Planning our day at the Colosseum and the Forum

First I sure hope you got your tickets before you go. There is little to no chance of getting the attic or arena floor tickets when you get there. A decent chance of getting the regular tickets but the wait will be long.

The colosseum will take an hour, maybe 2 if youre really slow and take a very very good look. The forum can take about 3 to 5 depending on how slow you go. You can bring lunch and eat it there which is what id recommend. Get food the day before and bring it with you. Dont forget the imperial forums which are free. And if you so happen to have a few extra hours before dinner go stop at the capitoline museum.

I’d see the Colosseum first, and be first in line (and yes! buy your tickets now!). That gives you enough time to really get your fill, then have an early-isg lunch, then have time for the forum/Palatine Hill sites. And it leaves plenty of time to get to your dinner reservation.

I suppose one could make the opposite argument, but based on our recent trip to Rome, this order just seems more seamless to me.

However you do it, though, your mind will be BLOWN! It’s all freaking amazing. Hope you have a blast!!!

Hi lisajford22! I hope you are able to snag those tickets! I would love to hear how it goes. I have my calendar marked for 30 days prior to the day we hope to go, plus back-up days!

I've been giving thought to the same question and have decided to visit the Colosseum first (as early as possible), then the Forum after. This way, we can have a leisurely lunch and take as long as we like in the Forum/Palatine Hill without watching the clock ahead of a timed entry to the Colosseum. The other option is to see the Forum sites early the next morning as tickets are good for two consecutive days (but 1 entry only). We might opt for this as the Forum gets pretty busy in the afternoon.

Good luck and happy travels!!

Thanks so much for all your input. Yes, overnight tonight is my 30 day countdown so I am hoping it goes ok. I did a practice run this morning and would have been able to get tickets for the day before I need them, so hoping tomorrow when I try again it goes as well. I agree that having to clock watch is not ideal, so morning sounds best. We are going at the end of November so the crowds have got to be less than during the heart of summer travel. At least I am hoping so and we then we can enjoy the forum with a lot of other people, but not as many as in June and July. Thanks again for your feedback. I do value this forum so much when we travel.

Lisajford…I will also be trying for Attic tix, but for November 29th…tickets become available for our date the middle of next week.
Do you know that the time changes in Italy tonight? Italy goes off Daylight Savings Time, so an hour to “fall back”. Here in the eastern US, we do not fall back until Nov 3…next Sunday.
Italy…next change ( to winter time ) will be on: 27 October 2024. At 3:00 a.m. clocks will turn to 2:00 a.m.
Just something to be aware of when trying to get the timed tickets to the Coliseum Attic.

I just got our tickets for the Attic and it was a nightmare!!! You really just have to book as fast as possible and just get full price tickets regardless of age. I managed to book 5 tickets all for the same time slot, but had to use my computer and two different phones. I think I was hitting refresh too often on my computer and the site decided I was a robot and wouldn't load the website.

I also had to buy in smaller chunks vs getting 5 all together. I got 2 for one time slot, and while I was waiting for the next time slot to open I saw that 3 more tickets came back up for sale! I just got lucky that some other folks must have put the tickets in baskets and didn't finish their purchase during the 15min window. Other time slots just were gone and never came up again. I never once saw the underground tickets being open either. I was up too early since it is only a 5hr difference today, so check that as well so that you can get an extra hour of sleep.

I suggest you worry less about your plans and just get the tickets first. Good luck and hope your experience goes more smoothly than mine!!!

Lisa, do come back and let us know how it went for you? As they only book 8 tickets for each time slot and the last of the 18 slots looks to be mid afternoon, these tickets are really limited. If you want this experience, you may need to be prepared to be flexible and grab whatever time slot is available, morning or afternoon, before they're sold out. OK? It looks to me like the highest demand is for morning slots so the scrapping to get them may be more intense.

That said, I've all fingers crossed that you nail the tickets you're practiced so diligently to land! :O)

First thing in the morning Attic tickets are extremely hard to get, but I just checked now and there are still lots of times slots available on November 26th from 12:30pm on.

Thanks everybody. We got them!!!! : ) We had to do 2 separate groups for our party of 8, but within an hour of each other before 10 and on Nov 26!!! It's funny because yesterday during my practice run, it was easier to grab morning ones and as is suggested, in the afternoon there were quite a few tickets available. This morning was much harder (maybe because the 5 hours difference) and I too got locked out on my computer with the site thinking I was a robot, but my phone and another family member trying at the same time was the proverbial ticket. Thanks again everyone for your guidance. I do love the forum!

lisajford…so glad you got the ones you wanted! 8 tickets together is tough…usually there is a cap of 6 per transaction on most sites.

I am going to try for a bit later on our date…11:10am…as I hope it will be a decent weather day and a bit warmer than early morning up in the attic.

Excellent news, Lisa! Yay for you!

Great news! Thanks for sharing your experiences! It's very helpful as I will be making the attempt in February!