Unlucky tourists accidentally sank their rental boat - as onlookers watched the comedic scene.

Paola Lavanzini, 29, was on a trip to Menorca, Spain, in July, with four friends when they spotted a boat beginning to sink.

The small boat, rented by a group of tourists on the island, started to become uneven in the water in the town of Cala en Forcat.

Over the next half an hour, it continued to sink as it took on water - until it was no longer visible.

Nobody was harmed in the disastrous scene, but it gathered a crowd of onlookers on the beach as well as from the hotel opposite.

Paola, a marketing and events specialist, from Zurich, Switzerland, said: "We were watching moment by moment."

"From the moment it started sinking to when it went down - that took about 30 minutes."

"I don't know if it was someone from a nearby hotel or the beach that rented it."

"After it sank, people came with a bigger boat to attach to the small boat and pull it back out."

"We were impressed by how many people crowded to watch."

"People were even putting on snorkelling masks to go down and look at the sunken boat."

"They did manage to pull it out in the end."