Rail Affiliate Programs

Although most Americans are used to traveling around the United States by plane or auto, other parts of the world are far more familiar – and dependent – on rail service as the most convenient, economical and timely method of travel.  This is particularly true in Europe, where trains generally vie with airlines (if not surpass them) in terms of passengers carried, the breadth of frequency and schedule, and generally can claim the title as the ‘fastest mode of transportation’ between any two cities in a given country.

Any one who has visited countries like Switzerland or Germany knows about the efficiency of their rail system; those who have traveled on the famed TGV line (high-speed trains) in France, or traveled under the English Channel on Eurostar can attest that European train travel is a very affordable and comfortable means of transportation.

Train reservation, ticketing and distribution systems are very sophisticated (again particularly outside the US), and web-based systems are easy for consumer to use. Despite the fact that rail tickets tend to be lower-value commodity transactions, the sheer number of rail tickets sold provides the opportunity for rail to be a good source of steady income for some travel affiliates.

Below we list and profile the major players in this niche.

?   RailEurope – The U.S. distribution arm for many of Europe’s national railroads, if you need to book a rail trip on the ‘New World’ side of ‘The Pond’, then Rail Europe is the place to go on the web.  RailEurope is owned by Swiss Railways and SNCF (the national rail system of France).

Amassing thousands of schedules, rates and a wealth of additional information for 35 different railways across the European continent in its database, Rail Europe is a veritable rail ‘one stop shop’.  Travelers can book everything from a ‘Eurail Pass‘ (unlimited access to all of Eurail’s member railroads for a fixed period of time), to National Rail Passes (excluding BritRail), or the TGV and Eurostar high-speed trains.

To learn about all of the features and benefits of Rail Europe’s travel affiliate program, click on their affiliate page here.

?   RailPass – The largest single rail pass outlet in the United States, and the online distribution arm of Wandrian, Inc., a leading rail technology provider, RailPass represents a number of international railroads and distributors.

According to statistics posted on its website, RailPass carries “…over 60 types of rail passes including Eurail Pass, Eurail Select Pass, Eurail Flexi Pass, Eurail Regional Pass, Pass, German Rail Twin Pass….and have over 70,000 City-to-City train tickets available to book online.”

To get the full detail on RailPass’ travel affiliate program, check-out their affiliate page here.

?   Eurostar – The high-speed rail service that links three of Europe key countries together – France, Belgium and the UK – via a tunnel under the English Channel offers travelers the quickest (and arguably most comfortable) transportation mode between the capitals of these countries, as well s the possibility of connecting to over 100 destinations across Europe through these three rail hubs.

Offering anywhere from 9 to 17 frequencies between these three cities, the real value of Eurostar for leisure and business travelers alike is that it cuts the total travel time from city-center to city-center to a cool 2 hours 15 minutes between London-Paris and 1 hour 51 minutes  for London-Brussels.  Taking the same journeys by air would likely take the average traveler about 5 hours, and that assumes no air traffic delays!

Eurostar offers travel affiliate programs to US, UK, French and Belgian affiliates.  For the US or UK affiliate program, click here.

?   Orient Express – When someone mentions ‘Orient Express’, the name conjures up a vision of what traveling was like before there were any airports to be crowded, before sun worshipers stacked themselves like sardines at every inch of beach ‘round the world, and where ‘deluxe’ truly meant deluxe.

Well, it is possible to return to those halcyon days, as the Orient Express still exists, though in a different form than that described in books or portrayed in the movies.  This iconic brand, now known as the Orient-Express Hotels, Trains & Cruises, still reverberates strongly with luxury travelers the world over, and the modern successor company offers a wide range of travel experiences, including the famous train.

Speaking of  “The Train”, travelers can book a variety of luxury journeys that feature some of Europe’s top cities on the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express Train. In our view, their website best describes what travelers can expect when they board this rolling jewel:

“…ornate carriages, sumptuous cuisine and attentive personal service make the Venice Simplon-Orient-Express train one of the finest luxury travel experiences in the world. Romance, adventure and style are all intimately bound up in luxury train journeys that criss-cross through the sublime scenery of Europe and between some of the world’s most alluring cities.”

Orient-Express Hotels, Trains & Cruises operates an additional five luxury tourist trains as well as a river cruiser in Europe, Asia and South America.  They also feature an outstanding portfolio of hotels, safaris, spas and other deluxe travel experiences for the discerning traveler.

It’s not often that you find such a legendary brand in any industry marketing its products through affiliate channels.  We urge all travel affiliates to explore the world of Orient Express at their affiliate page – All Aboard!