From content to commitment: how travel user-generated content (UGC) drives tourist motivation and visit intention among digitally active domestic tourists in Indonesia

Although user-generated content (UGC) is widely recognized in destination marketing, limited research explains how travel-related UGC translates into tourists’ motivational mechanisms and visit intention. This study examines the predictive role of travel UGC (factual and emotional) on visit intention through three motivational dimensions—novelty seeking, escape seeking, and interaction seeking—among digitally active domestic tourists in Indonesia. Using a quantitative, cross-sectional survey design, data from 304 respondents were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The results show that travel UGC positively influences novelty seeking, escape seeking, and interaction seeking. Escape seeking and interaction seeking, in turn, significantly enhance visit intention, whereas novelty seeking does not exhibit a significant effect on intention. Mediation analysis further indicates that the relationship between travel UGC and visit intention is transmitted primarily through escape-seeking and interaction-seeking motivations, while the novelty-seeking pathway is not supported. These findings extend Uses and Gratifications Theory in a digital tourism context by clarifying which motivational gratifications are more likely to convert UGC exposure into behavioural intention, and they offer practical implications for destination marketers seeking to leverage UGC strategically.