Selfie-taking tourists capsize gondola in Venice

A group of tourists took an unplanned dip in the chilly waters of a Venice canal when their gondola capsized after they refused to sit down and stop taking selfies.

The incident occurred on Sunday (3 December 2023) close to St Mark’s Square as the gondola was passing under a bridge at Rio de la Verona, a difficult manoeuvre that requires maximum balance of the weight on board.

According to local press, the tourists, reportedly from China, refused to listen to the gondolier’s orders and continued to stand up and move around the gondola taking selfies and photographs. The footage of the capsized gondola has been shared widely online via social media (see below).

Everyone onboard, including the gondolier, made it safely to the shore and according to a post on Instagram by Venezia Non è Disneyland (Venice Is Not Disneyland), the group received “hospitality, and above all a warm place” in the nearby La Fenice theatre.

In July 2020, some gondoliers in Venice claimed that ‘overweight’ tourists were creating a boat load of trouble, forcing them to cut passenger capacity for safety’s sake.

Main images courtesy of Diego Gennaro via Unsplash.