5D Virtual Reality and Tourists’ Visit Intentions: The Role of Inherent Innovativeness

Abstract

Abstract

This study examines how tourists’ attitudes towards 5-Dimensional Virtual Reality (5DVR) influence their behaviour in cultural tourism contexts, focusing on Islamic heritage destinations. 5DVR extends conventional VR by integrating multisensory stimuli, such as motion, haptics, and olfactory effects, thereby offering a deeper immersive experience. Guided by the attitude–behaviour framework, we examined tourists’ attitudes towards 5DVR as the independent variable, satisfaction with 5DVR as a mediator, and intention to visit real destinations as the dependent variable, while testing inherent innovativeness as a moderator. An online survey with a quasi-experimental design was administered to 175 Indonesian tourists using a 5DVR platform. Satisfaction significantly mediated the relationship between attitudes towards 5DVR and visit intentions, while inherent innovativeness moderated the satisfaction–intention pathway but did not influence the attitude–satisfaction relationship. These results highlight the role of multisensory immersive technologies in shaping tourists’ psychological responses and travel intentions. We suggest that managers can strengthen cultural tourism engagement by designing 5DVR experiences that emphasise sensory immersion, authenticity, and emotional appeal, while tailoring promotional strategies to innovative and tech-savvy market segments.