Does The Lowdown Guide earn commissions from Tempe lodging recommendations?

Yes. When you click an Expedia link on our Tempe page and complete a booking, we earn a small referral commission at no additional cost to you. The price you pay is identical whether you book through our link or go directly to Expedia. Our recommendations are based on editorial research, not on which properties happen to pay a commission.

Are the Viator tour links on the Tempe site affiliate links?

Yes. Links to Viator tours and activities on The Lowdown Guide Tempe page are affiliate links. If you book a Salt River tubing trip, a desert jeep tour, or a Valley food-and-brewery walk through one of our Viator links, we earn a small commission. This does not affect the price you pay. Note that ASU football tickets, Gammage Auditorium show tickets, and Tempe Town Lake rental-kiosk fees are separate charges paid directly to those organizations, not affiliate transactions.

Affiliate Disclosure

Last updated: July 2026

How We Earn Revenue

The Lowdown Guide is an independently operated travel resource. To keep our content free for readers, we participate in affiliate programs with select travel partners. When you click certain links on our site and make a purchase or booking, we may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.

Our Affiliate Partners

We currently work with the following affiliate programs:

Viator — Tours, activities, and experience bookings. We earn a commission when you book a tour or activity through our Viator links. This includes Salt River tubing, Sonoran Desert jeep tours, and Valley food-and-brewery walks.
Expedia — Hotel and lodging reservations and travel packages. We earn a commission when you book accommodation through our Expedia links, including hotels near ASU's campus and along the Tempe Town Lake and Mill Avenue corridor.

How Affiliate Links Work

Affiliate links look and function like regular links. When you click one, a small tracking code tells the partner that you came from our site. If you go on to make a purchase, the partner pays us a referral fee. The price you pay is exactly the same whether you use our link or go directly to the partner's website.

On our site, affiliate links are typically found in:

Lodging booking call-to-action boxes (e.g., "Check Tempe Lodging Prices")
Tour and activity recommendation sections (e.g., "Browse Tempe & Phoenix Tours")
Comparison guides and seasonal-timing sections

What Is Not an Affiliate Link

ASU football tickets, Gammage Auditorium show tickets, and Tempe Town Lake rental-kiosk fees (kayaks, paddleboards, pedal boats) are separate charges paid directly to those organizations. We earn nothing from any of them, and we will always tell you plainly when booking direct is the better call.

Our Editorial Independence

Affiliate partnerships do not influence our editorial content. Our recommendations are based on published source research and independent editorial judgment, not on which affiliate program pays the highest commission.

We will never recommend a tour or lodging option solely because it offers an affiliate commission. If we feature something, it's because we believe it provides real value to visitors planning a Tempe campus, lake, or Mill Avenue trip — and we say plainly when a budget-friendlier Phoenix-basecamp option is the better call.

FTC Compliance

In accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising, we disclose that this site contains affiliate links. This page serves as our comprehensive disclosure, and we also include brief disclosure notices near affiliate links throughout the site.

Questions?

If you have any questions about our affiliate relationships or how we fund this site, please contact us. We're happy to be transparent about how The Lowdown Guide operates.