Colosseum & Forum - Rick Steves Audio Guide vs Rent Audio Guide at the Site???

My son used RS audio guides for both with great satisfaction. I will be using them as well, next month.

My wife and I used the RS audio guides for both and were happy. I do not see the advantage of another audio guide. The other option I would consider would be a guided tour.

thanks Sherry and Bob,
RS it is! The official guided tours are sold out and private tours are ridiculously expensive. We will spend 2-3 hours here after lunch. I plan to use the Palantine Hill entrance on Via di San Gregorio and enjoy the view, walk through the Forum and stop at whatever catches our attention [probably not the entire site] and then exit by the Colosseum and finish up there when it is a little cooler out.

Is there anyplace to sit and rest along the way in the Forum? any benches?

thanks both for your help!!!!
ellen

I don't recall many benches in the forum, but I know we found a few patches of shade. Take advantage of one when you see one.

There are benches at Palatine Hill.

The RS guide is pretty good. It was a bit tricky to figure out where to start the tour but once we found our place we were able to follow along nicely and it was informative.

Although a real guide (with a degree in roman history) is even better. :)

I just did the RS Roman Forum audiotour yesterday. I found it to be just right. Here's a few tips. 1) Where ever you enter the forum, go to the Arch of Titus first - on colosseum side. 2) Take advantage of shade and water spouts. The water spouts are located near the Arch of Titus. There are two. The rest of Forum has no drinking fountains. There are two main, parallel paths through the forum. Both basically run from Arch to Arch. Stay on right side path, closest to Temple of Romulus and Basilica of Constantine, etc. At the end of tour, you just have to remain in one spot for several explanations. Part of the path is fenced off and one building (Senate/Curia) is closed. Then, you can roam around the forum after the audio tour. Enjoy!

I've done both a guided tour, an the Rick Steves audio guide tour of both the Colosseum and the Forum. Honestly, I definitely preferred the guided tour. (I signed up for a group tour, so it wasn't as expensive as a private tour - but worth every penny!!)

Normally I love RS audio guide tours, but there is SO much to see, especially in the Forum, that his audio tour falls short. I learned much more from the guided tour, and I had more fun - the tour guide made a lot of jokes. I've hired a tour guide outside the Colosseum (i.e. not an official Colosseum/Roman Forum tour guide, just a knowledgeable local) and I preferred it to the stuffy official Colosseum tour, which was more dry. I don't think you need to rent an audio guide at the Colosseum - spend the bulk of your time in the Forum, because there are many, many ruins there and so much to learn! (Not trying to downplay the Colosseum, which is incredible too - but the Forum is pretty vast.)

Oops, just saw your comment that the guided tours are all sold out. You can always sign up for a guided group tour when you get to the Colosseum, especially in the summer at the peak of tourist season - there will be tour guides walking around the outside of the Colosseum, offering to sign you up for their group tours. I'd highly recommend it! It's great to have the RS audio guide as a back-up, but trust me, the guided group tours are very much worth it.