Rome Tours
Ancient Rome: Colosseum Underground Small-Group Tour
4.5
LIKELY TO SELL OUT*

Ancient Rome: Colosseum Underground Small-Group Tour

By Tours of Rome
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About
History enthusiasts will love the chance to get beneath the surface of Rome, literally. This guided tour takes you to restricted underground parts of the Colosseum that visitors can't normally access. Learn about the gladiators, as well as about the lives of ordinary Romans. Also visit the spectacular Roman Forum, above ground, for a complete picture of ancient Rome.
Lowest price guarantee

Ages 0-99, max of 24 per group
Duration: 2h
Start time: Check availability
Mobile ticket
Live guide: English
More

Highlights
  • Choose between morning or afternoon departures, to suit your schedule
  • An ideal tour for first-time visitors to Rome who want an overview
  • Get skip-the-line access to some restricted parts of the Colosseum
  • Upgrade your experience to include access to the third tier

  • Colosseum Undergrounds Tour
  • Gladiator's Arena Guided Tour
  • Tickets to visit Roman Forum on Your own
  • Tickets to visit Palatine Hill on your own
  • Tickets are nominative please provide Names as on the passport of each visitor
  • Entry/Admission - Colosseum
  • Entry/Admission - Colosseum
  • Entry/Admission - Palatine Hill
  • Entry/Admission - Foro Romano
What's not included
  • Guided Tour in the Forum and Palatine
  • Private transportation


Start:
  • Piazza del Colosseo, 21, 00184 Roma RM, Italy
    In front of COLOSSEO METRO Station, Lower Level Exit, nearby the Newsstand and across the road from the Colosseum, Piazza del Colosseo 22, Roma 00184. Please don't go to the Metro Upper Level. Our guide will be waiting for you holding a sign that says '' Tours of Rome ''
End:This activity ends back at the meeting point.

    • Not wheelchair accessible
    • Near public transportation
    If you have questions about accessibility, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 16631P14

    • Confirmation will be received at time of booking
    • Travelers should have a moderate physical fitness level
    • Passport required. Tickets are nominative and you are kindly invited to provide all the names as on the passport of the visitors attending the tour
    • Please provide the full names of all travelers as on the passport when booking. Failure to present a voucher with all travelers' full names at the ticket office prior to entry may result in denied entry to the Colosseum and Roman Forum.
    • Tour start time can be subject to changes depending on the availability of the Colosseum Underground Tickets, in case of a Change of the start time; we will send you a private message with the new start time
    • All Tours run on time, Please be sure to arrive to the Meeting point Early
    • luggage and big backpack are not allowed inside the Colosseum
    • Flammable Sprays, Selfie sticks, knifes or any kind of guns or cutters even with license can not enter the Colosseum
    • Police control and metal detector controls can slow the fast track entrance
    • Confirmation with all the details of the tour will be received after Booking the Colosseum underground chambers tickets
    • For a quick response you can use iMessage, Whatsapp and Viber for texting us, we recommend a cell phone with good coverage
    • Tour itinerary is subject to changes in case of restrictions by local authorities or bad weather
    • Each traveler must present a valid passport or ID document that matches the name provided at the time of booking for successful entry to the Colosseum and Roman Forum.
    • Pets and service dogs are not allowed.
    • Entry Tickets will be provided by our guide the day of the tour.
    • Your Guide will be waiting for you holding a Sign saying TOURS OF ROME in the Meeting point.
    • Not Wheelchair nor Stroller accessibile
    • Passport required
    • This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund
    • 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
    • This tour/activity will have a maximum of 24 travelers

    • All sales are final and incur 100% cancellation penalties.

    The tour operator has provided the following answers to customers’ questions.
    Where is the meeting point?
    The meeting point is in front of COLOSSEO METRO Station, Ground Level Exit, nearby the Newsstand and across the road from COLOSSEUM, Piazza del Colosseo, Roma 00184.
    Answered Jul 2019
    Where can we store our luggage during the tour?
    Luggage and big backpacks are not allowed inside the Colosseum, please make alternative arrangements for these items.
    Answered Jul 2019

    If you have questions about this tour or need help making your booking, we’d be happy to help. Just call the number below and reference the product code: 16631P14

    From
    $84.72
    per adult
    Select date and travelers

    Similar experiences

    Itinerary
    • Piazza del Colosseo, 21, 00184 Roma RM, Italy
      In front of COLOSSEO METRO Station, Lower Level Exit, nearby the Newsstand and across the road from the Colosseum, Piazza del Colosseo 22, Roma 00184. Please don't go to the Metro Upper Level. Our guide will be waiting for you holding a sign that says '' Tours of Rome ''
    • 1
    • 2
    • 3
    • 4
    About the operator
    Don’t take it from us – here’s what people have to say about this operator:
    • Tours of Rome
      1,298
      Rome, Lazio, Italy
      Joined in January 2017
    • Brodieboy1
      0 contributions
      5.0 of 5 bubbles
      Breathtaking ❤️
      Have no words to explain how breathtaking The Vatican and St Peter's Basilica is, unbelievable! Be prepared to be totally amazed!!!
      Written October 4, 2024
    • W4818TBjulies
      0 contributions
      5.0 of 5 bubbles
      A Tour Fit For A Gladiator
      This tour was superb! Christina was a wonderful guide - passionate and very knowledgeable. She made the tour exciting and fun. It was well worth the money and the time - we learned so much more than we ever would have had we toured it by ourselves.
      Written October 1, 2024
    • Lrose13
      0 contributions
      4.0 of 5 bubbles
      Sistine chapel
      Booking the skip the line tickets is VERY worth it, but wish we’d gotten more out of the experience. We couldn’t really hear our tour guide because the headsets were outdated.
      Written September 28, 2024
    • WheRay
      0 contributions
      1.0 of 5 bubbles
      Not a good day ?
      Due to heavy downpour lost 20 minutes and on arriving at Vatican unable to locate meeting point and on contacting the guide was unable to understand directions after giving our location. The guide did say she would wait another 15 minutes but unfortunately we never made it.As we are not tech savvy we had to rely on printed map which was not very clear in details.
      Written September 24, 2024
    • 932kdk
      0 contributions
      4.0 of 5 bubbles
      Good tour if you have limited time.
      Pretty good tour but due to how much there is to get to, you really just breeze thru. No real time to see the items in the museum. Basically a very quick walk thru. But being able to skip the lines & having commentary was nice.
      Written September 23, 2024
    • Monster_Mike
      0 contributions
      4.0 of 5 bubbles
      A LOT to see
      Tour was fine. It's a lot going on, both what to see and hear, with A LOT of other tour groups. Our tour leader did a very good job explaining the Sistine Chapel going over important highlights. (No pics in there BTW) It really was non stop talking in your ear as they keep you moving and there is SO MUCH. His accent was a bit thick not his fault but after awhile with a lousy ear piece you need a break because it just becomes noise after a few hours. Very polite and friendly fellow who was happy to answer questions. You visit St. Peters Basilica on your own, and after a lot of walking I found myself walking for another hour and a half marveling at everything. Be quick with pics on the tour because you're moving.
      Written September 12, 2024
    • Passenger40283010101
      0 contributions
      3.0 of 5 bubbles
      A lot of information; Too much if you aren’t a history or art history enthusiast!
      Tour guide was very knowledgeable. But I felt like it was too much information for my boyfriend and I and we are college educated people just not big history buffs. I would have rather just gone on a tour that took us into St Peter’s Square, St. Peter’s Basilica and the Sistine Chapel. The other museums that came 1st were too much. Plus it was hot and crowded in those museums. It was 9 am and supposedly after the summer crowds.
      Written September 10, 2024
    • josephwN9258TQ
      0 contributions
      5.0 of 5 bubbles
      Our guide Maria Theresa is an expert historian. She gave A LOT of information, which made us appreciate the Sistine Chapel even
      Excellent, but go early! The Vatican and your meet up place was packed PACKED! with tourists before 8:15 am. Our guide Maria Theresa guided us around many other tour groups and kept us in the shade. She is an expert historian. Don't forget to tip her well!!
      Written September 3, 2024
    • Jorgina M
      0 contributions
      4.0 of 5 bubbles
      Visiting from LA
      Sometimes the microphone was a little far from the guide’s moth, and I couldn’t understand. The tour guide was well informed.
      Written August 26, 2024
    • benhQ8802EA
      0 contributions
      5.0 of 5 bubbles
      Simply breathtaking
      Worth every penny. Incredible experience. Memories for a lifetime made with the family. Your guides are amazing and full of knowledge. You can choose to listen in or just a sort the beauty around you
      Written August 10, 2024
    • Zsu262
      0 contributions
      5.0 of 5 bubbles
      You won't be disapointed
      Absolutely amazing. Our guide was very knowledgeable of the Sites we visited. The sites where just breathtaking. Definitely do it.
      Written August 7, 2024
    • Watto71
      0 contributions
      5.0 of 5 bubbles
      Super!
      Amazing! Once in a lifetime trip but very long. Be ready to be on your feet for around 5 hours. Amazing sights and well worth the money to avoid the enormous queue to get in. Highly recommend.
      Written August 6, 2024
    • daffyddw
      0 contributions
      5.0 of 5 bubbles
      Simply Amazing
      Wow where do you start apart from amazing. Met the guide with no hitches straight through the ques with no hassle, our guide was very informative and spoke great English. The museum and Sistine chapel are out of this world. Definitely worth your time to soak the tour in when your visiting Rome
      Written July 30, 2024
    • hedge81
      0 contributions
      2.0 of 5 bubbles
      Disappointing.
      We joined the skip the line tour at 8.45am with loads of other tours. It was slightly late getting started. There were hundreds of people queueing. It was sweltering hot and stood outside for half hour while the tour guide explained what the frescoes were. We were taken through the corridors and rooms but there were so many people we couldn’t see much as we were hurried along. Things we would have liked to stop and see was impossible. There were no seats anywhere and being in our late 60s found all This quite exhausting in the incredible heat. I know the heat isn’t the fault of the tour guide but feel that the Vatican is at fault to let so many thousands of tourists in. It seems like they are all about crushing in as many people for the money. The tour guide was very knowledgeable but one can only take in so much information.
      Written July 23, 2024
    • chisoxbabe
      0 contributions
      3.0 of 5 bubbles
      Skip the line is worth the cost, wouldn't do it otherwise
      We very much appreciated the tour guide's desire to provide value for the fee, however it seemed like there was a LOT of repetition to fill 3 hours so that the tour could charge higher prices, especially on a 100 degree day. If you are able to book individual tickets ahead of time (which we were not) I would recommend breaking it up, because the 3 hour tour makes a long day in July heat. There is the option of returning to the Forum the next day, as the pass is 24 hours, but you lose the skip the line advantage.
      Written July 21, 2024
    See all 1,298 reviews
    These reviews are the subjective opinions of Tripadvisor members and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

    Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

    Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

    Popular mentions

    4.5
    4.5 of 5 bubbles199 reviews
    Excellent
    152
    Very good
    18
    Average
    8
    Poor
    7
    Terrible
    14

    Eoin
    Dublin, Ireland1 contribution
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    I travelled to Rome last minute and solo in Nov 2021. Booked the Colosseum tour via the Get Your Guide app and selected the 3 hour small group tour + underground access. Christina was our guide and she was amazing. There was 3 in the group plus Christina. She has a wonderful in-depth knowledge and passion for the Colosseum and Ancient Rome and as she is an archeologist, I feel this gave a unique experience and view of the Colosseum. I would highly recommend her to anybody looking to do a tour of the Colosseum.
    Written November 12, 2021
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
    Hello, Thank You for your review. We are glad you liked it Best wishes
    Written November 23, 2021
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

    lisa b
    2 contributions
    2.0 of 5 bubbles
    Jul 2022 • Couples
    The experience is separated into 3 stages over 3 hours, the underground tour of colosseum, the upper tour of colosseum, and the Roman forum. The first part was extremely interesting and informative, perhaps a little too long in some areas but nevertheless showed enough interesting places. The second part was dull, we literally just walked the public entry upper levels and the guide pointed out the exhibitions, no other information provided. I could have done this myself without having to wait for seemingly too long to move on. After 2.5 hrs of a total 3 hrs tour, we finally departed the colosseum for Roman forums with only thirty Minutes left! And then, we waited for 15 minutes by the fountain for people to fill up their water bottles. There were numerous other fountains in the forum we could have used but instead we stopped at the first. My partner and I cracked it by this point, we paid for a tour, not to see items that were available for general entry viewing, and to constantly wait for other tour guests and for people to fill up their water bottles. Other guest were visibly frustrated about the pace of the tour as well, and the guide seemed to be unable to read to the room and speed it up. We decided to abandon the tour for these reasons. The only reason I gave 2 stars instead of one is because the colosseum underground was actually very informative, perhaps a historian.
    Written July 17, 2022
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
    Hello Thank you for your feedback. We are glad to know that you liked it and looking forward to seeing you again
    Written July 18, 2022
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

    Katelynn B
    3 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Jul 2022 • Couples
    Interesting to see the underground of the coliseum with the colosseum tour guide. Once we left the colosseum, it was near impossible to hear our tour guide with the headsets with our tour guide. She talked when she walked and the static interference made it impossible to hear what she had to say for the Roman forum and Palestine hill part of the tour.
    Written July 10, 2022
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
    Hello Thank you for your feedback. We are glad to know that you liked it we will contact our headset provider to be more careful next time Best wishes
    Written July 11, 2022
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

    Stella S
    Melbourne, Australia5 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Jul 2022 • Couples
    My partner and I were really excited about this tour. We started off with the tour guide from Tours in Rome and did the Roman Forum
    , who was very knowledgeable and had excellent english, the audio equipment provided was also of a good standard. When we arrived at the colosseum we were shocked to hear that a member of staff from there would be taking over the tour of the underground (which then turned into the entire colosseum). Our small group then had others join and we went from 13 people to over 20, the tour guide’s english was poor and we could barely understand what they were saying and the audio equipment kept cutting out, really disappointed with our tour of the colosseum as I didn’t feel we received the experience we paid for.
    Written July 24, 2022
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
    Hello Thank you for your feedback. We are glad to know that you liked it and looking forward to seeing you again
    Written July 24, 2022
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

    Reid Wittman
    3 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Sep 2022
    Totally worth it! I recommend doing a later tour as I did at 8:15 pm, seeing the Colosseum at night was amazing. The lighting was beautiful, the weather was cool and there was basically no one else in the Colosseum. The Colosseum was so special that everything else on the tour wasn't as spectacular to me personally, but they were still very interesting, it's just that the Colosseum is unreal. Claudia, our guide, was lovely and very knowledgeable. Make sure you tip your guides! It matters!
    Written September 4, 2022
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
    Hello Thank you for your feedback. We are glad to know that you liked it and looking forward to seeing you again. Best wishes
    Written September 5, 2022
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

    Laura K
    1 contribution
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Aug 2022 • Family
    The good parts: Archaeologist who took us through the underground was excellent and informative. I have been to the colosseum twice before but this was the first time to see this part and it was fascinating.

    The bad parts: The entire experience with Tours of Rome. Tour time was moved back 30 min. When no one showed up, I called and was told I had been sent a text and email several days previously. I eventually found the text but had mistaken it for spam because I didn’t recognize the number. I never did find an email. Another couple in my group had their time moved up 30 min. They received a text (which they thought was spam) and no email but showed up early “just in case”. Fortunately they did come early or they would have missed the entire tour.

    The worst part however was the guide from Tours of Rome. She was perhaps the most nasty tour guide I have ever encountered (and I have been on a lot of tours in my life). I don’t know her name because she never introduced herself. Initially, the microphone had a lot of static and no one could understand her. We told her that when it was clipped to her clothing it was static but when she held it we could understand her. Her reply was “Well I can’t just hold it the entire time.” She eventually called someone and fixed the problem. Early in the tour a young couple approached her and told her they had been separated from their tour and had been directed to join our group for the underground part. She was very nasty to them, even though they clearly had on a badge to be in our group for the underground. (I felt sorry for them because they were clearly doing what they had been told to do and she was so unkind to them.) They did eventually end up in our group.
    Finally, small group for us meant 25 people which at times was a bit difficult to navigate and stay with the guide in the crowds.

    Conclusion: See the colosseum and pay the extra to see the underground as it is worth it, but maybe do it with a different tour company.
    Written August 9, 2022
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
    Hello Thank you for your feedback. We are glad to know that you liked it and looking forward to seeing you again
    Written August 10, 2022
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

    KPMandco
    15 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Guide was extremely knowledgeable and entertaining. Offered guidance on all logistics and took any stress out of the process as both sites were quite crowded as they had been closed earlier due to a high security visit which closed them earlier that day. Provided insight into all we we were seeing and kept 3 children ages 9,10,13 interested as it was quite a long tour -3.5 hours. Had seen both sites years ago and definitely found this tour much more in depth and detailed. Was great to see the underground as it has just recently opened for touring. Highly recommend!
    Written October 31, 2021
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
    Hello, Thank You for your review. We are glad you liked it Best wishes
    Written October 31, 2021
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

    matt
    London, UK4 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    We were disappointed with tour for several reasons. We booked a small group and had 23 people when we eventually got to the colosseum. We were not alone as others had been told they would be 10 or less people. We selected the tour based on an early start to deal with the heat and to visit the colosseum at 9:45, however the day before this was altered to 10:30 as were others in our group. We were then taken to the Roman forum rather than the colosseum, which meant that we were in the colosseum after 12:00 in the mid day heat was was not enjoyable.
    Other people on our tour had also chosen the tour early including a young family as they had small children and wanted a quick tour before the heat of the day. They were told that they were getting the Roman forum as a free extra but they did not want or book that. It is also disappointing for those of us that had to pay for it
    It seems that numerous tours had been merged into one irrespective of what you had paid or requested.
    The Roman forum and colosseum were both impressive however not the tour we had expected.l or paid for which left us disappointed.
    Written July 23, 2022
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
    Hello Thank you for your feedback. We are glad to know that you liked it and looking forward to seeing you. regarding the tour time changing this happens for technical reasons, we changed the tour for only 15 minutes as there are rush hours that we always try to avoid not keep you in lines again
    Written July 23, 2022
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

    Jill S
    Washington DC, DC3 contributions
    2.0 of 5 bubbles
    Sep 2022
    This was such a frustrating experience!!!
    We arrived at the specified tour location more than 15 minutes before the tour was scheduled, as instructed. We immediately found a Tour of Rome guide, but we were not on his list. He told us to wait there, one of his colleagues was our guide. About 10min later, no one had arrived, so he called his colleague. He told him they had already gone inside - which means they left the pick-up location VERY early and without us! His recommendation was to tell the Colosseum staff our guide was already inside - of course they could not let us in because we did not have our tickets. We were travelling internationally and did not have phone/internet service. Eventually, we had to turn on our data (extra data charges!!) to call, and Tours of Rome emailed us our tickets. By then the underground tour (operated by the Colosseum staff) had started and we had to wait to see if there was space in a later group. The actual Colosseum staff were wonderful and fit us in, but our Tours of Rome experience was awful! This was our 5th TripAdvisor/Viator tour and the ONLY one with this type of hassle. Tours of Rome needs to have a better system... or at least wait until the agreed upon time to leave!
    Written December 28, 2022
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
    Hello, Thank You for your feedback. we are sorry to know that you could not join our tour as planned. Please send us an email with your tour details to be able to check better what happened. Our email is: tours@toursofrome.info Best Wishes
    Written December 29, 2022
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

    Mae M
    2 contributions
    3.0 of 5 bubbles
    Sep 2022 • Couples
    We had an 8pm tour which we really enjoyed - the lights/atmosphere is very cool. We were with a tour guide who I feel was not a strong enough English speaker to be holding an English tour (not going to put the name here but will let the company know). There was a lot of awkward silence and guests wanting more information or facts about the history.

    A lot of confusion upon entering the colosseum as the colosseum didn’t want to let our group into the underground due to bad planning. It did end up okay but felt the colosseum staff were mad at our guide the whole time which was awkward.

    Overall - this could have been better with more planning and a guide more fluent English/educated in the history.
    Written September 19, 2022
    This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
    Hello Thank you for your feedback. looking forward to seeing you again. Best wishes
    Written September 19, 2022
    This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.

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    *Likely to sell out: Based on Viator’s booking data and information from the provider from the past 30 days, it seems likely this experience will sell out through Viator, a Tripadvisor company.

    Ancient Rome: Colosseum Underground Small-Group Tour provided by Tours of Rome

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