Paola was fantastic! She really made the Ostia Antica ruins come alive. She had great visual aids to help us understand the layout and history of development of the city.

This was an excellent tour of Ostia Antica, the ancient port for Rome. Our guide, Paola was friendly, engaging, and knowledgeable. We saw the remains of the Porta Romana necropolis, a city gate, the ancient theater and the Piazza of the Corporations, houses and shops with mosaic floors, warehouses, a laundry facility and the water system, large public baths and toilets, an apartment building and the thermopoliuma/taverna across the street, and the city Forum. It was a very interesting 3 hour tour that give us a peek at Roman lifestyles. Time flew by and we learned so much - thank you Paola!!

I decided to escape the confusion of a weekend in Rome and travel to this attraction on a Sunday, ordering a tour through this website. I was met by Paola, an archeologist, at the entrance about ten minutes before the stated time on my ticket. She led us on a journey through the area that began with the necropolis, originally outside the city walls and dating back to the 1st century BC. We then passed through the Porta Romana, the entrance to the city for those arriving from Rome, and walked along the Decumanus Maximus, essentially the Main Street of the city. Over the next couple hours be branched off the main road, visiting a number of erratically preserved sites including the baths, a flour mill, the city’s forum, a very well preserved amphitheater (with adjoining Square of the Guilds), and even firemen’s barracks. Also included were the Cassegiato of the Thermopolium (ancient tavern) and an almost entirely vacant Temple of Hercules. Our group of three spent almost as many hours on site, with a quick stop at the souvenir store at the end. There appear to be three ways to visit the site: walking tour with a guide, audio guide, and a self-sufficient exploration reading the storyboards. I would highly suggest the former as my interaction with Paola was superb. She gave a professional perspective that you simply can't get from the other two options. a highly recommended choice.

This was a fantastic tour of Ostia! The guide was patient and engaging and took the time to get to know us so the tour could focus on our interests. After visiting Pompeii and Herculaneum this was easily our favorite. The site is incredibly quiet and the guide was so knowledgeable. Highly recommended!

It was an excellent tour but I did not know many mosaic were covered for protection in the winter time , which I was very disappointed …

We'd signed up for this tour and were excited about seeing the ruins (which we ended up doing on our own - they're amazing and a hidden gem). Unfortunately, I'd put the wrong date on my calendar and when we showed up - no guide. We called him on the phone but he was not available to join us. Here's our issue. We did NOT get a call or message the previous day (our signup time) when we didn't show up, either from the guide or the tour operator. If we had gotten the call, we could have gotten to the meeting point. I contacted the tour operator and suggested that we were both at fault and that perhaps we could split the difference and get a half-refund. She refused, only offering to cover the cost of our entry tickets. This was an expensive tour and that solution was not acceptable to me. The tour operator forwarded on a screen shot of a message that was supposedly sent to me, but I checked all my texts, calls, and social media contacts and found no such message. We wanted to warn others who sign up for this tour to triple check your details. It might have been an amazing tour and arranged guide - we'll never know.

Very knowledgeable guide - Philipp. He's an archaeologist who had worked at Ostia. Great tour, pointing out features, translating inscriptions and interpreting the history of the site. Just what we wanted. Slight admin issue as TripAdvisor booking was a front end for local tours and there was a minor comms issue over tickets being ready at the entrance. Not Philipps fault. Download tickets before you're there or screenshot them - minimal signal at the entrance building. We were there 2.5 hours and covering the rest of the site would take the same again, but wed seen the key locations. Ours started 0930 which meant it was cooler and less crowded. By the time we left, lots of people were arriving. Annoyingly, couldn't find a train timetable for Sao Paolo to Ostia, even at the stations, but trains seemed regular (every 15 mins) and its €1.50 each way for the c.35 min journey.

Ostia Antica is an experience that should not be missed. After you visit it you will wonder why you spent so much time at the forum. There is so much to see at Ostia that a private guide is a real plus.The guide that we had for this tour, Romina, was extremely knowledgeable, knew the site well and also kept the tour entertaining

This tour was a gem in our trip. Paola was outstanding. Her depth of knowledge brought so much to life. Ostia Antica is an amazing place. Far more than I expected. Paola's in depth knowledge and her ability to communicate her knowledge and passion about the park to others just makes it all the more incredible. The title of the tour "Daily life in Ostia Antica" is exactly what Paola showed us. At the end I wished we had another three hours. The trip here and booking this tour were absolutely worth it and one of the great high lights of our time in Italy.

Paola is an amazing tour guide. She has deep knowledge of ancient Roman culture and is friendly and engaging. She really made life in ancient Ostia come to life! We called at the last possible minute and she graciously met us at the site. We wouldn’t’t have appreciated Ostia nearly as much on our own. Highly recommend her company.

Amazing! Paola is an archeologist and was so passionate and knowledgeable about the site. Ostia Antica is a treasure and a window into life as it was 2000+ years ago. A must visit.

Stefania was our guide. OUTSTANDING! She has a PhD but also the skill of a gifted teacher. Excellent English plus the ability to hear the client’s interest & adjust her narration accordingly. Deep knowledge *and* fabulous energy. Stefania also made extra efforts to adjust out tour schedule after United canceled our first flight. We met her immediately after arriving at Rome’s FCO airport and offset our stiffness from 7 hours in a 777 by walking 4 miles through Rome’s ancient port. A terrific way to launch our return to Italy! Stefania’s colleagues were also very attentive to email & text as we worked through the rescheduling. An A++ company run by intelligent, gracious women!

We were so happy to have Paola guide us through Ostia Antica. She was such an expert guide, full of interesting anecdotes and stories, which brought the past to life. She was patient with the members of the group who needed more explanations and even came up with games to keep the youngsters engaged. Highly recommended!

We recently did the Roman Mysteries Tour in Ostia Antica, guided by Paola. WOW! What an incredible experience. Paola took us on a walking adventure all over the site, explaining all the aspects of daily life in Ostia Antica and the history of the area and Rome at that time. She came prepared with lots of pictures that really brought the stories to life and allowed us to more fully realize what the site would have looked like long ago. She also had lots of great stories and information about the different religions and cults that thrived in the city, which we found extremely interesting and unique. Paola went above and beyond to ensure we had a memorable experience and we walked away feeling much more knowledgeable about the history of Ostia Antica. The tour also really enhanced our experience in Rome, as we felt we better understood some of the ancient sites we explored there. We would absolutely recommend taking a tour with Visit Ostia Antica. There is no way we would have been able to understand and appreciate the site without Paola as a guide. Also, the comparisons to Pompeii are quite accurate; this site is MASSIVE, so plan to spend several hours here (we did a half day) and bring comfortable walking shoes.

An excellent tour of a remarkable (and lovely and extremely uncrowded) place. We had Paula as our guide and she was excellent. Incredibly knowledgeable… a trained archeologist… Brought along additional maps and illustrations. We had a wonderful day and I would highly recommend it.