The Best Travel Affiliate Programs
Looking for travel affiliate programs you can join to make money from?
Look no further, because I have put together this ultimate list containing more than 30 well-paying travel affiliate programs accepting travel bloggers!
What exactly is affiliate marketing? In simplest terms, affiliate marketing is a way for bloggers to earn money by linking to products on their blog, and earning a commission whenever someone makes a purchase after clicking on one of their affiliate links.
Affiliate marketing is one of my favorite ways to make money as a travel blogger. I can recommend useful travel products or hotels I love to my readers, and then I earn a commission (at no extra cost to them) when they make a purchase/booking through my link.
In order to make money from affiliate marketing, you will need to start a blog first.
Starting a travel blog is easy and a lot of fun. I put together a step-by-step guide that will show you how to get your travel blog up and running in under an hour.
30+ Travel Affiliate Programs to Join
Here are the 30+ best travel affiliate programs you can join.
It’s 100% free to sign up for all of the following affiliate programs, but keep in mind that some affiliate programs do have a minimum payment threshold you must reach before you are paid.
There is also typically a payment delay on affiliate sales to account for potential refunds/cancellations. For example, you may not be paid out for your affiliate earnings for 30-90 days after the date that you originally generated the sale.
I have linked the application page for each affiliate program below:
Travelpayouts
Commission: Varies
What it is: Travel affiliate network for flights, hotels, rental cars, tours, and more
ShareASale
Commission: Varies
What it is: Affiliate network with thousands of retailers, many in the travel niche
Amazon
Commission: 1-10% depending on product category
What it is: World’s largest online retailer
Ultimate Bundles
Commission: 40-70%
What it is: Company selling digital product bundles on topics like blogging, photography, travel, personal finance, productivity, and more
Skimlinks
Commission: Varies
What it is: Affiliate network that automatically turns links in your blog posts into affiliate links
TripAdvisor
Commission: 50%
What it is: Travel review site and travel booking engine
Expedia
Commission: 2-6%
What it is: Travel booking engine
Priceline
Commission: 3-5%
What it is: Travel booking engine
Hotwire
Commission: 2%
What it is: Travel booking engine
Last Minute Travel
Commission: 2-5%
What it is: Last minute travel booking engine
Viator
Commission: 4%
What it is: Tour booking website
Booking.com
Commission: 40%
What it is: Hotel booking website
Hotels.com
Commission: 4%
What it is: Hotel booking website
Marriott
Commission: 3-6%
What it is: Hotel chain
Hilton
Commission: 4%
What it is: Hotel chain
Hotels Combined
Commission: $0.50-$2 per lead
What it is: Hotel booking website
Agoda
Commission: 4-7%
What it is: Hostels and budget accommodation booking website
Enterprise
Commission: 1-2.5%
What it is: Car rental company
Budget Rental Cars
Commission: 4%
What it is: Car rental company
Eurail Pass
Commission: 3%
What it is: Train travel pass in Europe
Trainline
Commission: 3%
What it is: Train booking company in Europe
Expert Flyer
Commission: 25-50%
What it is: Airline booking subscription site
Cruise Direct
Commission: 3%
What it is: Cruise booking website
G Adventures
Commission: 5%
What it is: Organized tour company offering hundreds of tours around the world
RoutePerfect
Commissions: $50 per sale
What it is: Online trip planning tool
CityPass
Commission: 6%
What it is: Discount passes with admission to major attractions in more than 10 U.S. cities
Big Bus Tours
Commission: 5-10%
What it is: Bus tours in more than 20 cities around the world
Lonely Planet
Commission: 15%
What it is: Travel guides for hundreds of destinations around the world
World Nomads
Commission: 10%
What it is: Travel insurance
Allianz
Commission: $25 per sale
What it is: Travel insurance
RoamRight
Commission: 15%
What it is: Travel insurance
Momondo
Commission: $0.45-$0.65 per click
What it is: Flight booking website
How to Make Money with a Travel Blog
If you want to make money with your travel blog, I highly recommend joining Travel Blog Prosperity.
It’s a monthly membership for travel bloggers created by Jessie Festa from Jessie on a Journey.
Normally, the membership is $49/month, but when you sign up using the discount code WANDER9 you will get your first month of Travel Blog Prosperity for just $9!
When you join the membership, you’ll get immediate access to the following:
- 30+ trainings and lessons for bloggers, with new ones added monthly
- Workbooks and checklists to go along with each lesson
- Twice monthly live group coaching calls with Jessie
- Weekly VIP Opportunities Newsletter with paid opportunities, press trips, and more!
- Private Member’s Lounge group where you can get your questions answered
And much more!
You can see everything offered inside the Travel Blog Prosperity membership Travel Blog Prosperity.
And don’t forget to use the discount code WANDER9 to get your first month for just $9! There’s no minimum monthly commitment and you can cancel at any time.
How to Start a Travel Blog
Haven’t started a travel blog yet? Here’s a quick step-by-step guide on how to get started!
These are the exact steps I took to start Wander Her Way. You can follow this tutorial and have your own travel blog up and running in less than one hour!
Step 1: Choose a domain name
The first step to starting a travel blog is choosing a name for it. Your blog name will be the first impression that you have on people, so it’s important to pick a good one!
If you need some help coming up with a name for your blog, be sure to read this guide: Travel Blog Names: How to Choose One + Ideas.
Step 2: Get hosting
Once you have chosen a name for your travel blog, you will need to register it and get web hosting.
If you buy your domain name through an outside company, you can expect to pay $15 to $20 for it.
However, if you sign up for web hosting through Bluehost, you can get your domain name for free.
I highly recommend Bluehost for web hosting, and they are the company I (and many other bloggers) use. They have some of the cheapest hosting plans out there, while still having an extremely reliable service and great customer support.
Bluehost has been generous enough to offer readers of Wander Her Way web hosting starting at $3.95 a month (normally $7.99 a month) along with a free domain name.
Here are the detailed steps to set up web hosting with Bluehost:
1. Click the “Get Started” button
2. Select your hosting plan
Which plan to choose: I recommend the basic plan for new bloggers.
I’m personally on the plus plan, but that’s only because I run multiple blogs. Otherwise, I would probably choose the basic plan!
3. Put in your domain name
This is where you’ll put in the domain name that you decided on earlier.
What if I haven’t decided on a name yet? If you haven’t decided on a domain name for your travel blog yet, wait a couple minutes and this offer will pop up on your page:
Select this option and you can go ahead and start setting your blog up, then use the free credit to buy your domain name later.
4. Create your account
5. Select your package and pay
Here’s where you’ll select your hosting plan. The 36-month plan is the best deal at $3.95 a month, but you can also pick a 12-month plan at $5.95 a month for an overall lower cost.
What about package extras? You have the options to add on extras like site backups or site security.
I personally don’t recommend any of these, because there are free WordPress plugins you can install that do the same thing (which I’ll cover in the next section of this guide.)
6. Congrats, you’re done!
Once you check out, you’ll be redirected to your Bluehost dashboard. This is where you can log in to your blog for the first time and start setting everything up.
Your blog will be run on the WordPress platform. Bluehost installs WordPress automatically for you, so you don’t have to do anything on your end.
Step 3: Designing your blog
Your blog will come with the default WordPress theme installed. You will definitely want to change this, which means it’s time to pick a theme for your blog!
When it comes to designing your blog, you have a couple of options. You can hire a web designer, or you can install a theme on your own.
I recommend installing a theme on your own because it’s MUCH cheaper and easier.
There are plenty of free themes out there, but I don’t recommend them because they look very plain, don’t have many customization options, and don’t include customer support.
A premium theme is a much better investment and will make your blog stand out from the crowd.
If you need help finding the perfect theme for your travel blog, make sure to check out my list of the 5 Best WordPress Themes for Travel Blogs.
Step 4: Install plugins
WordPress plugins add extra functionality to your blog. There are thousands of plugins out there, but the ones I recommend most for new bloggers are:
- Yoast SEO: Yoast helps you write blog posts that are SEO-friendly. SEO, or search engine optimization, is what gets your blog posts ranked in Google. Yoast will tell you exactly what you need to do for each blog post you write to improve your SEO.
- Akismet: This plug-in filters out spam comments on your blog.
- WordFence Security: Great security plug-in to protect your site.
- MonsterInsights: MonsterInsights lets you view analytics like page views and your most popular posts. You will need to install Google Analytics on your blog first.
- UpdraftPlus: This plug-in makes regular backups of your site so you never lose anything!
- Social Warfare: Add social sharing icons to your blog posts.
All of these plug-ins are 100% free to use.
Step 5: Start posting!
By now, you should have purchased a domain name and hosting through Bluehost, installed a WordPress theme (these are my favorites), and customized your blog with plug-ins.
Now all that’s left is to start posting – and that’s where these travel blog post ideas will come in handy if you need some inspiration on what to write about. 🙂
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About Denise Cruz
Denise is a marketing executive who escaped corporate to travel the world… twice. A Brazilian native living in the U.S., she’s lived in 4 countries and visited 35+ others. After side-hustling her way to financial independence, she curates solo destination guides, slow travel tips, and travel blogging advice on Wander Her Way. When she’s not on the road, you can find her in Miami with her dog Finnegan.