We will be in Rome late December and are trying to find a good English language tour of La Scarzuola and also the Colosseum Underground. My understanding is that it recently opened up the bottom floor and we'd luv a good tour recommendation primarily for the underground since we've been to the Colosseum before. Also, we are looking for a few good day trips. We will be staying in Rome, Bologna, Florence and Ferrara so those areas are covered. I have heard that San Marino is stunning with amazing views but a bit tricky to get to via public transportation (which we will be using). Has anyone been? Good trip in January? Also, any other suggestions are welcome. We have heard Ostia Antica, Orvieto and maybe Santa Severa are good. We are easy going adults who use public transportation and like like to take our time and enjoy authentic food, architecture, and castles.
Posted by
Minnesota 🎒
15820 posts
Teri, you'd mentioned that you'd been to the Colosseum before but didn't say whether you'd also done the Palatine and Forum? Any interest in a guided tour which includes all three?
Otherwise, I'd book this coopculture tour (official ticketing vendor for this attraction):
https://www.coopculture.it/en/products/the-wonders-of-the-colosseum-visiting-the-underground-and-the-arena/
That ticket does include entrance to the Palatine and Forum but no guided tour of either; you are not required to visit them if you don't wish to. If you will be in Rome on a Friday or Saturday, you might look at this one? The night tours can be nice as they free up time during the day; this one does NOT include entrance to the Palatine and Forum.
https://www.coopculture.it/en/products/colosseum-by-night-00002/
There are other tours which include the Underground but most which are offered by some reputable outside companies (Walks of Italy; the Roman Guy; etc.) do include guided narration of the Palatine & Forum, which is why I asked about your interest for those sites. Whatever the case, I personally wouldn't book anything through the Viator 3rd-party website.
Posted by
OP
USA - in the south
25 posts
Thanks Kathy
We have visited the Colosseum, Palatine and Forum before but we have only had a guided tour of the Colosseum. The rest we viewed by ourselves. We are most interested in the newly opened underground since we've never seen it. Do you happen to have any experience with the English speaking tours through the coop you listed? We sometimes find tours to be rushed just skimming over everything which is why we tend to focus on one site at at time. Not that we want long winded and boring just focused and engaging. Also, you mentioned going in the evening. I find this very intriguing I was just concerned they might not be able to see and view the underground as well in the evening since they say the underground can be closed in bad weather. I would luv your thoughts on this and thanks again.
Posted by
Lynnwood, Washington
8395 posts
Walks of Italy has several different tours
https://www.walksofitaly.com/rome-tours/colosseum-night-tour/
Posted by
Minnesota 🎒
15820 posts
Yes, WOI as well as some other companies offer night tours. I didn't include WOI's due to the interest "mainly" in the underground; that one includes some other areas. And no, I don't have recent experience with coopculture's tours in English but here's a VERY recent poster who has (thank you, Ruth!)
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/tickets-for-underground-colosseum
If interested in doing the same daytime tour she did, here it is:
https://www.coopculture.it/en/products/full-experience-ticket-with-access-to-the-arena-and-underground-of-the-colosseum/
It does include (non-guided) entry to the Forum and Palatine but as with the 34-euro tour I'd linked earlier, you are not required to visit either of them if not interested. The difference between the 24 and 34-euro tours are explained in Ruth's helpful post. Understand too that weather is weather, day OR night, so while heavy enough rain to have to close the underground is rare, it could occur at either time of the day.
Personally, along with saving time during the day for other attractions, I'd think seeing the underground at night, when it's dark, would give it a better feeling of what it would have been like when completely covered by the floor above and lit only with torches. There are also multiple tour groups the space has to handle at one time, and it's said that there are fewer of those at night.
But there's no wrong answer as long as it works for you! The coopculture tours are in hot demand as they're VERY attractively priced and so tend to sell out quickly in advance. Maybe not as quickly during the winter season as spring/summer/fall but quickly enough.