Expedia Group Affiliate Program

Expedia Group runs Expedia, Hotels.com, Vrbo, Travelocity, Orbitz and more, which makes its affiliate program the way to earn on hotels, vacation rentals, flights, cars, packages and cruises from one account. Its brands are especially strong in the US, and Vrbo gives affiliates a vacation rental option that Booking.com only partly covers.

The Travel Creator Program runs on Partnerize and pays a percentage of completed bookings by product: up to 4 percent on hotels and packages, up to 6 percent on cruises and lower rates on flights and car rentals. The cookie is 7 days, short by software standards but typical of travel, and commissions are confirmed after travel is completed. Applications are reviewed, and Expedia provides deep links, banners, a creator toolkit and a help centre. Payouts follow Partnerize's monthly schedule.

Vrbo is the standout: vacation rental bookings are large, and a percentage of a week long stay is a meaningful commission.

Expedia converts from US destination guides, vacation rental roundups, package holiday comparisons, cruise content and hotel deal posts. Because the cookie is short, content that catches readers ready to book, such as specific hotel recommendations, performs best. Hotels.com rewards and Expedia's One Key program give loyalty focused content a reason to send readers there too.