Domestic tourism is increasingly being propagated as a primer for the global tourism industry's resuscitation in the era of COVID-19. However, in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, the challenge for African tourism destinations such as South Africa is predicting domestic tourists' behavioral and demand responses. The article explores the mediating effect of perceived risk on the nexus between South African domestic tourists' push and pull travel motives. Data were generated via a self-administered online survey and analyzed primarily utilizing factor and mediation analyses. From the sample (n = 427), the study identifies the heterogeneity in the push–pull travel motives nexus. Moreover, the findings also establish the susceptibility of experiential escape-seeking tourists to the negative mediating influence of COVID-19-induced perceived physical risk on their likelihood of engaging in leisure-oriented domestic tourism activity. The results also point to potential cognitive bias and subjective preference towards domestic tourism, potentially signaling a crisis-induced shift in tourist behavior. The managerial implications are also discussed.