MODELING THE PATHWAY TO VISIT INTENTION: THE MEDIATING ROLE OF TOURIST ENGAGEMENT

The digital era has changed the pattern of tourist interaction with destinations through social media, making tourist engagement a strategic factor in building sustainable emotional, cognitive, and behavioral relationships. This study analyzes the role of tourist engagement as a mediating variable in the relationship between social media marketing, destination image, and visit intention in Dusun Semilir tourism, Central Java. Based on the Theory of Planned Behavior and Customer Engagement Theory, this study applies an explanatory quantitative approach with PLS-SEM analysis of 100 respondents selected purposively. The results show that social media marketing and destination image have a significant positive effect on tourist engagement, which then increases visit intention. In addition, tourist engagement acts as a mediating mechanism that strengthens the relationship between tourist perceptions and their visit intention. These findings contribute theoretically by expanding the understanding of the psychological role of tourist engagement in the context of digital tourism marketing, while also offering practical implications for destination managers to design more interactive social media communication strategies and build a strong destination image to increase tourist loyalty and visit intention.