I recently had the opportunity to use hotel affiliate APIs for an individual project, so I decided to summarize my findings.
For individual developers considering monetization through hotel and travel-related affiliate programs, choosing the right API is a major challenge.
This article organizes:
โ
Recommended APIs by region
โ
API features
โ
Difficulty of approval for individual developers
๐ Global
โ Travelpayouts API
Features
- Partnered with 60+ travel brands including Booking.com and Agoda
- Search hotels, flights, and rental cars
- Payment processing handled by partners โ no need to build your own system
- Approval difficulty: โ โ โ โ โ (Anyone can register for free)
Recommended for:
- Beginners and individual developers
- Travel blogs, comparison apps, LINE bots
- Link: Travelpayouts API
โ Booking.com Demand API
Features
- Access to global accommodations on Booking.com
- Payment handled by Booking.com
- Get accommodation details, reviews, and price information
- Approval difficulty: โ โ โ โโ (Moderate; simple English application required)
Recommended for:
- Small-scale developers
- Apps targeting overseas markets
- Link: Booking.com Demand API
โ Expedia Rapid API
Features
- Access to 700,000+ accommodations worldwide
- Payment handled by Expedia
- Designed for corporate or mid-to-large-scale partners, highly functional API
- Approval difficulty: โ โ โโโ (Requires corporate entity and business track record)
Recommended for:
- Corporate developers
- Travel agency startups
- Link: Expedia Rapid API
๐ Latin America
โ HotelDO API
Features
- 100,000+ hotel inventory focused on Latin America
- Payment handled by HotelDO
- Strong presence in Mexico, Brazil, Argentina
- Approval difficulty: โ โ โ โโ (Moderate; prior consultation recommended)
Recommended for:
- Services specializing in Latin America or local tour integration apps
- Link: HotelDO API
๐ฎ๐ณ India
โ Cleartrip API
Features
- Hotel booking and payment mainly in India
- Payment handled by Cleartrip
- Strong in India and Middle Eastern markets
- Approval difficulty: โ โ โ โ โ (Relatively easy to get approved)
Recommended for:
- Apps targeting the Indian market
- Comparison sites
- Link: Cleartrip API
๐ฏ๐ต Japan
โ Rakuten Travel Web Service
Features
- One of Japanโs largest accommodation networks
- Partner through Rakuten Affiliate
- Retrieve vacancy, rates, and plan information
- Approval difficulty: โ โ โ โโ (Requires Rakuten Affiliate application)
Recommended for:
- Japan domestic services
- Regional tourism apps
- Link: Rakuten Travel Web Service
โ Jalan Web Service
Features
- Operated by Recruit; strong in domestic hotels and hot springs
- Supports affiliate monetization
- Rich search API, retrieve plan information
- Approval difficulty: โ โ โ โ โ (Relatively easy even for individuals)
Recommended for:
- Domestic travel and tourism apps
- Local guides
- Link: Jalan Web Service
โ Agoda Affiliate API
Features
- Global support including Asia and Japan
- Payment and support handled by Agoda
- Approval difficulty: โ โ โ โ โ (Individuals can apply)
Recommended for:
- Services targeting Asia including Japan
- Apps for inbound travelers to Japan
- Link: Agoda Affiliate API
๐ฅ Quick API Selection Table
| Region | API Name | Payment Processing | Approval Difficulty | Suitable for Individual Devs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Global | Travelpayouts | No need | โ โ โ โ โ | Beginners to intermediate devs |
| Global | Booking.com Demand | No need | โ โ โ โโ | Intermediate devs |
| Global | Expedia Rapid | No need | โ โ โโโ | Corporate / advanced devs |
| Latin America | HotelDO | No need | โ โ โ โโ | Latin America-focused apps |
| India | Cleartrip | No need | โ โ โ โ โ | India market developers |
| Japan | Rakuten Travel Web Service | No need | โ โ โ โโ | Domestic individual developers |
| Japan | Jalan Web Service | No need | โ โ โ โ โ | Domestic individual developers |
| Japan / Asia | Agoda Affiliate | No need | โ โ โ โ โ | Asia / inbound travel developers |
๐ฌ Final Tips
When choosing a hotel affiliate API, I recommend paying attention to:
โ
Which region you are targeting
โ
Whether individuals can apply
โ
Whether you need to handle payment processing yourself
Top comments (0)