Decoding the Dark Tourism Experience: Image, Personality, and Visit Intentions on Nusa Kambangan Island

Abstract

This study examines the factors influencing tourists' intentions to visit an island serving as a location for a prison housing serious criminal, namely Nusa Kambangan, located in the West Java province of Indonesia. Despite its history as a prison island, Nusa Kambangan has been opened to the public and has evolved into a tourist destination, categorised as dark tourism according to the literature. Data collection was through an online survey involving 221 participants selected via convenient sampling. The data underwent analysis using exploratory factor analysis, confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation modelling. The results indicate significant impacts: destination personality on self-congruence and destination image, self-congruence on perceived value, perceived value on visit intention, destination image on novelty-seeking, and novelty-seeking on visit intention. These findings contribute to a deeper understanding of dark tourism.