A volcano on a remote Indonesian island continues to spew towering columns of hot ash into the air, making it too dangerous for flights to land or depart from Bali’s international airport.

Travellers have been stranded at Bali’s I Gusti Ngurah Rai airport since flight cancellations began at the weekend.

“The airline did not provide accommodation, leaving us stranded at this airport,” said Charlie Austin from Perth, Australia, who was on vacation in Bali with his family.

It is unclear when the ash cloud will clear and allow the airport to resume normal operations.

Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki volcano on the island of Flores in East Nusa Tenggara province has been shooting hot ash high into the air since it first erupted on 4 November, killing ten people so far and injuring dozens of others.

The 1,584-meter volcano shot up ash at least 17 times on Tuesday, with the largest column recorded at 9 kilometres high, the Center for Volcanology and Geological Disaster Mitigation said in a statement.

Bali flights: Are all departures and arrivals cancelled?

I Gusti Ngurah Rai airport’s website currently shows most international departures for today (Wednesday) as either cancelled or delayed, while a few flights, to destinations such as Istanbul and Kuala Lumpur, do appear to be taking off as scheduled.

The advice to passengers is to contact your airline or check their website or social media channels before leaving for the airport.

Sicne the weekend, 84 flights, including 36 scheduled to depart and 48 due to arrive, were cancelled or delayed.

Airport authorities said that at least 26 domestic flights and 64 overseas ones were cancelled on Wednesday alone, including airlines from Singapore, Hong Kong, Qatar, India and Malaysia. For these cancellations, the airlines were offering travellers a refund, or to reschedule or reroute.

Air New Zealand cancelled a flight to Denpasar scheduled for Wednesday and a return service to Auckland due to depart Bali on Thursday. Passengers would be rebooked and the airline would continue to monitor the movement of ash in the coming days, Chief Operating Officer Alex Marren said.

Jetstar Bali flights: Australian airlines worst hit by cancellations

Australian airlines use Bali’s international airport more than any others, since Bali is a very popular holiday destination with Australians.

Budget airline Jetstar has paused its flights to Bali until at least Thursday, it said on its website, saying it was “currently not safe” to operate the route.

They say they understand that some passengers may no longer wish to fly to Bali, in which case anyone with flights booked between 13 and 17 November have the option to postpone their flight by three weeks or get credit to use with the airline. For full details on your options, check their website.

Jetstar’s statement went on to say:

“We understand that this is a difficult situation for impacted customers. Safety is always our number one priority and we thank customers for their patience and understanding.

Impacted customers will be notified directly and will be provided with a range of options.

Capacity on our existing scheduled services is limited and we understand that some customers may be concerned about how quickly they can rebook their flights.

We continue to monitor the situation closely and are planning to add extra flights to get customers to their destination as soon as possible.

We will provide an update on flights scheduled to operate after 12noon AEDT on Thursday.”

Virgin Australia’s website showed 10 services to and from Bali were cancelled on Wednesday. Qantas said it has delayed three flights. Some airlines are offering fare refunds for upcoming Bali flights to passengers who don’t want to travel.

Are passengers on Bali flights entitled to a refund or compensation?

Rules vary by country or region but EU airlines have to offer a refund or new flight if they cancel your flight. However if the cancellation is due to weather-related events, they sometimes claim this is an “act of God” to get out of paying passengers.

However for this volcano affecting Bali, some airlines have already said they will cover refunds or offer new flights so the chances are quite good.

Travel insurance is designed to cover unforeseen events, such as emergency medical expenses, lost or stolen belongings and last-minute cancellations.

In some cases, you can be reimbursed if your trip is cancelled due to extreme weather – but certain conditions usually apply.

Check your policy for a list of covered reasons for trip cancellation, as these vary by provider. Some may provide add-ons for weather-related circumstances.

Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki volcano: 9 kilometre high ash cloud

Authorities on Tuesday expanded the exclusion zone as the volcano erupted again to 9 kilometres high. Volcanic materials, including smoldering rocks, lava, and hot, thumb-size fragments of gravel and ash, have been thrown up to 8 kilometres from the crater since Friday.

About 6,500 people were evacuated in January after Mount Lewotobi Laki Laki began erupting, spewing thick clouds and forcing the government to close the island’s Fransiskus Xaverius Seda Airport. No casualties or major damage were reported, but the airport has remained closed because of seismic activity.

Lewotobi Laki Laki is one of a pair of stratovolcanoes in the East Flores district of East Nusa Tenggara province, known locally as the husband-and-wife mountains. ‘Laki laki’ means man, while its mate is Lewotobi Perempuan, or woman. It’s one of the 120 active volcanoes in Indonesia, an archipelago of 280 million people.

The country is prone to earthquakes, landslides and volcanic activity because it sits along the ‘Ring of Fire’, a horseshoe-shaped series of seismic fault lines around the Pacific Ocean.

Have you ever travelled by train to visit several European destinations in one interrailing adventure and wished there was a simpler way to cross borders?

Right now, you probably have to have your wits about you as you navigate through a myriad of booking platforms and work out the different ways in which rail providers sell their seats and arrange their schedules.

But it’s not only the inconvenience of booking that’s the issue with the current system.

If you’re committed to more sustainable travel options or simply enjoy the more leisurely experience offered by train travel, then you tend to pay a lot more money than opting to fly between destinations on a budget airline.

The good news is that this could change in the next two years, with the launch of a single European booking system for train tickets.

What this means is that you could travel to multiple destinations on just one ticket with your full travel schedule clearly mapped out.

This new hassle-free experience probably won’t interest you if you have an adventurous spirit and like to regale your friends with stories of missing departures and negotiating cultural differences at the railway station.

But if you’re on a budget or have a time limit on your trip, and you can’t afford to miss connections or pay for new tickets out of pocket, then the new single-ticket system will definitely appeal to you.

How will the new single European booking system work?

Right now, most travellers rely on experts such as Mark Smith, the brains behind Seat61.com, one of the earliest websites offering tips and solutions to the frustrations of travelling across Europe by train.

While it’s early days, a few platforms are already in place that could inspire this new booking system.

For example, Rail Europe and Omio already offer train trips across international borders, yet they still sell each part of the journey on separate tickets.

This new single-ticket proposal is just one of several made by the new EU transport commissioner, Apostolos Tzitzikostas, who is focused on promoting sustainable transport and decarbonisation solutions.

“It is unbelievable that we do not have this in 2024,” says Tzitzikostas, who adds that it would make booking trains as easy as booking a flight.

Tzitzikostas has also proposed ambitious plans for a European high-speed rail network that will better connect Europe’s capitals, including using night trains.

His goal is that by coupling green and digital innovations, travelling through Europe will “remain safe, accessible and affordable”.

As Euronews Travel has previously reported, European sleeper trains are undergoing a renaissance.

More exciting routes are being added, including one that allows you to have dinner in Brussels and wake up in Venice early enough to still catch the bustling morning ‘Mercati di Rialto’ (Rialto market).

The Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER), which represents over 70 railway companies and national associations across Europe, was one of the first supporters of the proposed scheme. It says, “This recognition that digitalisation is essential to help modernise the transport system is vital.”

The new pan-European train booking system is due to launch at some point in 2025.

Battery-powered trains are looking to shape the future of Europe’s rail after the first successful trial of an intercity battery train in the northeast of England. This ‘tribid’ train easily switches between battery, diesel, and electric power.

Right now, the UK’s railways run diesel trains, which draw their power from overhead electrified wires or onboard diesel generators. However, the last generation of diesel trains is due to be replaced, and so a phase-out to cleaner alternatives is underway.

The trial happened in the region that first brought coal-powered engines to the world and as Britain celebrates 200 years of the modern railway next year.

High-speed and cheaper? Battery-electric trains show promise

Using just one powerful 700kw battery, this innovative technology can run trains at speeds over 75mph (120kph), making them high-speed.

During the trial, the train operated solely on battery power for 70km before switching back to its diesel engine, but the engineers say this range is enough to cover a typical intercity route that includes bridges, tunnels, and stations.

When launched, it’s expected that the train will have a range of between 100 and 150kms.

Single-battery trains not only boast superior performance, but they’re also more cost-effective than diesel trains.

They can reduce fuel costs by around 35 to 50 per cent, according to this trial which was run by Angel Trains, Hitachi Rail, and TransPennine Express.

Passengers will no doubt hope that any cost savings will be passed on to them, particularly given rising ticket costs, which go up every year in many parts of Europe.

Battery-powered trains are more environmentally considerate

Electric trains are currently considered the best solution to delivering clean trains as part of the global railway industry’s transition to net zero. Other options, such as trains that use grey hydrogen, are carbon-intensive, as Euronews Green has previously reported.

Using battery-powered trains reduces the need for rail operators to install or upgrade overhead wires on any unelectrified tracks. In turn, this could save Europe billions of euros in electrification projects.

It’s good news for those who live near train stations, too. Battery-run trains can enter and leave stations in zero-emission mode, drastically reducing noise and air pollution.

“The success of this trial will pave the way for even greener, more reliable journeys for millions of passengers,” said the UK’s rail minister, Lord Hendy.

When will everyone get to travel by battery-powered trains?

The evolution of battery-electric technology is moving quickly.

Hitachi Rail is already considering this next-generation technology for railway networks and other large vehicles globally. This latest success comes after delivering the world’s first passenger battery train in Japan and Europe’s first battery ‘tribrid’ train in Italy, the Masaccio, a couple of years ago.

A EuroMasaccio platform is already on track to be rolled out across European countries, and if Italy’s project is any indication, this could immediately cut CO2 emissions in half when replacing existing diesel train fleets.

Meanwhile, Siemens Mobility has also developed bi-mode battery trains that are already being used by passengers in the Ortenau region of Germany, saving 1.8 million litres of diesel every year. Plans are underway to roll them out across more countries, including the UK and more regions in Germany, within the next decade.

Siemens’ new trains only require small sections of track to be electrified, as the company supplies its own fast-charging points along the route, known as Rail Charging Converters (RCCs).