Hello, I'm going to Italy next month and I am considering tours in Rome. Possibly the evening tour of Angel Tours to do on the first night. Mostly, we are considering vatican and Colosseum/Ancient Rome tours. Which ones are he best for these? Also, Once I was in Rome with a tour group and the guides all had "Whisper" head sets. (The guide spoke into a microphone, and we could hear them on headphones) Do any guided tours do this? I would like to go on tours thad do this because not being able to hear the guide is the biggest annoyance, especially when you pay all that money. Also, I am hoping that when we go to the vatican we won't have to wait in line for hours. Plese give me your advice.
Posted by
The Hague, NL (AMS)
2207 posts
Sasha,
Lot's of questions here... let's see what I may try and help you with! First, I do not "recommend" tour groups as that's a matter of personal preference, cost, and really dependent on the guide - not so much the tour agency. I have been to the Vatican more than 25 times and listened in on many tours. Some are more scholarly, some are gossipy - there ARE many recommendations on this site - I'd read those and see what interests you!
In the Vatican and St. Peter's all guides are REQUIRED to use headsets. That's supposed to be the rule at the Colosseum but it's often not followed.
If you buy a tour with the "skip the line" feature you will not have to wait in line! Most tours have this feature but make sure BEFORE booking. If you do not want to PAY for the "skip the line" feature, then the best option is to go in the afternoon when there is usually no line!
Ciao,
Ron
Posted by
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
705 posts
I did the evening tour in Rome with Angel tours 2 weeks ago and really enjoyed it. I have been to Rome several times and been to the sights that the tour takes in but didn't know much about their history etc. The tour filled all that in for me, so I would recommend that. I have also done the Vatican tour with them and enjoyed that too. You can do all these things by yourself but sometimes I think letting someone else do all the preparation etc is quite good.
Posted by
OP
new york
55 posts
Private guides are pretty much out of the question for us. We will be there two and a half weeks and have already spent ALOT of money on plane tickets, rental car, hotels, etc., so I'm not looking to spend that much money. However, since its gonna be high season, can we still book the "official" colosseum tours the morning that we go? And does it include the forum as well?
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32212 posts
sasha, regarding the tours of the Colosseum, you might consider the guided tours offered there (rather than using the Audioguides). The "official" Colosseum Guides use the same type of headsets you described, so that all of the group can hear the narration. As I recall, the cost was only about €7 so it was very good value. Look for all the "blinking lights" at the audioguide booth, as that's where tours were booked also.
If you want to visit the Colosseum on your own, use Rick's method for buying a combo ticket on Palatine Hill, in order to avoid the queues for tickets. When you enter the Colosseum, you'll have to go through an airport-style security scan.
Our "official" Guide at the Colosseum warned our group about the "scammers" out front offering "english language tours". Apparently these are often overpriced, and sometimes they provide worthless coupons for other tours to their groups.
If you have a good budget for tours, you might consider a private guide. Francesca is outstanding and highly recommended!!! See Rick's Italy 2008, page 613 for further information.
Be sure to wear your Money Belt, especially when on Subway and Buses!
Happy travels!
Posted by
Anaheim, CA, USA
1455 posts
Something for you to also consider...
A post from Larry
click here
Posted by
Scottsdale, AZ, USA
1127 posts
Opt for tours that have small groups and then you won't have to worry about if headphones are used. Angel Tours keeps their tours pretty small and I believe they utilize headphones for the morning tour of the Vatican that skips the general queue.
Posted by
Dallas, TX, USA
26 posts
I would absolutely recommend doing tours of the Colosseum and Ancient Rome as well as the Vatican. That was some of the best money we spent. My husband has been twice and he enjoyed those sights way more with a tour he said. You just learn so much.
I WISH I could remember the name of the tour group we used because they were wonderful. We just found them soliciting tourists at the Colosseum, but if you see someone holding up a green flyer, that's them. Anyone know who I am talking about? We kept having to follow the green flyers wherever we went...
Posted by
Cleveland
25 posts
Two weeks ago we took all three Rome tours offered by Sky Rome Tours (http://www.skytoursrome.com/). I highly recommend them! They had great native-English speaking guides (mostly from the UK). All three tours were fantastic, and were small groups (less than 10 people, Vatican tour only had 4). They seem to share some guides with Angel tours, who are also highly spoken of on these boards.
Enjoy!