7 BEST Travel Affiliate Programs in 2023
Looking to find the best Travel affiliate programs available today? According to Statista, the travel and tourism industry has an annual revenue of $854 BILLION worldwide. Now is a great time to profit off a growing market that is projected to grow to over $1 Trillion by 2027..
I'll be sharing my personal experience after investing dozens of hours of research to find the top travel affiliate programs available. I'll also answer frequently-asked questions such as which brands are included, how to sign up, commission rates, and more.
7. Kayak
Kayak is a global affiliate network of travel brands, including:
Kayak.com
HotelsCombined
Momondo
Cheapflights
Kayak.com is a very popular site for comparing and booking flights, hotel stays, car rental, vacation packages, and even trains and bus rides.
Kayak is similar to sites like Expedia and Booking.com (featured on this list as well).
Learn more about the Kayak affiliate program here.
6. Amazon Associates (for Travel Accessories)
Although Amazon may not be the first company that comes to mind when thinking of travel, we are including it here as an umbrella for all travel accessories.
If you are a travel blogger or influencer, you probably have many gear and accessory recommendations for those looking to travel.
Amazon, arguably the largest retailer in the world, also boasts the largest affiliate program called "Amazon Associates" with the most number of affiliates.
It seems like Amazon has almost everything you could ever want these days, all available for purchase with 2-day shipping or less with the click of a button.
If you'd like to learn more about the Amazon Associates affiliate program, including their commission rates and how to sign up, I've written about this program in detail here:
Amazon Affiliate Marketing: Ultimate Beginner's Guide
5. TripAdvisor
TripAdvisor is one of the most popular resources on the internet for travel, and one of the most frequently-visited sites in the world.
TripAdvisor allows consumers to research anything when it comes to travel from real customer reviews, ranging from hotels, to restaurants, to things to do like guided tours.
The official TripAdvisor affiliate program is actually hosted by the Commission Junction affiliate network, which is featured below.
So keep reading and visit the Commission Junction link if you'd like to sign up for TripAdvisor (and others).
4. Impact Radius
Impact Radius Fitness Brands Included:
Southwest Airlines
Alaska Airlines
Enterprise Rent a Car
National Car Rental
Alamo
IHG Rewards Club
Hilton Honors
JetBlue
Virgin Atlantic
Korean Air
Hotwire
United Airlines
World of Hyatt
Impact Radius is one of the largest affiliate networks in the world, and includes famous travel brands like Southwest Airlines, Alaska Airlines, Enterprise Rent-a-Car, and much more.
As you can see from this list, which is only a sample, many airline and hotel brands are featured here.
These affiliate programs tend to focus on the rewards program of each airline/hotel, but perhaps some of them apply to booking airfare/stays as well.
If you'd like to learn more about Impact Radius, including their commission rates and how to sign up, I've written about this program in detail here:
Impact Radius Affiliate Program Review
3. Commission Junction (CJ Affiliate)
Commission Junction Travel Brands Included:
Expedia
TripAdvisor
Hertz
Priceline
Vrbo
Commission Junction, aka CJ Affiliate, is also one of the largest affiliate networks in the world, with even more recognizable travel brands than Impact.
Expedia and TripAdvisor are two of the largest brands in the entire travel industry, and they cover everything from hotels, to flights, to car rental, activities, and more.
In addition, we have brands like Vrbo that make a great alternative to Airbnb, which sadly closed their affiliate program a couple years ago.
If you'd like to learn more about CJ Affiliate, including their commission rates and how to sign up, I've written about this program in detail here:
CJ Affiliate (Commission Junction) Affiliate Program review
2. Booking.com
Similar to Kayak and Expedia, Booking.com is one of the largest online travel agencies for hotel accommodations and more, grossing over $120 Billion in travel bookings in 2022 alone.
The Booking.com affiliate programs pays between a generous 25% to 40% commission rate, and is tiered by number of "stayed bookings" per month, so you get paid more for better performance.
If you'd like to learn more about the Booking.com affiliate program, including their commission rates and how to sign up, I've written about this program in detail here:
1. Expedia
At #1 on our list, we have Expedia, probably the most well-known travel brand in the industry.
Similar to Booking.com and Kayak, Expedia allows consumers to book everything travel, from flights, to hotels, car rentals, and much more.
The Expedia affiliate program is actually hosted by Commission Junction (3rd on this list), but it was worth noting specifically here.
I've written in detail about this program below, so read that if you are interested in applying.
If you'd like to learn more about the Expedia affiliate program, including their commission rates and how to sign up, I've written about this program in detail here:
How do you get approved for Travel affiliate programs?
In order to get approved for Travel affiliate programs and networks, it is required to have a relevant website and to apply. Here is a list of the types of websites who they typically partner with:
Bloggers (specifically in the Travel Niche)
Social media influencers
Content Creators (YouTube, TikTok, Instagram)
Media
Editorial publications
If you need help creating a professional affiliate website quickly, check out my affiliate marketing for beginners guide.
My personal thoughts and experience with Travel affiliate marketing
Having now been a professional affiliate marketer for over 10 years, having generated over 7-figures in commissions, Travel is clearly near the top of the list when it comes to niches by industry size.
Although Travel is not typically included in the "evergreen" markets of Health, Wealth, Happiness (Relationships), it is almost valued at $1 Trillion.
Similar to giant industries like Health and Wellness, the biggest downside to the Travel niche will be high competition and being over-saturated.
But just like I wrote in my list of Best Health and Wellness affiliate programs, the key to succeeding in an over-saturated market is niching down not just one, but two layers.
The positive side of a massive industry is that you only need a very, very tiny slice of the pie to thrive.
You don't need to be the #1 player for the travel industry as a whole, but perhaps #10 player for a sub-sub-niche like "how to teach English in Japan as an American".
Overall, as we have seen in other huge industries, there are a ton of affiliate opportunities here because all of these companies are generating tons of revenue and are willing to pay to stay competitive.