A Kelowna family did not get the vacation they were hoping for when they headed to Bali, Indonesia this month.
Her son, Brandon Olson, 24, and daughter-in-law, Mackenzie Peslova, 22, traveled to Bali earlier in November for a vacation with their 14-month-old daughter.
But the trip got off to a bad start when their luggage was lost for six days during a stopover in Manilla.
After reaching Bali and spending a few days exploring, their return flight was cancelled due to volcanic ash.
They've been stuck at the international airport since the weekend and are being provided with little information.
Mount Agung in Bali erupts with volcanic activity. Resorts engulfed with ash, flights cancelled.........😒 pic.twitter.com/WKIa0D9NuD
— ARUN (@ManhasArun) November 26, 2017
The family was scheduled to fly out of Ngurah Rai International Airport (DPS) on Saturday via Philippine Airlines. But they were told all flights had been cancelled and they would not be able to fly home until November 29th.
bali flights
— packuptakeoff (@packuptakeoff) November 28, 2017
Ash cloud over Bali's Ngurah Rai International Airport. Latest News & Updates available at https://t.co/8HhJLakgEO pic.twitter.com/iIsVqCQBlc
Olson's mom, Jennifer Hobbs, is working from Kelowna to extend her family's travel insurance, while Olson and Peslova are booking hotel rooms each night at their own expense.
According to Hobbs, the family was told the only way to fly home sooner would be to catch a flight via Hong Kong, at $2,000 per person.
Hobbs also was told by Peslova Philippine Airlines staff has not provided any information or support, but instead, left the airport after the announcement was made.
#MountAgung erupting this morning in #Bali #Indonesia #GunungAgung pic.twitter.com/M0jAZfz49P
— NoahJon Marshall (@NoahJonMarshall) November 26, 2017
While the family is in no current danger, the volcanic ash that has shut down the airport is coming from Mount Agung, which erupted on Sunday and is expected to erupt again, at a larger scale.
The DPS airport is expected to reopen on Tuesday, but has a long list of cancelled flights among the ones scheduled.
The ash cloud from #MountAgung has reached Lombok airport. Flight #ID6658 was not able to land and is diverting. pic.twitter.com/Jj4O3QzZ5e
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) November 26, 2017
KelownaNow reached out to Philippine Airlines for a comment and is also waiting to hear from the young family stuck in Bali and waiting to return to Kelowna.
Meanwhile, Mount Agung, continues to spew thick, volcanic ash thousands of metres in Karangasem, Island of Bali, Indonesia. Alerts have reached the highest level. Reports are showing thousands of tourists are stranded due to airport closure and more than 100,000 villagers will need to evacuate, as the danger zone expands.
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