A tourist plunged off a bridge and into the chilly water when she tried to take a selfie in front of a Venice canal.

The unnamed woman, according to reports, had ignored municipal regulations and climbed onto the top rail atop the balustrades along the city’s famed Rialto Bridge.

There, said reports, she had attempted to take a selfie but had lost her balance, plunging into the chilly autumn waters of the Grand Canal behind her.

The Grand Canal is one of Venice’s busiest, with boats, water taxis, gondolas, and vaporetti plying the waterways.

The woman luckily missed all obstacles on her descent and hit the water’s surface, with a stunned resident filming the moments afterwards.

A water taxi came to the woman’s aid and she was eventually hoisted out of the canal.

The clip was posted to the social media page ‘Venezia non e Disneyland’ (Venice Isn’t Disneyland) on 18th November.

Netizen ‘Adriano Milocchi’ commented: “Damn tourists, everything has to be a game, otherwise it’s worth nothing. Theoretically it would be better if there were alligators in Venice.”

And ‘Consuelo Mas’ remarked: “That photo will remain an indelible memory.”

Permanent residents of Venice, long annoyed by unruly tourists, have been calling for stricter visitor regulations for years.