9 Best Viator Alternatives for Travel Bloggers in 2024
Looking for the best Viator alternatives?
If you’re a travel blogger or someone who loves exploring new places, you’ve probably heard of Viator.
Viator (owned by TripAdvisor) is a popular online platform that offers tours, activities, and experiences in various destinations worldwide.
Travel bloggers partner with platforms like Viator to make money on affiliate sales through a designated affiliate link.
Affiliate marketing is one way many travel bloggers make an income without running ads on their websites.
Some rely solely on affiliate income because it’s so lucrative.
Not only is it highly lucrative, but it’s the quickest way to monetize a blog. I monetized a travel blog in three months with affiliate marketing.
However, Viator is not the only option; there are other alternatives that you can consider for your next adventure.
What Is Viator?
Viator is a travel booking platform specializing in tours, activities, and experiences worldwide.
As a travel blogger for over two years, Viator is the tour company I most frequently recommend to my US audience.
The Stats:
Commission: 8% per sale
Cookie Length: 30-day cookie
Most of my income comes from affiliate marketing, where I earn a small commission when my audience books through my links.
While I also use GetYourGuide, Viator is my go-to for California travel recommendations.
If your niche is more European travel, GetYourGuide will work best for you.
Let’s examine the top Viator competitors with affiliate programs to determine which is the best alternative for your audience.
Factors to consider include cookie windows and commissions.
First, let’s discuss what a cookie is, not the kind you eat. 🍪
What is an affiliate marketing cookie?
An affiliate marketing cookie is a small piece of data stored on a user’s device by their web browser when they click on an affiliate link.
This cookie contains information (like a code) identifying the affiliate who referred the user to the merchant’s website.
A cookie is placed on their browser when a user clicks on an affiliate link.
This cookie typically includes information such as the affiliate ID, the date and time of the click, and sometimes additional tracking data.
If the user purchases or completes another desired action on the merchant’s website, the cookie helps the merchant’s system attribute the sale or action to the correct affiliate.
Based on the information in the cookie, the merchant knows which affiliate to credit for the referral.
This system ensures a fair and accurate commission payment, providing a sense of security to the affiliates.
Cookies usually have an expiration date, which can range from a few days to several months, depending on the affiliate program’s rules.
The 9 Best Viator Alternatives
Let’s look at the top 9 best Viator alternatives so you can decide which will work best for your business. Keep in mind your niche, audience, cookie length, and commission rate.
1. GetYourGuide Affiliate Program
GetYourGuide is the best Viator alternative. I use them the most after Viator.
The Stats:
Commission: 8%
Cookie Length: 31-day cookie
Choosing the right affiliate program for your niche matters.
If you write for a European audience, you may want to check out GetYourGuide, which is favored by Europeans.
When I write a post about tours, I do cursory research comparing similar tours on Viator and GetYourGuide to see which platform offers more of the type of tours I want to share with my audience.
Sometimes, I’ll use both companies in one post; it just depends.
Viator and GetYourGuide offer five-star tours, unique local experiences, and comprehensive customer reviews that you can share with your audience to give them a sense of what the tour is like.
As a travel blogger, it would be literally impossible to go on all the tours recommended to your audience, but doing the research for your audience, like reading reviews, is helpful to them.
GetYourGuide’s affiliate dashboard is easy to navigate.
The platform’s user-friendly interface allows you to easily search and filter activities based on your preferences. It also makes it easy to use deep links and activity widgets.
GetYourGuide also offers a mobile app that you can use to book activities on the go.
One key advantage of GetYourGuide over Viator is its AI integration.
The platform uses artificial intelligence to recommend activities based on your previous bookings and preferences. This feature ensures you get personalized recommendations that suit your interests and travel style.
2. Klook Affiliate Program
The Stats:
Commission: 5%
Cookie Length: 30-day cookie
If you’re a travel blogger who focuses on the Asia Pacific region, Klook is for you
Klook is a B2C travel marketplace that primarily focuses on the Asia Pacific region.
It competes most heavily with Viator in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Singapore, where Klook is the dominant travel marketplace.
Klook distinguishes itself by targeting a younger, more tech-savvy demographic compared to Viator.
This is achieved through strategic marketing channels and a curated selection of products on their marketplace.
One key marketing strategy is the Klook Kreator program, which leverages influencers to showcase unique travel experiences on social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok.
One unique aspect of Klook that I really like is that it promotes city passes. This allows the Gen-Z generation to see as many places as possible in a single day, which is economical.
3. TUI Musement
The Stats:
Commission: 3% to 5% per booking
Cookie Length: 30-day cookie
Musement’s affiliate program is a game-changer for travel bloggers and is emerging as the newest competitor to Viator other than GetYourGuide.
I haven’t used their affiliate program, but I will go forward after researching them for this article.
Musement acts more like Viator than Get Your Guide because TUI Musement emphasizes distributing its tours primarily through B2B partnerships, in contrast to GetYourGuide and Klook, which focus on a B2C model.
This can significantly enhance the value of a travel blog by providing readers with direct links to book exciting experiences, thereby improving user engagement and satisfaction.
The B2B approach is demonstrated in how TUI Musement markets its tours to TUI’s 21 million annual users, primarily through holiday packages.
In 2019, TUI’s users purchased 10 million tours and activities, with 3 million of these being cruise line shore excursions offered under the brands of companies like Carnival and Royal Caribbean.
4. TourRadar Affiliate Program
The Stats:
Commission: 6% per booking
Cookie Length: 90-day cookie (😀)
Check out TourRadar if you’re a travel blogger who likes to promote multi-day travel tours.
Both GetYourGuide and Viator offer multi-day tours, but TourRadar offers an impressive 90-day cookie and a 6% commission on sold bookings.
TourRadar covers 160 countries and features more than 50K multi-day experiences.
As a partner with TourRadar you have access to their educational resources and media library to further optimize your earnings.
5. TripAdvisor
TripAdvisor is a well-known name in the travel industry. While they did acquire Viator in 2014, their commission structure is a bit different.
Viator works on a commission based on sales, while TripAdvisor does not pay a commission based on sales but rather one called pay-per-click affiliate marketing.
TripAdvisor’s commission is based on the number of leads (clicks) your site generates.
Some travel bloggers focus on planning a trip from start to finish, which is fine. If this is you, TripAdvisor may be a better bet than some of the other affiliate programs on this list.
I prefer promoting to an audience actively looking to book experiences. They are farther down the buyer’s journey and are coming to my travel site to see which tours I’m recommending because they already know they are visiting a specific location in California and are ready to purchase.
6. Bookmundi Affiliate Program
The Stats:
Commission: 25% per sale
Cookie Length: 90-day cookie (😀)
Bookmundi is a great affiliate program for travel bloggers to make money due to its attractive commission rates, extensive inventory of global tours and travel packages, and user-friendly interface.
The platform offers a competitive commission structure, allowing bloggers to earn significant referral revenue.
Bookmundi provides a wide variety of high-quality travel experiences that appeal to diverse audiences, enhancing the value and relevance of a travel blog’s content.
The easy-to-use affiliate tools and comprehensive tracking system make it simple for bloggers to integrate links, monitor performance, and optimize their marketing efforts, ultimately maximizing their earning potential.
7. Tripaneer Affiliate Program
The Stats:
The Commission is impressive if you’re able to make a lot of monthly bookings:
- For 0-50 bookings, you make an impressive 35%
- 40% commission on 51-100 finalized bookings
- 45% if you make up to 250 affiliate bookings per month
- 50% on more than 250
- Cookie Length: 14-day cookie (that’s short)
Tripaneer’s affiliate program is interesting. It works on a tier system, so the more bookings you make, the more monetarily you’re rewarded.
Tripaneer is unique to the other programs on this list in that it offers themed multi-day trips for people on holiday, like health themes, fitness themes, meditation, and yoga.
If your blog focuses more on the personal development side of things, check out Tripaneer.
You could target an audience that is health conscious even when they go on vacation; this is an excellent niche for anyone looking to start a hyper-focused travel blog. Combine health with vacation.
One drawback is they only offer a 14-day cookie, which is ok, but you’ll make more money with programs that provide a 30-day cookie or longer.
However, if you have a ton of traffic, you could make a lot of money with this platform because of their commission structure.
8. Expedia Affiliate Program
The Stats:
Commission: 6% per sale
Cookie Length: 30-day cookie (😀)
Nearly everyone who runs a travel blog or has booked a flight knows the Expedia brand. They have name recognition.
With its global reach, Expedia offers everything from flight reservations to tours and tickets to local attractions.
It’s one-stop shopping with Expedia, so you can earn a commission when you offer your audience everything related to travel.
9. Manawa Affiliate Program
The Stats:
Commission: 8% per sale with potential to go up to 10%
Cookie Length: 30-day cookie
The most successful blogs are niche-focused. Those who love to travel are often adventurous and love outdoor activities.
If you have a travel blog that combines travel and the outdoors, look to Manawa because they specialize in those experiences.
Manawa partners with over 2K providers and offers over 6K activities across 75 sports.
Why choose a Viator alternative?
While Viator is my go-to, I like to have an alternative or two, a backup, if you will.
At times, to cater to our audience and provide the best tour recommendations, it’s necessary to explore other affiliate programs and the activities they offer.
The reason for this is to ensure that we are offering a diverse range of experiences, catering to different interests and preferences.
This is why I consider other options.
I’m catering to tourists visiting California who need to know from someone who lives here what the best things to do in California are.
I want to recommend the best.
One tour company can’t offer every tour, so I’ll look around, read reviews, and occasionally take a tour before I make recommendations.
In the online world, when it comes to making money, it’s never good to put all your eggs in one program, platform, or social media site.
I’ve learned that the hard way.
Affilate Marketing 101: What Is It?
When acquaintances and friends find out what I do for a living, the next question is, “What is a travel blog?” and then, “How do you make money off that?”
I then explain affiliate marketing until they look at me like, “That’s too complicated.”
This look is often accompanied by the next sentence: “I wish I could do that!”
First, it’s simple, and second, anyone can do it.
What is Affiliate Marketing?
Here is a simple explanation:
Affiliate marketing is a performance-based marketing strategy where businesses reward affiliates (marketers, i.e. via a travel blog) with a commission for driving traffic or sales to their products or services through the affiliate’s promotional efforts, typically via unique tracking links.
For example,
I partner with a company like Viator.
They gave me a username and password and access to my “dashboard,” where I can create unique links for the tours I recommend.
I write a blog post about “Best Things to Do in Los Angeles.”
Within the post, I add a unique link to the activities I recommend to my audience of the best things to do in LA.
If, more like when, they click on that link and purchase a tour through that link, I receive a small commission.
It doesn’t seem like it would make much money, but the commissions can and do add up.
Affiliate marketing is how most travel bloggers make money without ads.
It’s really that simple.
To be successful at affiliate marketing you need:
- A ton of traffic
- To know good SEO strategies to rank at the top of Google Search.
- To know the buyer’s journey so you can lead your audience through it and place your affiliate links at the right spot in the buyer’s journey.
- Promote companies you use and like (this is important). Readers are savvy; they can tell when you genuinely like or use something.
When to start affiliate marketing?
Right away. I started a brand new blog about travel as a teaching tool, and within one month, I was making affiliate income—not a lot, but still.
Affiliate income is the quickest and easiest way to monetize a blog without ads.
What is a travel affilate program?
A travel affiliate program allows bloggers, influencers, and websites to earn commissions by promoting travel-related services such as tours, accommodations, and flights through affiliate links.
When users click on these links and make bookings or purchases, the affiliate earns a commission from the travel service provider.
Think about all the things you spend money on when you travel; the products and services are nearly endless: flights, hotels, shuttles to and from the airport, museum tickets, ferry rides, tours, admissions, travel insurance, travel health insurance, flight insurance, suitcases, water bottles. The list is endless, and that is why so many travel bloggers make a ton of money.
Nomadic Matt specializes in budget travel and makes at least 200k per month. At least.
What are the best affilate programs for travel bloggers?
These are the most common travel affiliate programs I belong to for my two travel blogs. I use others, but these are the primary ones that I promote.
How to become a travel affiliate?
To become a travel affiliate, do some pre-planning and research. Read the above list and decide which ones would best fit your niche.
Less is more when it comes to promoting products you believe in.
Start small but smart. Be methodical.
Sign up for only a few of these programs with tours and products you can genuinely recommend, believe in, and/or use yourself.
Learning the dashboard and the best way to utilize the program’s banner ads, deep links, and promotional materials takes time.
So start with only one or three to prevent overwhelm.
Once you choose a few, sign up. You’ll be accepted immediately (you need a website) or in a few days.
Keep in mind that some affiliate programs have specific requirements for approval, such as certain traffic metrics or monthly visitors to your site.
Understanding these criteria will help you prepare and increase your chances of being accepted, so do research before applying to avoid being rejected to a program you want.
Hit their requirements and then apply.
Lazy Girl Tip: When promoting affiliate links for travel programs, a disclaimer on your blog is essential for transparency, informing your readers that you may earn a commission if they purchase through your links. This builds trust with your audience and ensures compliance with legal and regulatory requirements, such as those from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in the United States.
How do bloggers get affiliates?
The first step is to put yourself in your audience’s shoes and consider their needs.
Think about it from your perspective as a traveler.
If you have a travel blog, you probably like to travel.
When you travel, what are your needs?
This exercise will help you identify your audience’s needs and where to place affiliate links within your content.
Once you know that, you’ll be more informed about the programs you want to apply to. Apply to them. Many affiliate programs have a simple application form that takes about ten minutes to complete.
Is travel a good affiliate niche?
Yes! Travel blogs make great affiliate income. It’s one of the most profitable niches for bloggers because it has a ton of affiliate potential. I run two travel blogs, and if I had more time and help, I would start more.
I monetized my second travel blog in just a few months using affiliate marketing and a zero-volume keyword strategy.
Wrap Up: Best Viator Alternatives
If Viator isn’t suitable for your niche or audience, don’t worry; several excellent alternatives are available to use, many on the above list.
Joining multiple tour booking affiliate programs is a smart strategy. I belong to several.
Based on the amount of money you make with each, it will become apparent in just a few months which is right for your audience.
GetYourGuide Affiliate Program is a great alternative to the Viator Affiliate Program, which I also use.
Some only use one or the other, and opinions vary significantly in the GetYourGuide vs. Viator debate, so I encourage you to explore and decide for yourself.
Best Viator Alternatives: FAQs
Who is the competitor to Viator?
Viator’s number one competitor is GetYourGuide. Both platforms offer a wide range of tours, activities, and experiences for travelers and provide similar services such as booking options, user reviews, and mobile apps. They compete closely in the market, each striving to offer the best experiences and customer service to attract and retain users. I use both; they are very similar in the tours they offer and their dashboard for partners.
Is Viator more expensive than GetYourGuide?
As a travel blogger who has used Viator and GetYourGuide for over two years, Viator tends to be a bit more expensive, but not by much. They both offer similar tours. From an affiliate marketing standpoint, they both offer an 8% commission and around a 30-day cookie. Thus, I use both, sometimes in the same tour post.
Is Viator owned by TripAdvisor?
Yes, Viator was aquired by TripAdvisor in 2014.
What is the reputation of Viator?
In the online tour booking platform industry, Viator has a great reputation. I have used them personally many times and recommend their tours to my travel audience; they are great refunding tours. Viator has a worldwide reputation for offering great, reliable tours and ensuring customer satisfaction.
Read More of My SEO Tips:
- Lyrical Host Review & Coupon Code
- How Do Bloggers Actually Make Money
- 7+ Ways to Monetize a Blog Without Ads
- 31 Exciting Reasons to Start a Blog
- The Ideal blog Post Title Length for SEO
- The Advantages and Disadvantages of Blogging
- What is a Travel Blog and How to Start One
- Blogging Essentials to Streamline the Process
The Lazy Girl’s Guide to Blogging
Lyrical Host — The fastest hosting platform with the best customer service. I use Lyrical for all three of my blogs. The customer service is amazing and responds within the hour. They never leave me hanging.
Keysearch — This is the best and cheapest Keyword Research Tool. I use it every single day. I would be lost without it. Keysearch may be the number one essential blogging tool.
Link Whisper — interlinking is an essential part of blogging. Link Whisper streamlines this very important but time-consuming practice.
Interact Quiz — the money is in the list. Creating quizzes for your blog is one of the fastest way to grow your email list.
Active Campaign — this is one of the best email marketing platform. I’ve also used Convertkit, but I find Active Campaign more intuitive when creating and sending email campaigns.
Short Pixel — This is a plugin that compresses your images at increasing site speed and load times, essential for ranking.
RankIQ — RankIQ helps bloggers and content creators optimize their posts for search engines by providing AI-driven keyword research and content analysis tools.
Jasper.ai — Increase your content output with AI. I use it every day. It streamlines my blogging process and allows me to create content for three sites.
WP Rocket — Use this caching plugin to speed up your site. If you have Lyrical, you don’t need it. Lyrical provides a free caching plugin with one of their three plans.
