The acceleration of digital transformation has restructured the global tourism industry, making digital payment systems central to seamless travel experiences. However, a notable paradox persists: "adoption without engagement," in which tourists register for digital payment services but revert to cash at their destination. This study aims to extend the Diffusion of Innovations (DOI) framework by integrating perceived risk and trust to evaluate their combined impact on the intention to adopt digital payments and on subsequent experiential performance at the destination. Using a quantitative explanatory research design, data were collected from 400 tourists in Indonesia and analyzed via Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM). The findings indicate that Relative Advantage, Trust, and Compatibility have significant positive effects on the intention to adopt digital payments, while Perceived Risk acts as a substantial negative anchor. Notably, Complexity and Trialability did not significantly influence intention, likely because the sampled younger demographics had high digital literacy. Furthermore, intention to adopt serves as a vital bridge, significantly influencing the destination's holistic experiential performance. The results suggest that overcoming the engagement gap requires destination management organizations and fintech providers to prioritize risk mitigation and high-value propositions over mere technical ease of use.