A woman tourist has died when a car went off the side of a cliff and rolled into a lake near Twizel yesterday afternoon.

Emergency services were called to the scene just before three- at the intersection of Hayman Road and Braemar Mount Cook Station Road.

Police believe the car lost control on the gravel road and plunged off the cliff, rolled several times and became half submerged in Lake Pukaki.

The woman was thrown from the car and was found dead at the scene, while the male driver was taken to hospital with broken bones.