Flores Tourism Resumes After Quake, But Recovery Remains Uneven

Labuan Bajo — Tourism activity on Flores has resumed in several key destinations following the 15 August earthquake off Mbay, Nagekeo, but local industry representatives say the recovery remains uneven, with some sites still closed pending safety checks.

According to the East Nusa Tenggara chapter of the Association of Indonesian Tour and Travel Agencies (Asita), the official extension of the emergency-response period through 12 September 2026 has not led to tour cancellations among its members.

Asita NTT chair Oyan Kristian said on 31 August that tourism on Flores was “still busy” and that operators continued to run trips while providing updated information to visitors and partner agencies on local conditions and destination status.

He added that reopening destinations that had been declared safe was helping maintain the flow of visitors, while tour operators relied on regular updates from government and technical agencies to adjust itineraries when necessary.

Visitors return to reopened sites

The Flores tourism industry began restoring operations gradually in the two weeks after the quake.

Asita NTT reported that Kelimutu Lake, one of the island’s most prominent natural attractions, had reopened to visitors by Tuesday, 25 August, after authorities assessed access roads and visitor facilities.

The association said travel agents and guides were continuing to monitor official advisories and relay them to tourists, highlighting that their no-cancellation reports reflect bookings handled by Asita members rather than all tourism businesses on the island.

Industry figures cited by Asita point to a mixed picture: in hubs with functioning infrastructure and verified-safe attractions, such as parts of Ende and surrounding areas, operators were able to resume regular activity, while other destinations remained closed or operated with restrictions.

Uneven recovery across Flores

The magnitude-7.7 earthquake that struck near Mbay, Nagekeo, in the early hours of 15 August prompted initial tsunami warnings and triggered a series of aftershocks that continued for weeks, according to the national meteorological agency BMKG.

BMKG data show the main quake occurred at 04:58 WIB, with an updated magnitude of 7.7 and a hypocentre depth of 15 kilometres, roughly 30–38 kilometres northeast of Mbay.

The agency issued and later lifted a tsunami early warning on the same day, but thousands of aftershocks were recorded across Flores in the following month, underscoring ongoing seismic activity.

In this context, Asita NTT urged authorities to accelerate repairs to damaged roads and public facilities and to conduct thorough structural assessments of buildings used by visitors before reopening them.

The group stressed that temporary closures at certain destinations were a necessary safety measure rather than an overreaction, citing the risk posed by further tremors and landslides along key corridors that connect tourism sites.

Data gaps in island-wide tourism picture

While industry representatives describe tourism on Flores as broadly active again, they note that the available figures do not yet capture island-wide visitor numbers, occupancy rates or booking volumes.

Asita’s assessment is based on reports from its members and does not necessarily reflect conditions at all hotels, homestays, tour operators or informal businesses in parts of Flores that were more severely affected by the earthquake.

Local operators and tourism groups have therefore cautioned against assuming that all areas have returned to pre-quake conditions, pointing to ongoing verification of destination safety, repairs to infrastructure and uneven telecommunications service in some districts.

At the same time, they frame the reopening of major attractions such as Kelimutu as an important signal to travellers that Flores remains accessible, provided visitors follow official guidance and stay informed about local conditions.

Sources

• Bisnis.com Bali
• BMKG official earthquake information (Mbay–Nagekeo, NTT)
• Media Indonesia