacations and all kinds of bookings in that format. You will earn up to 3% commission of every gross sale, which indeed is a hefty sum. Also, you will have a 45-cookie window, which gives you many more earnings for your referral links.

Once you sign up, you will be notified within 24 hours about the approval of your accounts.

Also, the minimum payout is $25 which will be paid a month after the sales are confirmed. This means sales made in January will be remitted to your account through PayPal in March.

Pros

• There is always some cruise or vacation package, so there will be plenty of avenues through which you can earn. You will receive newsletters from Cruise Direct about these updates every week.
• There are also a lot of promotional tools such as text ads, search boxes to make excellent landing pages and banner ads. All of these ensures that you can make promotions without a lot of fuss.
• Also, you can promote with your website or social media account
• Cruise Direct also has a fantastic support system to ensure that your account is well managed.

#6. Agoda Travel Affiliate Program

With Agoda, you can help your subscribers reach out to the best accommodations in resorts and hotels across the world.

There are millions of people looking for this, so your platform will undoubtedly receive a lot of visits.

Also, Agoda pays you as much as 5% for every successful transaction via your affiliate link.

Agoda also pays through PayPal and like Cruise Direct, these payments will be made after one month.

The minimum payout is $200.

Pros

• Agoda has access to well over 900,000 properties in the world which virtually includes hotels, resorts, and many other accommodations, so there is always something for your visitors.
• Agoda also gives you access to a lot of information about these accommodations so your referrals can be content-based, therefore engaging your victors extensively.
• You will also have access to a lot of customized tools to help make effective marketing campaigns
• There is also a dedicated support platform for you.

Cons

• Minimum payouts are quite high
• There is also a transfer fee of $10 to be withdrawn from your earnings
• Calculating your commissions can be quite confusing

#7. TripAdvisor Travel Affiliate Program

TripAdvisor has been here for a very long while.

Hence it is a reputable network.

TripAdvisor gives you access to lots of travel and restaurant bookings for your dedicated viewership.

TripAdvisor will also pay you up to %80 commission per each successful transaction from your affiliate links, but 50% is the average.

Just like the previous affiliate programs, your payouts will be sent within a month of confirmation via PayPal.

Pros

• TripAdvisor is used by millions of people all over the world. Therefore, there is a global reach which means whether you are a travel blogger or travel affiliate, you can get some of the best travel deals. Also, you can be an affiliate with TripAdvisor outside the U.S.
• There is a lot of information on TripAdvisor that can be relevant to your platform to enhance your earnings.
• Also, you will have access to banner ads and text ads to increase your marketing campaigns.
• There is a dedicated support team for you in case you need any assistance with setting up your affiliate platform

Cons

• There is no direct payment
• Promotional tools are quite a few
• Connections are never direct but through intermediaries.

#8. STA Travel Affiliate Program

The STA affiliate travel program is quite popular in the world and is mainly used by hotel travel bloggers and youth bloggers.

With this travel affiliate program, you will gain access to lots of flight and tour deals via this affiliate network.

You will be earning up to 10% for tours, SIM cards and ISIC cards as well as $4 on flights. Confirmed commissions are paid out every month not minding the amount. There is no minimum payout threshold.

Pros

• This platform is mainly for students, teachers or travel bloggers who are also students.
• STA Travel receives up to 3.6 million page views per month and about 620,00 visits every month, so it is a great deal to be an affiliate with them.
• STA also has a dedicated affiliate support team available anytime you need their help

#9. Wego Travel Affiliate Network

Wego is also a lovely platform for independent travel agents as well as travel bloggers.

However, your payments will not be on a per sales or transaction basis.

You can receive pay, even if there is no successful transaction on their end.

Therefore, they use a commission per click (CPC) platform.

However, payments are within 0.20$ to 0.80$ per click.

The minimum threshold for payments is $100 via PayPal which will be paid between 15th and 20th every month.

Pros

• Wego offers an exclusive affiliate network for travel bloggers and other affiliate promoters through its wide range of bookings and travel-related programs.
• Also, there is a customer service team for you, in case you need help with enhancing your payouts.

Cons

• Payouts can take up to 2 months
• APIs might cost you up to $1,000 per year
• You can get blocked if there is poor quality traffic.

#10. Lonely Planet Travel Affiliate Program

Lonely Planet Travel Affiliate Program is one of the biggest travel guide publishers in the world.

As an affiliate on their platform, you can receive high commissions for magazines, travel guides, eBooks and bookings which you advertise on your website.

You will receive up to 15% on digital books and print as well as 12% for travel guides.

However, these commissions may vary from time to time, but this information will be made available to you via their website.

Payments are made at the end of the month to your account.

Pros

• You will receive promotional tools to make your marketing more effective
• There is a 30-day cookie duration which means when a customer buys 29 days after clicking on your link; you will still earn your commissions
• There is a customer support team for you when anytime you need assistance.

There are many more affiliate programs for you.

However, you should make sure to read their terms of service before signing up.

Also, ensure to research the affiliate products before adding them to your website.

Affiliate marketing is unquestionably one of the best ways to make money online.

All you need do is pick the right niche, create a quality website that should drive a high level of traffic.  

Once you have done your homework, you can sit back and enjoy huge earnings through your affiliate links. And so take advantage of the best travel affiliate programs which have made high levels of reputations, are free to join and will pay you exceptionally.