QR Code Payments as Phygital Marketing Touchpoints: Gendered Insights into Tourist Satisfaction, Loyalty and Revisit Intention

This study examines the role of QR code–based digital payments as phygital marketing touchpoints in shaping tourist satisfaction, loyalty, and revisit intention, while also investigating the moderating role of gender. As tourism experiences increasingly integrate digital and physical service interactions, payment technologies have emerged as critical components of the customer journey that may influence behavioral outcomes. Using a quantitative research design, data were collected from 240 tourists with prior experience using QR-based payments during their travel activities. The data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to test the relationships among QR payment experience, tourist satisfaction, loyalty, and revisit intention. The findings reveal that QR payment significantly enhances tourist satisfaction, which in turn strongly influences both loyalty and revisit intention. However, QR payment does not directly affect loyalty or revisit intention, indicating that tourist satisfaction fully mediates these relationships. The results highlight satisfaction as the key psychological mechanism linking digital payment experiences to post-visit behavioral intentions. Furthermore, the study finds no significant moderating effect of gender on the relationship between satisfaction and behavioral outcomes, suggesting that male and female tourists respond similarly to QR-enabled service experiences. This study contributes to tourism and service technology literature by positioning payment systems as experiential value drivers rather than merely transactional tools. From a managerial perspective, the findings suggest that tourism businesses should prioritize seamless and reliable QR payment integration to enhance customer satisfaction and foster long-term destination loyalty and revisit behavior.