Skift Take
West Maui has started to reopen to tourists. That will probably do more for the rest of the island than the western region, which is still healing.
Tourism is slowly coming back to Maui as the Hawaiian government starts to lift travel restrictions to the western region, two months after devastating wildfires that left nearly 100 dead and displaced thousands of people.
West Maui will reopen to tourists in three staggered phases. The first phase begins on October 8 and will cover the area from Ritz-Carlton, Maui Kapalua to Kahana Villa. The next two phases don’t have dates yet.
The historic Lahaina town will remain closed.
Not everyone agrees with the plan. Local activists asked the governor to push back the reopening in a petition with more than 14,000 signatures. The governor said reopen