Colosseum Private Tour with Roman Forum & Palatine Hill
Recommended by 100% of travelers
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Rome, Italy
- 2 hours 30 minutes (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Skip the rigid schedules and dull commentary of group tours by discovering Rome’s top three ancient sites with a private guide who brings their fascinating history to life. Explore the Colosseum, learn about the gladiators’ lives and deaths, admire the impressive temple ruins in the Roman Forum, visit the legendary site of Rome’s founding on Palatine Hill, and enjoy the personal attention of a dedicated guide.
- Ask your private guide as many questions as you like
- Visit the Colosseum with a guide to better understand the ruins
- Enjoy the relaxed pace and flexible itinerary of a private tour
- Choice of morning or afternoon start times to suit your schedule
Why Travelers Choose This Tour
This private tour covers the Colosseum, Forum, and Palatine Hill—and you choose where you spend the most time.
What's Included
- Colosseum First Floor, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill
- Private Tour (Choose your preferred language)
- All Fees and Taxes
- Colosseum entrance ticket (valued at €18 per person)
- Colosseum reservation fee (valued at €2 per person)
- Please note: Colosseum fees as above. The remaining cost of the experience covers other services.
- Hotel Pick Up/Drop Off
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- Piazza del Colosseo, 21, 00184 Roma RM, Italy
This tour begins outside the Colosseo Metro station (ground level) situated on line B. Your guide will be holding a sign with our ‘What a Life Tours’ logo on it. Please remember that Rome’s streets can be confusing, so we recommend allowing extra time in case you get lost.
End point
- Roman Forum00186 Rome, Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, Italy
Itinerary
1
Colosseum
1 hour • Admission Ticket Included
Arch of Constantine (Pass By)
2
Roman Forum
45 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
3
Palatine Hill
45 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Near public transportation
- Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
- Most travelers can participate
- Please provide the full names of all travelers when booking as all spots are strictly personal and need to be reserved in advance.
- Please bring a valid ID document (no photocopies!) for each participant - documents will be checked and they must match the names on the voucher.
- The final start time of the tour might be updated up to a week in advance as there can be some changes for logistical reasons.
- Please plan on being at the meeting point 15 minutes before the start time.
- We are unable to accommodate late arrivals as we have a time entrance to respect. Missed tours due to late arrivals are non-refundable. Please allow extra time to reach the meeting point as Rome's streets can be confusing.
- This is a private tour/activity. Only your group will participate
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
5.0
based on 125 reviews
Mike_H, Mar 2025
This was well worth the money. Not only skip the line, but able to bypass crowded points in the Colosseum. Our guide, Ennio, was absolutely amazing. His knowledge was phenomenal. He also teaches history course…
Isabella_C, Nov 2024
We loved the tour delivered by Michael. He is truly knowledgeable in Roman History. Also he was kind, funny and very well prepared. We took this tour the first day that we arrived in Rome and it was the best kick off we could think.
MaryBeth_G, Nov 2024
Paulo was an incredibly knowledgeable guide - so much information at his fingertips. We thoroughly enjoyed our tour of the Colosseum, Forum & Palatine Hill and learned an amazing amount. Can’t recommend enough! Wear comfortable shoes, as there is a lot of standing, even with a guide the crowds are heavy.
Craig_K, Jun 2024
Marcelo was a great tour guide! We learned more in 3 hours than we did in school or college. And never fell asleep once!
Kelly_D, May 2024
Had a great time and enjoyed our tour. Our guide was fabulous! Lots of interesting facts and we would recommend this tour group.
Katrina_M, May 2024
Sara gave us an interesting and detailed tour of the colosseum. Sara was very thoughtful of our children and she and taught them the rich history of a magaical place. We are very happy we booked this private tour.
Michael_P, May 2024
Our tour guide Debra was incredible! She was a rock star. Knew everything, everyone, and the perfect places to go. Never want to go to the Vatican without her.
Richard_H, Apr 2024
Alessia was the best tour guide out of all our numerous tours in Italy. So knowledgeable and passionate about the history and archeological sites we walked through.
delaramotlagh, Apr 2024
Valentina was a gem and guided the tour at our pace. We really loved the history she shared during the day. Her passion and knowledge made the experience even better! Thank you Valentina for taking such great care of us!
Sydney_B, Apr 2024
The Colosseum was a location I always wanted to go to growing up as a kid in the USA. To be able to achieve that with my wife on our honeymoon was absolutely incredible! Our amazing guide Carlotta gave us a tour that we will never forget. She provided us with so much incredible history and we learned a great deal not only of the Colosseum but of The Forum and Palatine Hill! This easily delivered as one of the best experiences of our trip!!
Patricia_S, Mar 2024
Our guide Chara was wonderful! She was so knowledgeable and so kind. She made the experience very special.
Denise_A, Mar 2024
Robert was a fantastic guide today! We booked a private tour due to concerns about steps and Robert tailored the tour to our needs. I was so worried about being able to see it all but we did! He was so knowledgeable and interesting and answered a zillion questions. We so enjoyed the tour of the Colosseum and Roman Forum and took tons of photos!! Thanks, Robert!
Matthew_B, Feb 2024
Amazing tour with Fernandino, he was super knowledgeable (phd), perfect English and gave us a personal tour at a pace we enjoyed. It was the highlight of our trip.
Lori_S, Jan 2024
Our tour guide was incredibly knowledgeable and was able to move us past the crowd quickly. She provided excellent information and we were so happy to have her help us.
Becky_B, Dec 2023
We enjoyed our tour. Our guide was very informative and very knowledgeable. Would definitely recommend a guide to get the most out of visit to Coloseum.
Maurice_T, Dec 2023
This was an excellent private tour and Tiana could not be more pleasant, informative and kind. She really loves what she does and it shows in her knowledge and attention to detail. She was excellent and highlighted many aspects of the coliseum and forum.
Robert_B, Dec 2023
The sites are amazing! To see and walk on buildings and roads over 2,000 years old. The only reason for not giving 5 stars is because our guide, enough knowledgeable, spent way too much time on giving us a history lesson. And the meeting point was very hard to find.
Linda_H, Nov 2023
Paulo provided an excellent tour with an in-depth history of the colosseum and palatine hill! We highly recommend‼️
Michael_W, Nov 2023
Watching my wife walk into a place that she has dreamed about since she was a child. To stand where the gladiators stood and learn everything there was to learn about how the colosseum came about and how it worked.
Carol_G, Sep 2023
Very knowledgeable guide Frank. Highly recommend the skip the line tours as it saves so much time. Palatine Hill was amazing as of course was the colosseum
Timothy_J, Jul 2023
Great visit, Paolo provided thorough and interesting information about Roman history, lifestyle and traditions. The tour was a very good choice and Paolo conveyed an amazing experience!
eric_b, Jun 2023
Tour was great, our guide was the best! Learned a lot, saw some phenomenal stuff, highly recommend! Book it!
Christy_W, Jun 2023
Incredible private tour by a Rome native who adjusted his pace to meet the needs of our group of five people which consisted of ages 9-76. All of us were enthralled by his historical knowledge and enthusiasm for these sites. They will also help you set up transportation if you’re coming in for the day from a cruise port.
Melanie_H, Jun 2023
So glad we did the private tour! We saw some huge groups (they looked miserable) and some folks with no guide at all (they had no idea what they were looking at). We went at a relaxed pace, and saw the forum, Palatine Hill, & colosseum in that order. Our guide Paulo said the order depended on when they can get tickets. The skip the line ticket was worth every penny as there was a huge line to get into the colosseum! We didn’t have a headset like the big groups because there were only the 3 of us. - the guide and me & my mom. Lots of walking in dusty & rugged areas, so you may want your hiking shoes instead of sandals. Guide was very knowledgeable and had a book to show us mockups of how things used to look. Spoke very good English as well. Easy communication with company to find the guide. Highly recommend!
Sarah_C, May 2023
The stories carried through the years that bring the history to life- even today. The historical structures are a sight to be seen
Jonathan_W, May 2023
We were so glad to have a guide for the Colosseum and Forum. Otherwise we would have been overwhelmed. Marcelo helped us understand both the timeline and politics. The day was wonderful.
Jennifer_H, Jan 2023
This tour was amazing! Carlotta was energetic and fun, and made sure we saw everything we wanted. She answered all of our questions fully. I can’t imagine touring these magnificent sites without a guide. And paying extra to skip the lines was definitely worth every penny.
Melissa_C, Nov 2022
Patrick was wonderful- he clearly knew a ton about Ancient Rome, but he did a great job of sharing fun facts and little-known stories that made everything more accessible. We had a great experience and the private nature of the tour made it easy to ask questions, move at our own pace. We saw so much on a few short hours and it was a great start to our Rome trip!
Vicki_B, May 2022
We have had several tours already while on vacation in Europe. This tour with What a Life Tours was exceptional. Our guide Tonia is a true professional who loves her job and it shows in how she delivers the historical information relevant to this tour. The tour we reserved required a lot of walking, climbing of steps, and the temperature outside was hotter than we like but this it was worth it. We had a fantastic day with Tonia and will do another tour with her when we return to Italy. Tonia thank you for an outstanding day!
Emily_G, Mar 2022
Marco was such fun! He gave great explanation and genuinely made ancient Rome come alive for us. It was satisfying to see him create several AHA! moments for my teenagers.
Response from Host, Mar 2022
Dear Emily, thank you for writing an excellent review on your Colosseum Private Tour! Marco is a top-rated tour guide, glad to hear your kids loved it! Kind regards, Maria
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