Who Would You Travel With? Identifying the Key Attributes of a Desirable Travel Partner

Travel partner seeking has become a new and increasingly popular social phenomenon, especially among young travelers. However, little is known about what partner attributes are preferred by this market and how such attributes impact memorable tourism experience, the desirable outcome of Internet companionship travel. This study employed a mixed‐method approach to explore travel partner selection and its impact on memorable tourism experience. Using content analysis, study 1 identified four key attributes of ideal travel partners ( emotional intelligence , travel experience , congruence , and conscientiousness ) based on data from 1086 user posts on the Douban platform. Study 2 revealed that all four attributes of travel partners positively influenced memorable tourism experience through the mediation of travel partner exchange, with gender composition playing a moderating role. This work provides theoretical contributions and practical insights in travel partner selection.