The Impact Of Social Media On Destination Choice: A Study on Generation Z

It is known that social media, which has become an indispensable part of daily life with thedevelopments in information and communication technologies, is extensively used by Generation Z.Social media, which offers easier and faster access to accurate and reliable information, has an importantplace in the preference processes of tourism components that cannot be experienced before. Therefore,this study aims to determine whether social media has an impact on Generation Z's preference processesfor destinations, one of the most important components of tourism. For this purpose, descriptive andinferential statistics were used to analyze the data collected from 402 participants in onlineenvironments. Within the scope of the research, it was found that there is a relationship between thedestination preference of Generation Z and all elements of social media and that destination image,behavioral intention, and tourism satisfaction elements on social media have a significant impact ondestination preference. The information shared by travelers and the impacts of social media onmarketing elements have been found to be associated with destination preferences; however, it has beendetermined that they do not have an effect on preferences. This is associated with the fact that the mostimportant factor in the preference process of Generation Z is their own decisions.