On this semi-private tour of 10 people or fewer, you can experience this historic Rome icon to the fullest with access to areas that are typically closed to the public—the underground chambers. After skipping the main entrance line, explore the Colosseum with an informative guide, who shares stories about life in Ancient Rome. Get the rare chance to walk through the tunnels, stand where gladiators stood and enjoy a panoramic view. Then visit the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill to complete your tour of Rome’s top ancient sites.

Enjoy access to all areas of the Colosseum, including places normally off-limits
Explore the Colosseum's underground chambers and see where wild animals were caged
Visit the Roman Forum, walk up Palatine Hill and enjoy views of Nero's Circus Maximus
Walk in the Gladiators' footsteps on the Arena floor

Why Travelers Choose This Tour

Secure access to the underground chambers and arena floor

What's Included

Professional guide
Small groups of 10 people or fewer
Skip-the-Line Access to Roman Forum & Palatine Hill
Special Skip-the-Line Access to Colosseum Underground and Arena Floor
Dedicated audio headsets so you don't miss a thing
Guaranteed to skip the long lines
Colosseum Entry ticket with Arena and Underground (€31.60)

Food and drinks
Gratuities

Meeting And Pickup

Meeting point

Largo Gaetana Agnesi
L.go Gaetana Agnesi, 00184 Roma RM, Italy
Meet your guide at Largo Gaetana Agnesi, above the 2nd floor of the metro line B (blue line) stop "Colosseo". If arriving by metro: Upon exiting the turnstiles of the metro, take an immediate right down the tiled hall to the escalator/stairs within the metro station.

End point

Roman Forum
Via della Salara Vecchia, 5/6, 00186 Roma RM, Italy

What To Expect

Colosseum

2 hours • Admission Ticket Included

Palatine Hill

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Roman Forum

30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Please note: All participant names are required at the time of booking in order to enter the Colosseum. Every customer is required to carry a valid ID that matches the name on the ticket, or an entry will be refused. Name changes are not permitted once the booking is confirmed
Not wheelchair accessible
Near public transportation
No heart problems or other serious medical conditions

Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
Due to the fact that Colosseum Underground entry tickets can only be purchased using the full name of each passenger and cannot be modified or cancelled, no refund will be given for any tour cancellation once the tickets are purchased on the passengers’ behalf.
On this tour, some of the venues or parts of the venue may be subject to last-minute, unpredictable closures.
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 10 travelers

Cancellation Policy

This experience is non-refundable and cannot be changed for any reason. If you cancel or ask for an amendment, the amount you paid will not be refunded.

This experience requires a minimum number of travelers. If it’s canceled because the minimum isn’t met, you’ll be offered a different date/experience or a full refund.

Traveler Photos

Traveler Tips

There is a lot of walking on uneven ground and climbing of stairs so wear comfy shoes for sure.

Take water and ensure you go to toilet before you start as it's quite a way into the tour before a toilet break.

Take a water bottle and aome snacks as you will not get a chance to stop and get these.

Reviews

4.5

3,978 reviews

Total review count and overall rating based on Viator and Tripadvisor reviews

Reviews by Viator travelers.

Showing 1-10 of 3,978 reviews

We got ripped off

Helen_S, Sept 2023

None. We signed up for a SEMI PRIVATE tour that was canceled only the day before. We were told we could sign up for a similar tour without the underground forum at 9:15 instead of 8:50. We asked the size of the new group and were told at the most 22. There were 25. We arrived on time and were told that NOW the tour does not start until 9:30. The guide meant well but he told constant stupid jokes. The whole experience was painful.

10 minutes in the arena, no more. Rip off.

Dan_T, Sept 2023

This tour was a failure from start to finish sorry. We initially booked to do this tour with underground and gladiator arena. A few weeks ahead it was cancelled on the basis that underground toor was no longer available (on the day we saw plenty of people in the underground area, I have photos to prove it. We were rebooked by the tour providers (City Wonders sold through Viator) onto Colosseum, Forum and Palantine hill tour. The tour ahead 24 people on it according to our tour guide “Simon”. It started at three and we then spent 30 minutes getting into the Colosseum and waiting for people to go to the toilets. The next three quarters of an hour were spent with our tour guide “behind the scenes”i.e. back stage on the 1st floor, being hold some interesting history but without sight of the hugely impressive internal arena. It was not until an hour and 10 minutes into the tour that we got to see the arena (the time stamp on my 1st photo shows exactly 16:10). We then only had 10 minutes to take it all in before we were asked to move into the shade without a view of the arena where the merits or otherwise of the film Gladiator and the Netflix TV show of Spartacus were discussed for 10 minutes. Then it was straight backstage again where we were told that we were off to the Forum. I was shocked, we wanted to see the magnificent arena and really absorb it, as well as go to the partially reconstructed stage on the arena floor. We were told we could not and that our tickets did not cover the arena floor (I was told on the phone when i rebooked that it was). We then had a choice to stay in the coliseum on our own while the rest of the group went off to see the Forum (and loose our access to the Forum, or continue on with the tour having not spent much time in the primary objective. We plumped to stay and missed out on the Forum and hill which I feel is a real shame. If your time spent in the actual Colosseum arena is going to be so limited, this really should be shared with ticket buyers up front. I feel I was miss-sold and raised a complaint with Viator who refused to give even a partial refund. My view, if you want to see the Colosseum in its full glory don’t pick this tour or City Wonders.

Terrible experience

Amber_B, Sept 2023

I booked this tour particularly because of the low number of people in the group and also for the underground experience. When I arrived on the day I was advised that the underground tour had been cancelled by the colosseum, I understand that’s beyond anyone’s control. I was placed in a group with 50 people. Considering I was expecting a group of 10 at most, I was disappointed. The tour was not enjoyable at all, in fact I left about halfway through. If you book this tour please make sure you keep checking to see if it’s going ahead and cancel if it’s not. I feel as though I would have got more out of an auto tour.

Response from Host, Sept 2023

Hello Amber_B, Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback regarding your recent booking with us for the Colosseum Underground Semi-Private Tour with Roman Forum & Gladiator Arena. We sincerely apologize for the less-than-satisfactory experience you had during this tour. We deeply regret that the Colosseum's cancellation of the underground portion of the tour impacted your experience. While such situations are beyond our control, we understand your disappointment. Furthermore, we apologize for the larger group size you encountered on the day of the tour. We appreciate your understanding that sometimes circumstances may lead to variations in group sizes. We continuously strive to offer the best possible experiences to our guests, and your feedback is essential in helping us improve. To address the issues you've raised, we will be issuing a partial refund as a gesture of goodwill to reflect the portions of the tour that you missed and did not find enjoyable. We understand that this may not fully compensate for your experience, but we hope it demonstrates our commitment to ensuring our guests are satisfied. For an update on the status of your refund or any further assistance, please feel free to contact us directly at edgar.chavero@citywonders.com, and we will be happy to assist you. Once again, we apologize for any inconvenience you experienced during the tour. We appreciate your feedback, as it helps us enhance our services and provide better experiences to our guests in the future. Best regards, Edgar J. Communications Manager City Wonders

Unforgettable

Lynn_L, Sept 2023

The history and views were spectacular.a moment in time that spans 2000 years. Our trip was canceled from the semi-private under-ground to the group tour. A partial refund was promised but have yet to receive.

Terrible.

Jayasree_C, Sept 2023

We arrived on September 8th, 2023 1 pm, in the location provided in the notification. No one showed up. We waited another 45 minutes after the scheduled time. Very disappointed.

Response from Host, Sept 2023

Hello Jayasree_C, We are truly sorry to hear about your disappointing experience on the Colosseum Underground Semi-Private Tour with Roman Forum & Gladiator Arena booked through Viator. This is certainly not the level of service we aim to provide. We would like to investigate this matter further and ensure it doesn't happen again in the future. Please accept our sincerest apologies for any inconvenience you encountered. To assist us in resolving this issue and to better understand what might have happened, we kindly request that you reach out to us via email at info@citywonders.com with the details of your booking, including your name, reservation number, and any additional information about your experience. Our coordinators are always at our designated meeting point for all Colosseum tours, and if we were at fault in any way, we will certainly make every effort to accommodate you and rectify the situation. Your feedback is essential to us, and we appreciate your understanding as we work to improve our services. We hope to have the opportunity to welcome you back in the future and provide you with the exceptional tour experience that you deserve. Thank you for bringing this to our attention. Sincerely, The City Wonders Team

Good tour guide but not the tour I signed up for

Sara_K, Sept 2023

Our excursion was downgraded to no underground access. Perhaps it was everyone not just our tour company. It also was not semi-private with over 20 people in our group. I was compensated but still paid quite a bit for this-almost $200 at the beginning of Sept for 2 people. Our guide was wonderful, vibrant, funny and patient, very knowledgeable too!

Good tour guide but not what we originally signed up for.

Claudine_H, Sept 2023

Simon was a very good tour guide and he was very knowledgeable and he is the reason for the 5 star review. We were disappointed that our original tour of only 10 people with the opportunity to go to the underground was cancelled.

Learned a lot!

Donald_M, Sept 2023

Very thorough and educational tour. We really enjoyed the experience. There is much more to the tour than just the colosseum.

Don't book with Viator or City Wonders in Rome!

Julie_U, Aug 2023

We booked our tour months before our trip knowing it was nonrefundable based on the listing. Two days before the tour, City Wonders, the local tour operator, messaged us saying "due to unforeseen circumstances, we are unable to provide your scheduled tour at the original time." We changed the tour time and arrived at the meeting spot as instructed. A City Wonders representative met us and told us it was cancelled because the tour guide was sick. Since it was so last minute, he offered us the tickets to the Colosseum which had already been purchased for free. City Wonders gave us a partial refund but ended up charging us $188.21 for $103.57 worth of tickets. Our attempts to get the remaining money back were met with "you should have gotten that in writing." Neither Capital One, TripAdvisor, Viator, or City Wonders care about the fact that this person lied to us. Do yourself a favor, use a different tour company, record any and all oral changes they make on your phone, and a non-Visa credit card to book it.

Response from Host, Aug 2023

Hello Julie_U, We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience and frustration you experienced with your Colosseum Underground Semi-Private Tour with Roman Forum & Gladiator Arena. We deeply regret the miscommunication and any resulting financial discrepancies. We acknowledge that there were issues with the original tour and the last-minute cancellation due to the guide's illness. We understand your disappointment, and we have taken steps to rectify this situation. We have revised our internal processes to ensure that such occurrences are minimized in the future. We understand the importance of clear communication, and we apologize for any misunderstanding that may have occurred. Your feedback is invaluable, and it will be used to improve our services. Thank you for your understanding and for giving us an opportunity to make this right. We hope that, in the future, you will consider giving us another chance to provide you with a more enjoyable and seamless experience. Kind regards, Edgar J. Communications Manager City Wonders

Silvia made the difference

Enrico_Q, Aug 2023

Tour was good but Silvia made the tour exceptional. She had a lot of passion, energy and empathy for those who needed time and or shade. She is filled with knowledge and materials to help illustrate what she is explaining. Highly recommend and if you get Silvia as your guide then you are in for a treat.

CANCELLED ORIGINAL TIME, RESCHEDULED US, THEN CANCELLED MORNING OF. BEWARE!!

Ron_C, Aug 2023

BEWARE OF THIS TOUR!! A week before the tour they contacted us to tell us that they had cancelled our tour time and to call to book a tour for the same day at a different time. Luckily it didn’t change our plans too much but if we had any other tours booked on the same day we would have had to skip it entirely. The MORNING OF our tour we showed up at the meeting point and an employee met us to inform us that the tour guide NO-SHOWED and they had to cancel our guided tour. No email/phone call/etc to tell us ahead of time - they waited until we showed up for the tour. Our tickets still allowed us entry but we did not get any sort of a guide (which was very important to us). Luckily we did get a partial refund, but it was a huge disappointment when we could have gone with any other reliable tour company.

Colloseum poor tour

Terra_H, Aug 2023

I didn’t feel that our guide knew much about the Colosseum. He was much more interested in the Forum. He took more breaks then anything else. We had to change our tour at the last minute because of you. We bought underground tickets and you canceled them.

Response from Host, Aug 2023

Hello Terra_H, Thank you for taking the time to share your thoughts about your Colosseum Underground Semi-Private Tour with Roman Forum & Gladiator Arena experience. We appreciate your feedback, as it helps us enhance our services. We apologize for any disappointment caused by the altered tour experience. Our aim is to provide comprehensive insights into both the Colosseum and the Roman Forum. We regret if the focus of the guide seemed imbalanced during your tour. Regarding the change in your tour, we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience. Due to operational considerations, we no longer offer the Colosseum Underground as part of our tour. We understand that such changes can impact the planned experience, and we're sorry for any disappointment this may have caused. Your feedback is valuable as it helps us address areas that require improvement and ensure a more balanced and enriching tour experience in the future. We hope that despite the challenges you faced, you were still able to appreciate the historical significance of the Roman Forum and the Colosseum. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, and we hope you'll consider giving us another opportunity in the future to provide you with a more satisfying tour experience. Warm regards, Edgar J. Communications Manager City Wonders

Good tour

Lisa_B, Aug 2023

Tour was well organized and guide was knowledgeable. Going early helped to minimize the heat. I had originally booked to go to the underground area with a small group. For some reason, this was cancelled about a week before. So we accepted the larger group, staying above. I got a refund for the difference and still enjoyed the visit .

Stood up by my tour guide. No show.

John_S, Jul 2023

While this was the tour and event, my 10-year-old son was most looking forward to unfortunately, after waiting around in the extreme heat at the meeting point for our tour guide, I was not able to find the guide. After calling several times I was eventually able to get ahold of the company and was informed that my guide called in sick. Part of the point of having a guide is to have them take you in without waiting in lines and also take you places that guides are required like the underground. Very disappointing.

Would use a different tour company.

Paul_R, Jul 2023

We found Viator very disorganized. We received several e-mails requesting we change the time for our tour of the Coliseum Underground. The several tickets they sent did not agree with the time in their e-mails. The tour was supposed to have less than 10 people, we had 15 in our group. The tour guide could not get a ticket to go into the underground area with us. We were given another 'guide' who would only answer our questions but would not point out any areas or give information unless we asked. Poorly organized and poorly executed. Very disappointing.

Response from Host, Jul 2023

Hello Paul_R, We apologize for the disorganization and the issues you encountered during your Colosseum Underground Semi-Private Tour with Roman Forum & Gladiator Arena. Your feedback is essential to us, and we regret that we fell short of delivering a seamless and enjoyable experience. We acknowledge the multiple emails requesting time changes and the discrepancies with the tickets, which caused confusion and frustration. We have since addressed this issue to ensure better communication and coordination in the future. Furthermore, we apologize for the larger group size than advertised. We understand the importance of a semi-private tour with a limited number of participants, and we will take steps to ensure that future tours adhere to the specified group size. Regarding the tour guide's inability to enter the underground area with your group and the lack of proactive information during the tour, we deeply apologize. Our guides are essential in providing a knowledgeable and engaging experience, and we regret that this aspect of the tour was disappointing. We appreciate you sharing your concerns with us, and we assure you that we have taken your feedback seriously. We have made adjustments to our processes and training to prevent similar issues in the future. Kind regards, Edgar J. Communications Manager City Wonders

Tour guide cancelled

Lesley_D, Jul 2023

Our tour guide cancelled 48 hours before the tour so it was self guided. It was very frustrating and disappointing.

Response from Host, Jul 2023

Hello Lesley_D, Thank you for sharing your feedback about your recent Colosseum Underground Semi-Private Tour with Roman Forum & Gladiator Arena. We sincerely apologize for the disappointment and frustration you experienced due to the guide cancellation. At City Wonders, we strive to provide our guests with exceptional experiences, and the absence of a tour guide is certainly not the level of service we aim to deliver. We understand the importance of having a knowledgeable and engaging guide to enhance the tour and provide valuable insights. We regret that the unforeseen circumstances led to the cancellation, and we have taken immediate action to address this matter. Additionally, we have processed a partial refund as a gesture of goodwill for this aspect of the tour. We want to assure you that we are continuously working to improve our operations and ensure that such situations are minimized in the future. Your feedback is invaluable to us, and we take it seriously as we strive to deliver the best possible experiences for all our guests. Once again, we apologize for the inconvenience you faced, and we hope that you would consider giving us another opportunity to provide you with a truly enjoyable and seamless tour experience. Thank you for booking with City Wonders and for sharing your thoughts with us. Kind regards, Edgar J. Communications Manager City Wonders

Disappointment All Arpund

Ron_E, Jul 2023

Frustrating experience. We had initially booked the underground tour and were told a month out that they weren’t doing them that day. We were then rescheduled on the normal “Skip the Line” Colosseum and. Roman Forum tour. This tour was underwhelming to say the least and allowed no time to see the actual Roman Forum beyond a photo site atop Palatine Hill. The guide provided very little information on what we were looking at and seemed to be just going through the motions. Things got a little better when we got to the Colosseum but again, it wasn’t quite informative. Would have been much better off doing the regular audio tour. But to top it all off, we saw numerous underground tours going on while we were doing our regular tour. All and all a disappointing and frustrating experience. While City Wonders typically is rated rather high, they came up way short this time. And this is coming from someone that rarely posts negative comments.

Response from Host, Jul 2023

Hello Ron_E, We deeply apologize for the frustrating experience you encountered with our Colosseum Underground Semi-Private Tour with Roman Forum & Gladiator Arena. We understand the disappointment you must have felt with the changes in the tour schedule and the lack of informative content during the tour. We want to clarify that the tours you saw at the Colosseum Underground are conducted by the Colosseum representatives themselves, and as a tour operator, we are not allowed to conduct tours in that area. Due to this restriction, we had to cancel the underground tour and reschedule you on the regular "Skip the Line" Colosseum and Roman Forum tour. We acknowledge that the replacement tour did not meet your expectations, and we sincerely regret any inconvenience this caused. We are continuously working to ensure that our tours provide valuable insights and enjoyable experiences for our guests, and we understand that we fell short on this occasion. As a gesture of goodwill, we have processed a partial refund for you. We value your feedback and take it seriously, as it helps us identify areas for improvement and provide better experiences in the future. Please know that we are committed to delivering high-quality tours, and we are working diligently to address the issues you mentioned to avoid similar occurrences in the future. Once again, we apologize for the disappointment and frustration you faced during your tour. We hope that you would consider giving us another chance to provide you with a truly enjoyable and informative experience on one of our tours. Thank you for choosing City Wonders and for sharing your thoughts with us. Best regards, Edgar J. Communications Manager City Wonders

Guide was a no show

Alyssa_A, Jul 2023

Guide didn’t show. No answer when I called the phone number listed on the ticket. No answer to my texts. Missed seeing the colosseum; tickets for the day were sold out. Stood is the scorching sun waiting for almost an hour.

Response from Host, Jul 2023

Hello Alyssa_A, We sincerely apologize for the disappointing experience you had during your Colosseum Underground Semi-Private Tour with Roman Forum & Gladiator Arena. This is certainly not the standard of service we strive to provide at City Wonders, and we deeply regret the inconvenience you faced. We are truly sorry that your guide did not show up as scheduled, and we understand how frustrating it must have been to not receive any response when trying to contact us. Your time and trust are of utmost importance to us, and we deeply regret that we fell short of your expectations. While we strive to maintain excellent customer service, there are instances where our lines may be busy due to high call volumes. However, this should not excuse the lack of response to your texts and calls. We are actively reviewing our processes to ensure that such issues are addressed promptly and efficiently in the future. To rectify this situation, we have initiated a full refund for your booking. You can expect the refund to be processed shortly, and the funds will be returned to the original payment method. We understand that missing the opportunity to see the Colosseum on your chosen day due to sold-out tickets was disappointing, and we sincerely apologize for any inconvenience this caused you. Your feedback is invaluable, and it will be used to enhance our services and ensure that such incidents do not recur. Your satisfaction is essential to us, and we hope to have the opportunity to welcome you back for a more satisfying experience in the future. If there's anything else you would like to discuss or if you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to reach out to our customer support team. Once again, we apologize for the disappointment and inconvenience, and we thank you for bringing this matter to our attention. Best regards, Edgar J. City Wonders Support Team

I am incredibly...

Christina_C, Jul 2023

I am incredibly disappointed with this company. I knew that it would probably be chaotic finding the group considering its peak season, however it was nearly impossible. All it says in the description is go to the second level platform at the train station and look for the city wonders flag. That’s exactly what I did but when I got outside there was not a city wonders flag in sight. It’s also a very large area and they gave me a vague description. So I called the company for assistance, and I am not one to leave bad reviews but when I called asking for more specific directions or for a phone number for the guide since I could not find the flag: She responded by shouting “look for the city wonders flag!” Low and behold a stranger heard me arguing saying that I couldn’t find this flag and he kindly pointed to this random area off to the corner which was city wonders. The fury I felt after getting yelled at on the phone to then find the group and see that they did not have a city wonders flag. Not one. They were wearing blue polo shirts that had it written in tiny writing on the pocket. Thank god the kind stranger pointed them out because I would have never found them. I have booked a lot of things through viator and have never had such an encounter. Thank god our fill in guide was lovely & knowledgeable so that the day wasn’t ruined.

Response from Host, Jul 2023

Hello Christina_C, Thank you for sharing your feedback regarding your experience with our Colosseum Underground Semi-Private Tour with Roman Forum & Gladiator Arena. We apologize for the difficulties you encountered in finding our group and the subsequent interaction with our staff. We sincerely apologize for any confusion or frustration caused by the unclear directions and lack of a visible City Wonders flag. We understand the importance of clear instructions and visible signage to ensure a smooth meeting process. We will address this issue with our coordinators to ensure that they are more visible and provide more specific directions for future tours. We appreciate your understanding and patience in navigating the situation, and we are glad to hear that our fill-in guide was lovely and knowledgeable, ensuring that your day wasn't completely ruined. Thank you for your honest feedback and for choosing to book through Viator. We value your support and appreciate your review, as it helps us improve our services. Thank you once again for your feedback and for taking the time to share your experience. We hope that despite the meeting point issues, you still enjoyed your underground tour with our "knowledgeable guide." Kind regards, Edgar J. Communications Manager City Wonders

Scam - Only resales tickets and does not provide tours.

Michael_F, Jul 2023

City Wonders was unable to provide a full tour and offered 30% refund. When we arrived for the tour, City Wonders provided us with a Colosseum ticket and instructed us how to enter. They did not come in with us and abandoned use with a ticket that costs only 36 euros. City Wonders only resold us a basic ticket at a 200%+ above face value and did not operate a tour.

Response from Host, Jul 2023

Hello Michael_F, We apologize for the disappointment and inconvenience you experienced during your Colosseum Underground Semi-Private Tour. Unfortunately, on the day of your tour, our guide was unable to show up, which resulted in us being unable to provide the full tour experience as intended. We understand your frustration with not having a guide present during your visit to the Colosseum. We wanted to ensure that you were still able to enjoy your Colosseum experience and provided you with a ticket for entry. We apologize if this did not meet your expectations. We have processed a 30% refund as a gesture of goodwill for the inconvenience caused. We appreciate your feedback and will use it to improve our services. Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention, and we apologize once again for any disappointment caused. Kind regards, Edgar J. Communications Manager City Wonders

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