Colosseum & Forum with Optional Arena or Underground Access
Description
Enjoy a premium tour of Ancient Rome, combining a guided visit of the Colosseum with one of 3 ways to access it: With the REGULAR option, you’ll enjoy a 1-hour guided tour of the Colosseum’s main levels, followed by included entry to the Roman Forum to explore on your own. Arena and Underground access are not included. Choose the ARENA option for a 3-hour guided experience that takes you onto the iconic Arena floor and continues through the Roman Forum with your guide. Inside the Colosseum, this option includes the Arena only, not the regular main levels or Underground. For the most complete experience, choose the UNDERGROUND option. This 3-hour guided tour includes the Colosseum’s main levels, Arena floor and fascinating Underground area, as well as a guided visit of the Roman Forum. Whichever option you choose, your Colosseum and Roman Forum entry is included. Please note that the Upper Levels of the Colosseum are not included in any option.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Guided visit optional (included in ARENA and UNDERGROUND options only), entry always included. Discover the political, religious, and commercial heart of Ancient Rome. Walking among temples, basilicas, triumphal arches, and ancient streets, your guide will help you imagine the Forum as it once was: a vibrant centre of power, public life, ceremonies, speeches, and imperial ambition. This is where Rome’s history becomes tangible. Hear about the Vestal Virgins and see their gardens and the pagan temple of the Goddess Vesta they served. Learn about the Basilica Julia and the penal system of Ancient Rome and its effects on Christianity. See the temple of Castor and Pollux and the Arch of Titus and learn about the sacking of Jerusalem. Discover the Senate House, where senators met to decide the fate of the Roman Republic and how that climaxed with the murder and cremation of Julius Caesar.
Guided visit optional (included in ARENA and UNDERGROUND options only), entry always included. Continue to the Palatine Hill, the legendary birthplace of Rome and later the most exclusive address of the ancient world. Here, emperors built their palaces above the city, surrounded by gardens, courtyards, and spectacular views. Your guide will reveal the myths, power struggles, and imperial lifestyles connected to this extraordinary hill. From the heights of the Hill, enjoy a bird's eye view over the Roman Forum and what is considered to have been the largest structure for public games ever built by mankind, the Circus Maximus.
Choose your preferred option at booking, subject to availability : REGULAR — Main levels only. No Arena or Underground access. ARENA — Arena only. No main levels or Underground access. UNDERGROUND — Full access: Main levels + Arena + Underground. The Upper levels are not included with any option.
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Service animals allowed
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Infants are required to sit on an adult’s lap
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- IMPORTANT: Please provide the full names of all travellers (specifying who is younger than 18). Missing/wrong information may result in denied entry.
- Please make sure to provide the names exactly as they appear on the ID or passport.
- Each participant will be asked to present a valid passport or ID card, at the entrance of Roman Forum / Colosseum, that matches the name provided at the time of booking.
- You will pass through strict security checks both at the Colosseum and at the Roman Forum entrance. Please be aware that security check lines are not skippable.
- A moderate amount of walking and steps are involved; wear comfortable walking shoes
- Please be at the meeting point 30 minutes before the tour starts in order to complete the signup. We might not be able to accommodate, refund or reschedule late arrivals
- This tour is subject to favorable weather conditions. If canceled due to poor weather, you will be given the option of an alternative date or full refund
- Flying drones and knives of any kind are strictly forbidden. Neither trolleys and big backpacks nor animals are allowed into the Colosseum. Glass/metal containers and sprays of any kind are also not allowed.
Reviews(5,304)
Mario was wonderful, very knowledgeable and easy to understand. Tour was well organised, clear instructions for meeting point.
Thank you so much, we are glad to hear that you enjoyed our tour with Mario!
Patrick was great!! Super knowledgeable, easy to understand and added a bit of humor in to the really hot day.
Thank you so much, we are glad to hear that you enjoyed our tour with Patrick!
We had booked the arena tour, and I confirmed ahead of time that the tour would proceed and wouldn’t be cancelled as I had heard of your companies switching at the last minute if they couldn’t secure access to the arena. I was assured that would not happen. And it did. A couple of days before we were told that two tour groups had been refused entry and they were changing us to a guided tour of palatine hill and the forum and we would be on our own in the colosseum. They did give us a Roma pass and a 10% discount but given we were hardly going to be in Rome the Roma pass didn’t do much for us. So whilst the tour guide was excellent and it all turned out ok, I wouldn’t bother paying extra foe the arena floor entrance as it’s not guaranteed and ended up costing us more money than it should have.
Thank you for sharing your experience. We’re very sorry that the Arena access you had specifically booked was not available on the day of your tour. We completely understand your frustration, particularly as you had contacted us in advance to confirm that the tour would proceed as advertised. Unfortunately, the ticket for your original tour belonged to a limited batch of tickets that we had to cancel after discovering that access to the Colosseum was not always being granted with those tickets. We understand that this was particularly disappointing given that the Arena entrance was an important part of the experience you had booked. We’re pleased to confirm that all of our tour ticket batches are now fully secured, so this situation should not occur again. We sincerely regret the inconvenience caused and appreciate your understanding. We are, however, pleased to hear that your guide was excellent and that the rest of the experience turned out well. Thank you again for your understanding and for taking the time to leave such detailed feedback.
With viator it’s all about the fine prints, ignore the titles and the first descriptions and focus on the fine prints, this was the cheapest entry that didn’t even include the arena nor the underground, what a rip off! Thanks!
Thank you for your feedback. We’re sorry to hear you felt disappointed with your experience. We would, however, like to clarify that the Freedom Experience you booked included entry to the upper levels of the Colosseum. The booking title presents the different available options, while the specific inclusions depend on the option selected at checkout. According to your booking, neither the Arena nor the Underground was included in the option you selected. Nevertheless, our team actually upgraded you to include access to the Arena floor during your visit. Unfortunately, the Underground is an area that sells out very quickly and much in advance, therefore it was not available when you made the reservation nor on the day of the tour. We always encourage guests to carefully review the inclusions of the specific option selected before booking, as different Colosseum experiences can have different access levels. We’re sorry for any misunderstanding and hope this clarifies what was included in your reservation.
Wouldn’t recommend this experience via Touriks & Viator if you’re seeking a reliable tour operator & straightforward experience. We booked 3-months in advance - intentionally selecting an early tour to beat the heat during Summer. A few days prior to our anticipated tour Touriks informed us that they had cancelled it. Given the vague message and suspicious email account we assumed the email was a scam and ignored it. A day or two prior to the tour, Viator (the booking platform) contacted us informing us our tour had been changed to 11:30 & we either accept or not go/get a refund. We accepted however, the tour started 45 mins late. Despite advertising ‘underground’ in the Rome-Colosseum experience title, Touriks never provided us the option to select this (our preferred) option; much to our disappointment we didn’t get the experience we paid for. We found this (the experience titled ‘Colosseum Arena, underground, or regular entry, and Roman forum’) deceptive & misleading, overall false advertising. After doing some research, we acknowledge numerous unrepeatable tour operators exist in Rome with recent crackdowns. Be cautious as many tour operators alike Touriks operate this way - they’ll sell you an experience but not secure the allocated ticket time slot you’ve purchased…
Thank you for sharing your feedback. We’re sorry to hear that the schedule change and your experience with the ticket options left you disappointed. We would, however, like to clarify a few important points regarding the booking. The experience is not advertised as an underground tour guaranteed with every booking. When making a reservation, guests are presented with three separate options: "Regular Entry, Arena Entry, or Underground Entry", allowing them to select their preferred experience. The inclusions and exclusions for each option are clearly stated on the booking page and are also reflected in the voucher received after booking. The Underground option is subject to availability and tends to sell out very quickly. Based on the booking details, it appears that the Underground option was no longer available at the time your reservation was made, which is why you could not select it. Regarding the change in start time, unfortunately as we explained in our direct communication together, the ticket for your original tour belonged to a limited batch of tickets that we had to cancel since we discovered they were not always granted access to the Colosseum. To guarantee that you could still enjoy the experience you had booked, we offered you the alternative 11:30 AM departure. We understand that the change of time was inconvenient, this is certainly not the level of punctuality we aim to provide. We take transparency very seriously and regret that your experience gave you a different impression. We always encourage guests to carefully review the selected ticket option, inclusions, exclusions, and voucher details before the tour. Our team is also available before booking to clarify any questions and help guests choose the option that best suits their expectations. Thank you again for your review, as it gives us an opportunity to further review and improve our communication.
Extremely Disappointing Colosseum Tour I paid €220 per person specifically for an underground Colosseum tour, expecting to receive the experience that was advertised and to have the opportunity to explore the underground areas. Unfortunately, we were only taken to the arena floor and were not given the opportunity to navigate or experience the other areas I expected to see. For the price I paid, this was extremely disappointing. If I had known that the tour would only include the arena floor, I could have purchased a much cheaper ticket—approximately €68—and had a similar experience without spending €220 per person. I feel that the tour was not worth the price, and I am very disappointed with the experience. The description and what was actually provided did not match my expectations, and I would not recommend paying this amount for this tour based on my experience. I believe a partial or full refund would be appropriate given the significant difference between what I paid for and what I actually received.
Thank you for sharing your feedback. We’re sorry to hear the experience did not meet your expectations. Please note that our pricing is based on the specific experience provided, including the semi-private format, which includes a maximum of only 7 guests, as well as the guided visit to the Arena and Roman Forum. Regarding the Underground, the booking process presents three separate options: Regular Entry, Arena Entry, and Underground Entry. The inclusions and exclusions for each option are stated on the booking page and are also reflected on the confirmation voucher. The Underground option is subject to very limited availability and tends to sell out quickly. Based on the booking details, the experience provided corresponded exactly to the option that was booked (Arena floor). We’re sorry that there was a misunderstanding regarding the experience and hope this clarification helps explain the difference between the available tour options and their pricing.
A misleading tour. Basically it was walking tour of the ruins and then access to the entrance of the arena with no full tour of the Coliseum and very restricted access - if you want to go the upper levels or underground you need to purchase a separate ticket and go yourself. I did a night walking tour of Rome that was more informative and better value for money. If you want to see the Coliseum properly avoid this tour.
Thank you for sharing your feedback. We’re sorry to hear that the experience did not meet your expectations. We would like to clarify that this tour specifically includes special access to the Colosseum arena floor, which is a restricted area and places you inside the heart of the monument. Our guide also provides a detailed explanation of the Colosseum, its history, and the areas visible during the tour. Access to the underground and upper levels is not included in this particular experience and requires a separate ticket. These inclusions and exclusions are clearly stated in the tour description and voucher before booking. We understand that guests may prefer different types of Colosseum experiences, but we want to reassure future visitors that the tour provides exactly the access and services advertised. We appreciate your feedback and again, our apologies for not meeting your expectations and for any misunderstanding.
So much to take in on this tour. Our guide was great. He took good care of our group and was very knowledgeable.
Thank you! We are glad to hear that you enjoyed our guided tour.
Excellent guide. So knowledgeable. Explained everything and made sure to point out the most important things in the Vatican.
Thank you, we are delighted to hear that you enjoyed our tour!
Dona was fantastic. Recommend booking in the morning if in the summer because it was very hot. Great tour
Thank you so much, we are glad to hear that you enjoyed our guided tour with Dona!
