Please sign in to post.

Colosseum underground tours - Coopculture vs. Private tour?

We're going to Rome in a couple months, and would like to take a guided tour of the Colosseum's underground section. It looks like the "official" tours are run by Coopculture (http://www.coopculture.it/en/events.cfm?id=6) and are remarkably affordable (9 euros or so, plus admission) and available in English. I see also that there are lots of companies, like Dark Rome and others, that also do tours of the underground and third ring, but charge something more like 90-100 euros.

What's the difference? is there any difference in access to areas? Any difference in quality of tour guides? Size of group? Etc. We're a family of four on a budget, so the price difference is a big deal for us. But we are history nuts, so if this is a splurge that's worth it, we'll try to make it work.

Posted by
15856 posts

The Coopculture tours are JUST for the Colosseum, underground and third ring: they do not include the additional mandatory combo ticket for access to the Colosseum, Palatine and Forum. You need to add the price of those tickets to your total.

http://etickets.coopculture.it/index.php/en/component/snapp/?view=event&id=28410C15-602F-4539-A210-CE0B6183CEFB

"IN ORDER TO VISIT THE UNDERGROUND IT'S ALSO NECESSARY TO BUY THE COLOSSEUM ENTRANCE TICKET AT THE RESERVATION DESK".

Many of the other more pricey underground/third ring tours - including Dark Rome - include tickets, and tours of the Palatine and Forum along with the Colosseum.

http://www.darkrome.com/tours/rome-tours/colosseum-coliseum-ancient-rome-tour

Posted by
4152 posts

Inside the colosseum there is no difference to the area they access. The only difference is the private tours usually include the forum or palatine hill tour. To me, this is not nearly enough to pay that huge amount for but everyone is different. Just know that the official guides are trained just as well as the private guides are and must pass the same rigorous tests. All the underground tour groups are small in size because the underground area is small.

Donna

Posted by
5 posts

Thanks, Kathy. Even with the entrance fee to the Colosseum itself (12 euros), the price difference is huge (total of 21 euros vs. ~100). Any other differences, other than that, and the possibility of adding the Palatine and Forum? And, if it's worth it, do you recommend any particular tour company?

Posted by
15856 posts

Coopculture does not offer tours of the Palatine and Forum although audioguides are available for rent at the sites. We elected to do our Colosseum/Palatine/Forum sightseeing independently with self-researched/purchased material, and to skip the underground/third ring in favor of some other activities. We both found the Colosseum to be interesting but after a couple of trips to Rome, it hasn't ended up at the top of our list of favorites.

The Coopculture tour is the most economical for the arena, underground and third ring. Walks of Italy is another tour company that sees very high marks in the RS community but their version of the Dark Rome tour is also a pricey 95 euros PP.

Posted by
3941 posts

I used my Rick Steves audio Europe app on my ipod and did his 'tour' of the forum ruins - it was great!

Posted by
4152 posts

Actually, coopculture does off a tour of the forum but it's priced for a group. The tour lasts an hour and costs 130 euros. If you can find others who want to take part in the tour with you it can be an affordable option. There are also audio guides which you can rent.

For the difference in costs I would book an official tour and use an audio guide along with a good guide book for the forum and palatine hill. Save the extra money for other sites, gifts or a great meal.

Donna

Posted by
15856 posts

Yes, there is the group tour but I didn't mention as I figured it might be difficult to gather enough people to do that one. I'd vote along with Donna's advice to book the Coopculture tour for the Colosseum, and use audio/printed guides for the other two.

And just in case my first post wasn't clear, the entry tickets (not the tour tickets) you'll purchase for the Colosseum are also your entry tickets for the Palatine/Forum. Your only additional cost for those two will be the audioguides.