I have been looking for a guided tour that includes the Colosseum underground. I have been to the Colosseum before and don’t want to just repeat the same tour, so getting into the underground is pretty important to me. As I read reviews of various underground tours, all of them have a few reviewers telling a similar story; that they didn’t actually get to go into the underground and they weren’t told until the last minute. We’re planning to go mid-February if that makes any difference. Is there a tour out there that can actually guarantee access or at the very least let us know in advance that they were unable to secure tickets so that we can decide what we want to do and be prepared for it? Thanks for any help or insight!
Posted by
Calgary
1721 posts
Everyone has to book through Coop Culture for the underground tours, even the other tour companies. That makes the tickets hard to get, because the tour companies go online to buy them the second the tickets are available. This is why they sometimes have to cancel.
You can do the same. That's what we did. I got up in the middle of the night to go online at 9 a.m. Rome time, exactly 30 days in advance. when the tickets would be on sale. I had the page bookmarked and navigated to it a couple of minutes before. I knew exactly what I wanted, so I didn't waste time or hesitate figuring it out during the purchase. I was able to buy tickets for the underground tour.
It may have helped that I was travelling in November 2021, when tourism wasn't yet back up to pre-pandemic levels, and November is not one of the peak tourism months, anyway. You may find that you have success with this method for a February trip, also.
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Posted by
OP
3 posts
Thank you. I was thinking of doing this but was hoping to get a guide for everything all in one: colosseum, underground & forum. I think your suggestion is the only way I’ll actually be assured of having a ticket (assuming I get one).
Posted by
Calgary
1721 posts
We had a guide for everything. You aren't allowed to go into the underground without a guide, and ours toured us through the other areas, too. For the rest, I think if you book the more expensive option of the two I linked, that one includes a guide for everything (at the Colosseum, not Palatine Hill). Plus, after the tour was finished, we were free to continue to look around (not in the underground, but the rest of it).
Posted by
Calgary
1721 posts
If you are unable to get tickets this way, THEN you could go with an outside company's tour. A tour company booking for that date less than 30 days in advance would presumably have secured tickets.
Posted by
24 posts
2 reliable companies worth looking into
Posted by
Lynnwood, Washington
8822 posts
I would not presume the 30 day safety window for booking a tour. They will book whether they have tickets or not…….
Posted by
OP
3 posts
Thank you!