Sonic touristification and the transformation of Lisbon’s urban ambiances

This article introduces ‘sonic touristification’ as an analytical framework for examining how tourism reshapes urban soundscapes. Drawing on ethnographic research (2012–2024) across three Lisbon neighborhoods, we identify three mechanisms through which tourism alters sonic environments: thematization (commodifying local sounds), equalization (filtering unwanted sounds), and production of new tourist-driven ambiances. Our multi-sited ethnography combines participant observation, interviews, and other qualitative methods to trace acoustic transformations at different touristification stages. In Alfama, fado venues increased 9-fold as community music became tourist commodity. At Martim Moniz, a temporary food court used programmed music to create controlled environments while suppressing immigrant community sounds. In Bairro Alto, pub crawls generate mobile sonic bubbles penetrating residential spaces. These processes reveal how tourism operates through auditory standardization, generating tensions between residents, immigrants, tourists, venue owners, and authorities. Our research establishes sound as an indicator of urban power relations, where strategic deployment or suppression of sounds reflects broader tourism-driven change. By documenting dimensions inaccessible through conventional methods, this study contributes to critical tourism geography and urban sound studies while highlighting implications for urban justice, heritage preservation, and community well-being in tourism-oriented cities.