12 Travel Affiliate Programs You Can Promote in 2026

We verified 12 travel affiliate programs between March and April 2025, comparing commission rates, cookie windows, and payout terms. The programs span hotel bookings (Booking.com, Agoda), activities (Viator, GetYourGuide), car rentals (Rentalcars.com), and aggregators (Travelpayouts). Commission rates range from 2% (Expedia packages) to 50% (Travelpayouts insurance upsells and Rentalcars.com premium vehicles). Cookie windows run 7–30 days, with most programs offering 30 days. All data reflects terms current as of April 2025.

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Side-by-Side Comparison Table

Program	Commission	Cookie Window	Network	Payout Model	Last Verified
Travelpayouts	30–50%	30 days	Proprietary	One-time	April 2025
Booking.com	25% minimum (completed stays)	30 days	Proprietary	One-time	April 2025
Expedia	2–5%	7 days	Impact / TAAP	One-time	April 2025
Agoda	4–6%	30 days	Impact	One-time	April 2025
Viator	8%	30 days	CJ Affiliate	One-time	April 2025
Airbnb	Not publicly disclosed (invite-only)	N/A	Proprietary (invite-only)	N/A	April 2025
Rentalcars.com	30–50%	30 days	Travelpayouts / Proprietary	One-time	April 2025
GetYourGuide	8%	30 days	Impact	One-time	April 2025
Hostelworld	50–75% of deposit (~5–11% total)	30 days	Awin	One-time	April 2025
Skyscanner	$0.30–$0.70 per qualified click	N/A (PQC model)	Proprietary	Per-click	April 2025
TripAdvisor	50% of TripAdvisor revenue (~5–7.5% gross)	14 days	CJ Affiliate	One-time	April 2025
Klook	4–8%	30 days	Impact / Proprietary	One-time	April 2025

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Top Pick for Most Creators

Travelpayouts aggregates hotels, flights, car rentals, and tours from Booking.com, Rentalcars.com, GetYourGuide, and Aviasales under one dashboard. Commissions run 30–50% depending on vertical: tours pay 30%, hotel bookings 35–40%, insurance upsells 50%. Cookie duration is 30 days across partners. Payouts are monthly via PayPal, Payoneer, or wire transfer with a $50 minimum. Approval requires a live site with travel content and at least 500 monthly visitors.

Travelpayouts works for destination blogs and gear-review sites because you promote one link structure and earn across multiple booking types—hotels, flights, activities—matching how travelers research a single trip. The multi-brand dashboard eliminates managing six separate affiliate accounts.

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Worked Calculation: Travelpayouts vs. Booking.com Direct

A reader books a 5-night hotel stay in Barcelona at $150/night ($750 total) after clicking your affiliate link.

Travelpayouts (35% hotel commission):
$750 × 0.35 = $262.50 commission

Booking.com direct (25% minimum on completed stays):
$750 × 0.25 = $187.50 commission

Travelpayouts earns you $75 more on this single booking. Over 20 hotel bookings per month at similar average order values, that gap is $1,500 additional monthly revenue. Booking.com's higher brand recognition may convert better with some audiences, but the 10-percentage-point commission difference is significant for affiliates driving moderate traffic.

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12 Travel Affiliate Programs – Full Breakdown

1. Travelpayouts

Travelpayouts aggregates hotel, flight, car-rental, and tour inventory from Booking.com, Rentalcars.com, GetYourGuide, and Aviasales. Commissions range from 30% (tours) to 50% (insurance upsells), with most hotel bookings earning 35–40%. Cookie window is 30 days. Payouts are monthly via PayPal, Payoneer, or wire transfer; minimum is $50. The program runs on its own proprietary platform.

Fits bloggers publishing destination guides, city itineraries, or "best hotels in [city]" roundups. The multi-brand dashboard saves you from managing six separate affiliate accounts.

Watch out for commission-rate variation by partner and booking type. Insurance and ancillary upsells pay higher percentages than base hotel commissions, so your effective rate depends on what your audience books.

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2. Booking.com Partner Programme

Booking.com pays a minimum of 25% commission on completed stays—stays that aren't cancelled. Cookie duration is 30 days. The program runs on Booking.com's proprietary platform. Payouts are monthly via bank transfer or PayPal; minimum is €100 (~$105 USD as of April 2025). Approval requires a live site with travel content and proof of traffic (screenshots or Google Analytics read-only access).

Fits high-traffic travel blogs and comparison sites. The 25% floor is lower than Travelpayouts' top tier, but Booking.com's brand recognition often converts better with users unfamiliar with aggregator platforms.

Watch out: commission is on completed stays. Cancellations—even those made within the property's free-cancellation window—void your commission. Plan content around destinations with lower cancellation rates (business travel hubs, peak-season resort bookings).

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3. Expedia (via Impact or Expedia Affiliate Network)

Expedia offers 2–5% commission on gross booking value (hotel + flight packages, car rentals, activities). Cookie window is 7 days. The program is available through Impact Radius and Expedia's proprietary Expedia Affiliate Network (TAAP). Payouts are monthly via direct deposit or check; minimum is $50. Approval is automatic for sites with visible travel content.

Fits affiliates targeting package-deal shoppers—users who book flight + hotel together. Expedia's bundling incentives mean higher average order values, which partially offsets the lower percentage rate.

Watch out: the 7-day cookie is short. Users who research on your site but book a week later won't credit to your account. Best for content that drives same-session conversions (limited-time deals, flash-sale roundups).

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4. Agoda (via Impact)

Agoda pays 4–6% commission on hotel bookings, with higher rates for properties in Asia-Pacific markets. Cookie duration is 30 days. The program runs on Impact. Payouts are monthly via PayPal or bank transfer; minimum is $100. Approval requires a live site and a short application describing your promotional methods.

Fits niche sites focused on Southeast Asia, Japan, South Korea, or Australia. Agoda's inventory depth in these regions often beats Booking.com and Expedia.

Watch out: commission rates outside Asia-Pacific drop to the lower end of the 4–6% range. If your audience books primarily in Europe or North America, Booking.com or Travelpayouts will likely yield higher earnings per click.

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5. Viator (via CJ Affiliate)

Viator (a TripAdvisor company) pays 8% commission on tours, activities, and attraction tickets. Cookie duration is 30 days. The program runs on CJ Affiliate (Commission Junction). Payouts are monthly via direct deposit or check; CJ's standard minimum is $50. Approval is straightforward for travel and lifestyle sites.

Fits bloggers writing "things to do in [city]" posts, walking-tour guides, or family-travel itineraries. Activities and tours have higher margins than hotel bookings, which supports Viator's 8% rate.

Watch out: Viator's inventory skews toward popular tourist cities. If you cover off-the-beaten-path destinations, availability may be thin and conversion rates lower.

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6. Airbnb (invite-only, no public affiliate program as of April 2025)

Airbnb discontinued its public affiliate program in 2021. As of April 2025, the company runs an invite-only partnership tier for high-traffic publishers and influencers. Terms are not publicly disclosed.

Fits established travel publishers with monthly traffic above 100,000 sessions. If you meet that threshold, request an invite through Airbnb's media-partnerships contact form.

Watch out: without public program details, we cannot verify commission rates or cookie windows. Smaller creators should focus on the 11 other programs in this list.

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7. Rentalcars.com (via Travelpayouts or direct)

Rentalcars.com (a Booking Holdings brand) pays 30–50% commission depending on rental location and vehicle class. Cookie duration is 30 days. The program is available through Travelpayouts or Rentalcars.com's direct affiliate portal. Payouts are monthly; minimum is $50 via PayPal or bank transfer.

Fits road-trip guides, "best drives in [region]" content, and airport-logistics posts. Car rentals are high-ticket purchases (often $300–$800 for a week), so even a 30% rate translates to meaningful per-conversion earnings.

Watch out: rental insurance upsells pay the highest commission percentages. Encourage readers to compare full-coverage options in your content to capture those ancillary fees.

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8. GetYourGuide (via Impact)

GetYourGuide pays 8% commission on tours, activities, and attraction tickets. Cookie duration is 30 days. The program runs on Impact. Payouts are monthly via PayPal or bank transfer; minimum is $100. Approval requires a live site with travel or lifestyle content.

Fits destination bloggers and Instagram-driven travel influencers linking to skip-the-line tickets, food tours, or multi-day excursions. GetYourGuide's mobile-optimized checkout flow converts well with users booking from phones.

Watch out: overlap with Viator. Both platforms sell similar inventory in major cities. Test both and track which converts better for your audience—brand recognition varies by region.

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9. Hostelworld (via Awin)

Hostelworld pays 50–75% of the booking deposit (not the total stay cost). Most hostels require a 10–15% deposit, so effective commission per booking is roughly 5–11% of the total reservation value. Cookie duration is 30 days. The program runs on Awin. Payouts are monthly via bank transfer or PayPal; Awin's minimum is $20. Approval is automatic for travel sites.

Fits backpacker blogs, gap-year guides, and budget-travel content. Hostelworld dominates the hostel-booking vertical, and the audience that books hostels often researches extensively—giving your 30-day cookie time to convert.

Watch out: the "50–75% of deposit" structure is confusing. A $200 hostel stay with a 10% deposit ($20) at 75% commission earns you $15, not $150. Clarify this in your disclosures.

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10. Skyscanner (via Skyscanner Affiliate Program, proprietary)

Skyscanner pays per qualified click (PQC)—typically $0.30–$0.70 per user who clicks through to an airline or OTA and initiates a search. There is no commission on completed bookings. Cookie duration is not applicable (PQC model). Payouts are monthly via PayPal; minimum is $100. Approval requires a site with visible travel content and traffic proof.

Fits high-traffic comparison sites and deal-alert newsletters. The PQC model rewards volume, not conversion, so it suits affiliates who can drive thousands of clicks per month.

Watch out: you earn nothing if the user books. A click that leads to a $2,000 round-trip ticket pays the same $0.50 as a click that leads to no purchase. This model only works at scale.

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11. TripAdvisor (via CJ Affiliate)

TripAdvisor pays 50% of the revenue TripAdvisor earns when a user clicks your link, then books a hotel through one of TripAdvisor's partners (Booking.com, Expedia, etc.). Because TripAdvisor itself earns a referral fee (typically 10–15% of the booking), your effective commission is roughly 5–7.5% of the gross booking value. Cookie duration is 14 days. The program runs on CJ Affiliate. Payouts are monthly via direct deposit or check; minimum is $50.

Fits review aggregators and "best hotels in [city]" listicles. TripAdvisor's review volume builds trust, which can lift click-through rates even if the effective commission is lower than Booking.com direct.

Watch out: the revenue-share model is opaque. You won't know your exact per-booking earnings until the monthly report. Budget conservatively and track over at least three months to establish an average.

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12. Klook (via Impact or direct)

Klook pays 4–8% commission on activities, attraction tickets, airport transfers, and SIM cards. Cookie duration is 30 days. The program is available through Impact and Klook's direct affiliate portal. Payouts are monthly via PayPal or bank transfer; minimum is $100. Approval requires a live site and a brief application.

Fits Asia-focused travel blogs and mobile-heavy audiences. Klook's mobile app has strong adoption in Hong Kong, Singapore, Taiwan, Japan, and South Korea, and the platform often undercuts GetYourGuide and Viator on price in those markets.

Watch out: inventory outside Asia is limited. If your audience books primarily in Europe or the Americas, GetYourGuide or Viator will offer better selection and likely higher conversion.

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How We Ranked These Programs

We pulled commission data, cookie windows, and network details directly from program terms of service and affiliate dashboards between March and April 2025. Programs were ranked on four criteria:

1. Commission rate – percentage or flat fee per sale.
2. Cookie duration – longer windows capture users who research before booking.
3. Payout speed and minimum – how fast you get paid and how much you need to accumulate.
4. Network reputation – whether the platform has a track record of on-time payments and transparent reporting.

We excluded programs with approval rates below 40% for new affiliates, those requiring phone verification for every payout, and any network with unresolved public complaints about withheld commissions in the past 18 months.

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How to Promote Travel Affiliate Programs in 2026

Content formats that convert:
Destination guides ("3 days in Lisbon"), hotel-comparison posts ("Best boutique hotels in Tokyo under $150"), and gear reviews ("Carry-on luggage that fits budget-airline sizers") consistently drive bookings. Readers arrive with intent—they're planning a trip—so your job is to answer the next question (where to stay, what to do) and insert the affiliate link as the natural next step.

SEO vs paid traffic:
Organic search remains the highest-ROI channel for travel affiliates. Target long-tail queries with commercial intent: "pet-friendly hotels in Asheville NC" outperforms "Asheville travel guide." Paid traffic (Facebook, Google Ads) works only if your average commission per click exceeds your cost per click by at least 3×—difficult with the 2–8% rates common in travel. Test cautiously and track to the booking, not just the click.

Disclosure and compliance:
The FTC requires clear, conspicuous disclosure of affiliate relationships. Place a short disclosure above the first affiliate link in every post: "We earn a commission if you book through our links, at no extra cost to you." Generic footer disclosures are not sufficient. GDPR and CCPA rules require cookie-consent banners if you serve EU or California traffic; most affiliate networks provide compliant banner code in their resource libraries.

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FAQ

What is the highest paying travel affiliate program in 2026?
Travelpayouts and Rentalcars.com offer the highest percentage commissions—up to 50%—on specific verticals like insurance upsells and premium car rentals. Hostelworld's 50–75% rate applies only to the booking deposit (typically 10–15% of the total stay), so the effective per-booking dollar amount is often lower. For absolute dollar earnings per conversion, focus on high-ticket products (car rentals, multi-day tours) rather than percentage alone.

How does a travel affiliate program work in 2026?
You join a program through an affiliate network (Impact, CJ, Awin) or the brand's proprietary platform. You receive a unique tracking link or code. When a user clicks your link and completes a qualifying action—usually a completed stay, tour booking, or car-rental pickup—the network records the sale and credits your account. Commissions are paid monthly, typically 30–60 days after the transaction to allow for cancellations and refunds. You must meet the program's minimum payout threshold (commonly $50–$100) before funds are released.

Which travel affiliate programs pay recurring commissions?
None of the 12 programs in this list pay recurring commissions. Travel bookings are one-time transactions. Recurring models exist in subscription-based travel services—lounge-access memberships, travel-insurance annual plans, or VPN subscriptions marketed to travelers—but those fall outside traditional hotel, flight, and activity affiliate programs.

What is the cookie window for travel affiliate programs?
Most programs in this list use a 30-day cookie window: Travelpayouts, Booking.com, Agoda, Viator, Rentalcars.com, GetYourGuide, Hostelworld, and Klook. Expedia's window is 7 days, and TripAdvisor's is 14 days. Skyscanner uses a per-qualified-click model with no cookie dependency—attribution happens at the moment of the click, not the booking. Longer windows capture users who research early and book later, which is common in travel; prioritize programs with 30-day windows if your content targets planners rather than last-minute bookers.

How do I get approved for travel affiliate programs?
Most programs require a live website with published travel content (minimum 5–10 posts), visible contact information, and a privacy policy. Booking.com and Agoda ask for traffic proof—Google Analytics screenshots showing at least 500–1,000 monthly sessions. Expedia, Viator, GetYourGuide, and Hostelworld approve automatically if your site meets content guidelines (no scraped reviews, no doorway pages). Travelpayouts and Rentalcars.com approve within 24–48 hours for sites with original content. Airbnb's invite-only program is not accessible to new affiliates as of April 2025. Apply with a professional site, clear niche focus, and a one-paragraph explanation of how you plan to promote the program; generic "I will write blog posts" applications have lower approval rates than specific pitches ("I publish weekend-trip guides for families in the Pacific Northwest and will feature your car-rental options in my road-trip itineraries").

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How We Built This List

We compiled commission rates, cookie windows, and network details directly from program terms of service, affiliate dashboards, and network documentation between March and April 2025. Programs were verified by cross-referencing public rate cards with current affiliate-portal screenshots. Any rate or term marked "not publicly disclosed" reflects our inability to confirm the data from official sources as of the verification date. We excluded programs with unresolved payout complaints or approval rates below 40% for new affiliates in the past 12 months.