Thousands of Australians stranded amid Indonesian volcanic eruptions

Passengers wait in the international terminal at Ngurah Rai Airport on the Indonesian resort island of Bali, July 10, 2015 in this photo taken by Antara Foto. Indonesian authorities shut five airports on Friday, including on the popular holiday islands of Bali and Lombok, because of a volcanic eruption, a spokesman for the airport operator said. Mount Raung in East Java has been erupting for nearly a week, forcing the cancellation of a number of flights to and from Australia. [Photo/Agencies]

"Flight to Bali delayed till later tonight so cancelled that and now flying to Honolulu and then onto Maui with my daughter whom I cannot include in this check in as she will de-friend me," the man posted on Sunday.

Australian travelers started returning to Australia on Sunday morning as flights resumed with news the cloud from Mt Ruang had drifted away. However, the cloud returned, forcing the Indonesian authorities to shut Denpasar airport again before reopening later that afternoon.

Observers say while there are small windows of improvement in the cloud, disruptions will most likely occur for up to two weeks at this stage.

Jetstar and Virgin Australia say they will schedule extra services to repatriate Australian travelers from Bali once conditions improve. Jetstar said they will look at chartering extra planes from parent company Qantas.

Mount Ruang erupted on July 2, emitting plumes of ash that can choke jet engines.

Denpasar airport was closed on Friday because of the ash, along with nearby regional terminals including Lombok.