Colosseum Underground & Ancient Rome Guided Tour

Rome, Italy

High interest

Booked 20+ times today.

3 hours (approx.)
Offered in: English

Why travelers loved this

4.4

· Tania_B ·

Mar 2026

Amazing experience, incredible information and access. Great guide and such a surreal view of the ancient world and astounding craftmanship

· Elizabeth_S ·

Mar 2026

Great tour! So cool & interesting to walk in the underground of the colosseum! You spend about 2 hours there which gives you plenty of time and they take you to great picture spots. Afterward, you spend the remaining time exploring The Roman Forum and your ticket gives you full access to all the little extra sites inside. I would absolutely recommend this tour!

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Overview

The Colosseum and Roman Forum shouldn’t be missed when visiting Rome—but exploring each site alone, it can be hard to make sense of the ruins. On this guided tour, enrich your visit with in-depth context and stories from a guide. Plus, you’ll get access to the arena floor within the Colosseum, an area usually off-limits to visitors. Upgrade to include a stroll through the underground dungeons.

Choose between options for underground access or arena-only entry to tailor your tour
Listen to stories of emperors, senators, and gladiators as you explore the Roman Forum and Colosseum
Audio headsets are provided, so you can move freely without straining to hear
Includes admission tickets, including a self-guided visit to Palatine Hill for epic views

Why Travelers Choose This Tour

A shared tour is more budget-friendly than private options, with headsets so you hear the guide clearly.

What's Included

Professional guide for Roman Forum (only if underground option is purchased)
Access to the Colosseum Underground (only if underground option is purchased)
Headsets to hear your guide clearly
Colosseum entrance ticket valued at €18 per person
Colosseum reservation fee (valued at €2 per person)

Gratuities
Transportation
Access to the Colosseum Underground (If Colosseum Arena-No Underground option is purchased)
Roman Forum guide tour (If Colosseum Arena-No Underground option is purchased)

Meeting and Pickup

Meeting point

Via dei Fori Imperiali, 25, 00184 Roma RM, Italy
Meeting Point: Via dei Fori Imperiali, 25, 00186 Rome (RM) Please meet in front of the Tourist Information Point at Fori Imperiali. Our coordinators will be identifiable by their “The Ultimate Italy” t-shirts.

End point

Colosseum
P.za del Colosseo, 1, 00184 Roma RM, Italy

Itinerary

This tour makes a comprehensive visit to Rome’s Colosseum as easy as possible and grants exclusive access to the Colosseum arena floor and underground dungeons, areas that are usually off-limits to regular visitors.

Meet your guide near the Colosseum to start the tour in the morning or afternoon, depending on the tour time selected. Enter the Colosseum directly with pre-booked tickets. Follow your guide around the ancient wonder, including the underground dungeon, ground floor arena, and second level, while listening to detailed accounts about the historical games and gladiator battles that took place here. Your guide will also take you to the best spots to snap photos during your tour.

Continue to the Roman Forum nearby. Once the center of political life in ancient Rome, your guide will bring the ruins to life with insightful commentary. Afterwards, head up to the Palatine Hill, the birthplace of Rome, to admire the sweeping views before finishing the tour at the Forum.

Via dei Fori Imperiali, 25

15 minutes • Admission Ticket Free

Roman Forum

1 hour • Admission Ticket Included

Colosseum

1 hour • Admission Ticket Included

Additional Info

Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Not wheelchair accessible
Stroller accessible
Near public transportation
Most travelers can participate
Meeting Point: Via dei Fori Imperiali, 25, 00186 Rome (RM) Please meet in front of the Tourist Information Point at Fori Imperiali. Our coordinators will be identifiable by their “The Ultimate Italy” t-shirts.
Please provide the full names of all travelers 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.
The tour reservations have strict timing. To join the tour you are required to be at the meeting point for check-in at least 30 minutes prior to your tour departure time.
If you arrive late for the meeting time, it will not be possible to join the group or reschedule, unless you pay for the activity again. As per "No Show" rules you will not be entitled to a refund.

Please provide an active phone number during the booking process in order to be contacted about last minute changing.
Pets are not allowed inside the venue
Every participant MUST bring an id or a photo of it. It is mandatory requested by the monument in order to enter the Colosseum Underground.
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.
The tour might begin either the Roman Forum or the Colosseum, depending on the order.
If you’re traveling with a school group, this tour isn’t available, as school groups have their own dedicated ticket types. Please contact us for more information.
Purchasing the guided tour, you are acknowledging and consenting that the Colosseum Underground admission fee is 24 € for adults, along with a 2 € booking fee, and free entry for children under 18. The remaining amount covers professional licensed tour guide along with other services, headsets, booking fees, and tour amenities. The tour operator provides transparency and is looking to ensure your understanding of the cost breakdown, enabling you to fully appreciate the value of the guided tour.
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 24 travelers

Supplied by

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.

Traveler Photos

Gallery picture 1 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 2 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 3 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 4 (from a traveler's review)

Gallery picture 5 (from a traveler's review)

Reviews

4.4

based on 3,047 reviews

Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor

We perform checks on reviews

Fascinating Tour

Don_M, May 2026

We toured the Colosseum in 2019 but this time we added the underground. Our guide was very knowledgeable and communicated her knowledge very well. It was a fascinating tour.

Coleusem super tour

Martina_C, May 2026

Brilliant tour. Our guide (Ivano) was excellent. Showed great knowledge of his Roman history with very entertaining stories. It’s a long tour but really worth it. It’s was really busy during our visit but we got to see every part of this wonderful wonder of the world. If you have 3 hours in Rome book it.

Marie was an incredible...

Karlee_T, May 2026

Marie was an incredible guide! So much knowledge and we appreciated her asking questions/and checking with us when we had questions. Overall 5/5 stars!

Don’t Waste Your Time!

Jennie_P, May 2026

We booked this tour months in advance to get to do the underground colosseum tour. We got a message that the tour had moved times and to meet a half hour later. Once we finally got started, we spent another 30-45 minutes getting into the colosseum gate, only for the management company at the colosseum to turn us all away and say the tickets weren’t valid. We didn’t even get to go inside, much less see the underground or arena floor. They did refund our money but it’s pretty upsetting to travel across the world to see something and not get to see it. Especially knowing you have to book tours well in advance, we didn’t have another opportunity to try and go again since everything was sold out for the time we were there and had others tours booked for the other days. I took the time to read many reviews for this operator and still had a terrible experience. Wasted 2+ hours of the limited time we had in Rome for this. Don’t waste your time!

Don't book with this company... Google is your friend on this one!

Brett_H, May 2026

They canceled our underground tour. You need to Google this to know the exact way and why they do this before your book with them... They knew 30 days ago that they did not secure the tickets for our group (once again Google this to see how and why). The odds of you getting "underground" from a tour guide is very, very rare. Here's the thing... they get you to the meeting point and offer you a "free" tour to make up for the lies they told you for the past month (like I said, they knew 30 days ago that they didn't have the tickets). What bothers me mostly is that they could have told us this and we could have made other plans... once again Google why they do this and you will understand. Supposedly, they are going to give us a full refund... but, remember, this is something we planned months and months ago... and spent thousands and thousands to get here to experience! They could have at least told us... we feel tricked.

This tour is a must.

Carl_T, May 2026

Ware stout shoes and take water with you. It can be easy to turn your ankle on some of the walking surfaces. As someone who loves history this suited me. You need to get your head around the numbers involved, as they are awesome. Be aware there is always a long cue for the one and only set of washrooms so do not rely on them. This tour is a must.

Underground Colosseum.

Christina_K, May 2026

We really wanted to see the underground of the coliseum. We had a really hard time finding the meeting point because Google Maps took us the wrong way. The company was pretty good on the phone finding us and getting us back on track. Amir, our guide, was excellent. He was so knowledgeable, great humor, kept us moving. The views from the Paletine Hill is beautiful.

Colosseum History 101

SHARON_K, May 2026

Be able to walk and do some stairs. Also know you won’t have access to a restroom until the end of the tour.

Run Away

xtmghnx6xf, May 2026

Do not book with this company. The rules changed a week ago, the tickets have to be purchased directly by whoever is giving the tour, not the tour company. We were stopped and turned away at the gate. I’m assuming it was a supervisor who showed up and told us we’d be getting refunds, but that hardly solved the issue. They knew the rules changed a week prior, she acknowledged it. They still let us waste our time and show up to be gravely disappointed. This company feels extremely scammy, this was the one thing I badly wanted to do on this vacation. They could’ve handled this entirely differently.

Overall the tour was...

Jessica_H, May 2026

Overall the tour was great. The tour guide is an archaeologist and very knowledgeable. We received an email that our tour was moved from 3pm to 2:20, which backed up to another tour we had planned but that worked out, although they didn’t seem to care. The only complaint was we felt rushed, we expected 3 full hours and I don’t think it took the 3 hours. We probably could have spent a little more time at the Roman Forum

Great Tour Experiences

Garrett_G, May 2026

The tour was an incredible experience -- our guide was amazing and very knowledgeable, guiding us around the Colosseum and the Ancient Rome highlights with ease. Without him, we would have been lost, overwhelmed and likely wasted a ton of time figuring things out for ourselves.

Bigger signs

GeorgeC_B, May 2026

Great place but incredibly difficult to find viator groups. No sign and meeting place was a challenge to find.

Great experience!

Casey_T, May 2026

Amazing tour that showed behind the scenes of the Coliseum and The Forum. The Forum was just as impressive as the Coliseum.

Very interesting. ...

Rachael_L, May 2026

Very interesting. Excellent tour guide who made the visit very informative and interesting. I would highly recommend this tour.

Great 3 hours, thanks to Paola

Aleksandr_K, May 2026

Paola is a great guide, special thanks to her. Interesting, not too heavy with dates and hard facts, but with spicy details like toilets mechanics in Colosseo. Even adapts the route to skip the queues. Loved it.

Great

Nancy_P, May 2026

She was very good, very knowledgeable, great experience. We loved going to the underground part definitely recommend.

Great your yo the Coliseum and underground!

Dainey_S, May 2026

Great tour and we don’t usually like tours! Our guide was knowledgeable and friendly. Have good information and insight, but not too much!

The best way to see the Colosseum Underground

Robert_D, May 2026

If you want to see the underground Colosseum just book this tour. It was outstanding! We toured the underground first with an official guide from the Colosseum for 2 hours and we then had 1 hour on our own to see the 2nd floor before returning to our meeting point to meet with our next guide who guided us through the Roman Forum for 1 1/2 hours. Knowledgeable and fascinating! Don’t think twice. Just book this tour and enjoy yourself.

Unground Tour is NOT to be missed! A must do!

Carrie_B, May 2026

Georgio was an amazing tour guide! He made the ruins make sense. The underground tour was so interesting and definitely should not be missed. Worth every penny!

A perfect day

LonaMae_T, May 2026

Our guide was very knowledgeable and we had plenty of time for viewing and taking pictures of each thing we saw. Thanks Vita.

Coliseum underground tour

Dave_L, May 2026

Our guide, who’s an archeologist, was amazing - she knew her stuff and was excited to share her knowledge of our group. Having access to the underground was amazing

Awesome would do again

Kathy_W, May 2026

Great loved seeing all the levels. Definitely recommend doing this tour and our guide was very knowledgeable.

Historical Pictorial Remade Presentation

Kathleen_L, May 2026

We were lucky as we have an archeological expert to show us around the historical sites the second day of our visit. Our tourist guide used historical reconstructed pictures to demonstrate past and present. She made the tour more interesting.

Terrific Guide

Stephen_B, May 2026

The underground tour is an interesting way to get more from the visit. We were able to see so much. It was a great value. Beware of the meeting point. The pin provided was on the wrong street and it took extra time to find the right spot.

Our guide was friendly...

Stephanie_J, May 2026

Our guide was friendly and kind and seemed knowledgeable about the sites. We could only understand 25% of what our guide was saying due to his extremely heavy accent. We paid almost $400 for the tour and selected English. We should have been able to understand him clearly in English and were not able to.

Ancient ruins felt...

Michelle_K, May 2026

Ancient ruins felt rushed. I feel like we only saw a small portion of the area. We could can spent hours there exploring. Instead we only saw a few things. Colosseum was incredible tho! And once the tour ended, we were released and able to explore as long as we wanted.

Skip this tour

Lissette_S, May 2026

The tour guide will actually want you there 20 minutes prior and will not wait for you. We had to do our own tour on our own.

What a let down.

Richard_T, May 2026

Tour guide was very knowledgeable when had her. Great personality and interacted well with group at first. She was not able to actually go into the coliseum because of a ticket problem. The group waited at the entry point and after my wife asked we were added to another group which doubled the size of the group with no explanation through the underground. We were self guided. We had high expectations but the tour was a total bust.

Both tours were outstanding

David_A, May 2026

There were two parts to the tour: Roman Forum and the Colosseum. Both were very interesting and informative. I would mention though that the ear plugs seemed to be of lower sound quality and I had a little trouble understanding the tour guides.