The Hoot & Holler Hideout, a small gift shop that is built into the exit tunnel for Tokyo Disneyland’s Splash Mountain is due to shut down permanently on November 30th of this year.
OLC has given no official reason for this closure. Some Disney bloggers online are speculating that this could be a signal that they are preparing to shut down Splash Mountain for renovation, and that the renovations could including converting the problematic Song of the South theme into Tiana’s Bayou Adventure which is themed after The Princess and the Frog.
What do you think?
Personally, I doubt it.
OLC hasn’t even removed the Bride Auction from Pirates of the Caribbean, despite overhauling the ride in 2007 to add Johnny Depp animatronics and Pirates film franchise theming. They don’t care that Westerners are offended by Song of the South, Japanese fans LOVE Splash Mountain as it is and it still has one of the longest standby lines in the park.
Every single time I have walked past that gift shop, there has been no one there. No one. Except for the poor sales clerk that drew the short straw and has to stand there doing nothing for six hours. I think it earns next to zero revenue for the park and it makes no sense to continue operating it.