Foreign tourists in Labuan Bajo, West Manggarai Regency, have continued their holiday activities safely and normally after a magnitude 7.7 earthquake struck the Mbay-Nagekeo area of East Nusa Tenggara on Saturday, the 15th of August.
Tourism activities in Labuan Bajo, particularly at Komodo National Park, have resumed. Foreign tourists were seen continuing to arrive at the destination on Monday, the 17th of August, with visitor numbers recorded at more than 2,000 per day.
Despite their initial concerns, the tourists remained confident that the situation at their holiday destination was under control.
“It was a strange and frightening experience. However, we feel safe because everyone here appears very calm and relaxed,” observed one tourist.
They also actively sought the latest information from official authorities to ensure their safety while in the coastal area.
“We checked the earthquake warning system and looked up information regarding tsunamis. Everything was relatively fine, so we got back on the boat, and everything proceeded smoothly,” the tourist added.
The West Manggarai Regency Government had previously confirmed that all tourism-related infrastructure in the area had sustained no damage from the earthquake’s tremors.
“We checked the harbour and the airport; everything is safe and undamaged, including other public facilities,” the Regent of West Manggarai, Edistasius Endi, previously said on Saturday, the 15th of August.
Data from the Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency indicated that the post-earthquake rise in sea level was only 0.3 metres, remaining within safe limits. The government confirmed that there were no tourist casualties. Local port authorities allowed tourism-related boating activities to resume normal operations a few hours after monitoring was conducted.
Meanwhile, regarding accommodation, the majority of major hotels in West Manggarai are reported to be safe, having sustained only minor damage, while electricity and internet services have returned to normal.
Not all tourism destinations have been reopened since the earthquake. As of this writing, Wae Rebo and Ruteng Pu’u in Manggarai, Kelimutu National Park in Ende, the Maumere Bay Island Cluster Nature Tourism Park in Sikka, as well as several tourist areas in Ngada and Nagekeo, remain temporarily closed or are experiencing disruptions to communication and electricity access.