Guided tour

Colosseum Underground: Priority Access Guided Tour

Activity provider: City Wonders Ltd.
Guided tour

Colosseum Underground: Priority Access Guided Tour

Activity provider: City Wonders Ltd.

From US$ 117.39 per person

Get a gladiator’s-eye view of the Colosseum with a skip-the-line tour. Go backstage with your guide to off-limit areas, like the underground level where gladiators would wait to head out into battle. Visit the Palatine Hill & Roman Forum.

About this activity

Cancellation policy
This activity is non-refundable
Duration 2.5 hours
Check availability to see starting times.
Skip the line through a separate entrance
Live tour guide
English

Experience

Highlights
  • Get exclusive access to the underground corridors of the Colosseum
  • Walk along the Via Sacra of the Roman Forum
  • Enjoy panoramic views from Palatine Hill
  • Discover where the gladiators prepared for their fights and caged animals were kept
  • Take a comprehensive tour of all levels of the Colosseum
Full description
Begin your tour of Rome’s most iconic monument with Skip-the-Line access directly through the Gladiator’s Gate. Once the main exit for defeated contenders, this special entrance leads you directly to the parts of the Colosseum most tourists don’t get to see.  Your first stop is the Colosseum Underground – the backstage area where gladiators prepared for battle. Here, your expert, English-speaking guide will call on their historical and archaeological expertise to let you imagine the space as it once was. Scenery and caged wild animals stood ready to be hoisted into the arena by ingenious pulleys. You’ll practically feel the gladiators’ tense anticipation and hear the roar of the blood-thirsty crowd. Then, you will venture out onto where the spectators would watch the bloody battles that once took place in the Colosseum. The next stop on the tour takes you back to the very beginning. The Palatine Hill is the spot Romulus chose to find the city that would become Rome in 753 BC – a decision that ended in tragedy for his brother Remus. Here, steeped in history, you’ll enjoy a spectacular preview of your next destination: The Roman Forum. The Forum and the Via Sacra, the Sacred Way, were the heart of Ancient Rome. All of Roman life could be found in this bustling marketplace: commerce and trade, political rallies, military parades, and the sacred ceremonies of the Vestal Virgins.
Includes
  • Expert English-speaking guide
  • Skip-the-line access to the Colosseum
  • Access to the arena floor and underground tunnels
  • Skip-the-line access to the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill
  • Headsets
  • Gratuities
  • Hotel pick-up and drop off
Not suitable for
  • People with mobility impairments
  • Wheelchair users
  • Babies under 1 year

Select participants and date

Participants

Date

Meeting point

Meet your guide above the 2nd floor of the Metro stop "Colosseo" (Line B/Blue Line). Your guide will have a City Wonders sign with the name of the tour at the meeting point for easy recognition.

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Important information

What to bring

  • Passport or ID card
  • Comfortable shoes

Not allowed

  • Baby strollers
  • Luggage or large bags

Know before you go

  • All participant names are required at the time of booking in order to enter the Colosseum. Your name on the ID card should match the name on the ticket, or an entry will be refused. Name changes are not permitted once the booking is confirmed
  • Government-imposed COVID restrictions for entering countries and venues may change with little notice It is the responsibility of all visitors to ensure they check the official travel advice on the government websites and comply with each country’s requirements. The local partner will not be held responsible for refused access to museums and tourist attractions and no refund will be due.
  • Large bags or suitcases will not be permitted and there are no cloakroom facilities for storage
  • Security performs random identity checks carried out by Colosseum staff. Please make sure you carry an ID or Passport with you to ensure you will be able to enter the venue
Customer reviews

Overall rating

4.6 /5

based on 342 reviews

Review summary

  • Guide
    4.7/5
  • Value for money
    4.3/5
  • Service
    4.6/5
  • Organization
    4.5/5

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Star rating:

Lena the tour guide was fantastic.She made the tour enjoyable and not boring at all.There was no real hanging about just a few minutes waiting to go underground but Lena gave us lots of information to fill this period.She was really knowledgeable and had some nice pictures of what the colosseum and the ruins at palatine hill looked like originally.The 2 & half hour tour flew by and at the end my wife and I learned a lot of things we didn’t know about the history of the colosseum.I would recommend Lena to anyone wishing to take a tour of the colosseum and palatine hill.

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October 15, 2022

The tour was easy to book. The tour emailed to say our time slot had been cancelled and to come an hour earlier then our original time- we showed up early and waited until 30mins post our original time (1 and a half hours later). This was very annoying however the tour was excellent. The guide was exceptional he was an archeologist and had a vast knowledge of the colosseum and the history of Rome. The underground priority access was an excellent upgrade and allowed you to view the colosseum from below. I'd recommend booking early & booking a morning time slot when it isn't so hot & bringing water. Overall excellent morning.

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August 11, 2022

Elizabeth was absolutely wonderful in every way. She was extremely knowledgeable, kind, intentional to keep us in the shade whenever possible, on an extremely hot day, flexible, and answered all of our questions. What a privilege to be able to tour such an important landmark with a Roman archaeologist! There is so much to see and understand about both the colosseum and the other archaeological sites, and to get to experience the underground and stage of the colosseum was a once in a lifetime experience. 100% recommended. Thank you Elizabeth!

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July 22, 2022

Product ID: 44585