It was noon on a recent Saturday and we found parking in Paia on Maui.

If you’ve ever been to this beach town on the weekend, you know what we were able to do — without circling public lots or stalking people as they walked to their cars — is nothing short of a miracle.

But since deadly wildfires ravaged much of Lahaina and parts of Upcountry Maui, visitor numbers to the island have dramatically dropped. Last August about 8,000 people arrived at Kahului Airport each day. This August, after the fires, the number dropped to around 2,000.

Without visitor support, many businesses, which rely on tourism, have had to make tough decisions. Some closed, others reduced hours, many cut back on staff — further adding to the devastation.

Since the fires, Maui has lost more than $13 million per day in visitor spending, according to the University of Hawaii Economic Research Organization.

This fueled the decision by Gov. Josh Green to reopen West Maui to visitors — in phases, not all at once — starting Oct. 8, two months after the wildfires. The state — spearheaded by the Hawaii Tourism Authority — is urging people to travel to Maui and support the island’s businesses. The decision to reopen was met with pushback among some residents who said it’s too soon and signed a petition to delay it.

Starting Sunday, visitors have been allowed to parts of West Maui in the first phase of reopening, stretching from the Ritz-Carlton Maui, Kapalua south to Kahana Villa. Historic Lahaina Town and the surrounding areas that were hardest hit by the Aug. 8 wildfires, which killed at least 98 people, remain closed.

The goal of this staggered reopening is to boost the island’s economy, which stalled right after the disaster. But the road to recovery, according to UHERO, will likely be long and difficult.

We walked into Wabisabi Hawaii, a family-run, soba-focused restaurant in Paia that opened in April, which is historically the start of the state’s shoulder season. Even at lunchtime, the outdoor eatery on Hana Highway wasn’t busy. We took a back table, under a canopy of mango and avocado trees, and feasted on perfectly chewy house-made soba noodles.

“Of course we have felt a deep impact on our new restaurant, as have all small businesses, since the devastating Lahaina fire,” says Robert McLellan, whose family, which hails from Osaka, Japan, runs the restaurant.

“As a brand-new business, it’s been very difficult on an on-going basis. We stay grounded with (the) Japanese saying, ʻichi-go ichi-e.’ Each moment only once,” he said.

McLellan has noticed that visitors are slowly returning. He’s grateful but also mindful of the delicate balance between the need to stimulate the economy and the need to respect and empathize with those impacted by the wildfires.

While visitor numbers for August and September won’t be released by the state until the end of October, the daily passenger count to Maui — which includes both visitors and returning residents — shows a very slow but steady increase starting in September. State economist Eugene Tian noted that the decline can also be attributed to the higher cost of traveling to Maui, which boasts some of the highest hotel rates in Hawaii, and the state entering a slow season of travel.

It was obvious when we drove around Maui that the island seemed less busy than on previous visits. There was no line for dinner outside Tiffany’s Maui, which had become a dining hot spot since “Top Chef” alum and Maui chef Sheldon Simeon took it over last year. (The place was packed with mostly locals, though.)

At one point I had the popular pumpkin patch at Kula Country Farms all to myself. And nearby Alii Kula Lavender Farm, which relies heavily on visitors, was virtually empty — not that I was complaining. The farm accepted donations to the Maui Food Bank in lieu of an entry fee.

Jason Kashtan, who opened Happy Opu, a manapua shop in Kahului, in January, said the majority of his customers are residents. Since the wildfires, he hasn’t had to change his hours or reduce his staff. But he has felt the domino effect of the visitor decline, which also has led to unemployment and other financial difficulties.

“One group of regulars had been coming in at least once a week. I suddenly stopped seeing them,” he said. “When I ran into one of the girls at Foodland, she told me that the restaurant they worked for was super slow and was forced to close. Last I heard, most of them are still unemployed and struggling financially.”

Kashtan, who lives in Kihei with his family, says responsible tourism is essential and wants to see more voluntourism options on Maui.

“I don’t know any one of us who wasn’t directly affected by the wildfires can even begin to understand what these Lahaina and Upcountry families have been through,” he says. “We need to listen to those people and be sensitive to their needs both in regards to material items and their healing process. We should all be making ourselves available to support in any way we can.”

Civil Beat’s coverage of Maui County is supported in part by grants from the Nuestro Futuro Foundation.