View of the inside of the Colosseum
View of the inside of the Colosseum
Tunnel under the Arena floor
Roman forum side view
woman walking to the Colosseum
Reserved Access

Colosseum Underground Small Group Tour with Roman Forum & Gladiator Arena

4.93
(1,797 Reviews)
3h
English
10
Everyday
Several Departure Times

Award-Winner Tour

Tripadvisor Travelers' Choice Award: Top 10 Cultural Experiences – Worldwide


Our Colosseum Underground and Arena Tour is perfect for those who want to experience more of Rome’s iconic monument. Our enhanced tour allows you special access to the Gladiator arena to get a fighter’s view of the amphitheater, and special access to the underground “backstage” area to discover how the awesome spectacles were created. You also get Skip-the-Line access to the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill.

  • Step back in time on this semi-private tour of the Colosseum, entering through the Gladiator’s Entrance and step into the Arena Floor, where millions of fights took place. Get a real sense of what life was like in ancient Rome when this amphitheater provided a venue for bloodshed and entertainment.
  • In a group of 10 or less, explore this incredible monument alongside an expert, English-speaking guide who will be on hand to tell you all about the history of the Colosseum as well as the Roman Forum & Palatine Hill. The stories will take your breath away and audio headsets will be used where appropriate so you won’t miss a thing.
  • Our Colosseum underground tickets give you exclusive access to areas of the Colosseum that are often unexplored, including the amazing underground level where the Gladiators would wait to head out into battle. The animals were also held here, and it is a fascinating part of Roman history to be able to discover.

Walk Through the Colosseum Underground

What's Included

  • Expert, English-speaking tour guide
  • Small groups of 10 people or fewer
  • Reserved Access to the Colosseum Underground, Roman Forum & Palatine Hill
  • Includes Colosseum Entry ticket with Arena and Underground (24€)
  • Dedicated audio headsets so you don't miss a thing
  • Gratuities (welcomed and appreciated)

Sites Visited

  • Colosseum
  • Special access to underground and Arena Floor
  • Roman Forum/Via Sacra
  • Palatine Hill

Follow the Footsteps of the Gladiators and don’t just visit the Colosseum, delve beneath its surface on our Semi-Private Colosseum Underground Tour! We start our enhanced tour at the special entrance to the “backstage” of the Colosseum. You’ll descend into the Underground section where your expert guide will show you its inner workings, and give you the chance to step back in time and feel what the Gladiators felt as they awaited their fate. This is the space where they would wait to go out to battle, and is also the area where the many animals used by the Roman Empire were held. Tigers, elephants and more were fought by Gladiators and other animals at the Colosseum during its day. Next, you will venture out on to a partial reconstruction of the Arena Floor. Here, you’ll be able to understand the magnitude of the amphitheater from where gladiators faced their foes. Finally, you will walk around the tiers where the spectators were watching the bloody battles that once took place in the Colosseum. Here, you’ll be able to understand the magnitude of the amphitheater from where gladiators faced their foes - especially as you’ll have just been standing in their footsteps…

Wander through the remains of the Republic

With our Colosseum underground tour tickets you’ll also get reserved access to the Roman Forum, the civic center of Ancient Rome. You’ll walk, together with your expert English speaking guide, along the Via Sacra, the same road which legionnaires walked on as they returned home from overseas war. You’ll discover how Roman politics was a pressure cooker of rhetoric, religion and remarkable leaders that often led to assassinations and riots.

Discover the violent foundation of the City

You'll also be able to admire the Palatine Hill and hear the story of the founders of Rome and how their violent conflict would resonate throughout its history. Explore the palace ruins of Rome's powerful and paranoid emperors and take in the views that surround you at every turn.

Listen as your expert guides reveal the real Rome

In just three hours, we’ll introduce you to the inner workings of the Colosseum where the Roman virtues of strength and honor were demonstrated by gladiators. You’ll discover the legend behind the birth of Rome and how it rose to become the world’s greatest superpower due to a combination of superior organization and aggressive combat.

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per adult
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A City Wonders tour is the product of meticulous research, detailed planning, and a passion for providing customers with travel experiences they will cherish forever.

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