The Colosseum without the queue: which ticket to take, and how to reach the arena
Standard, Full Experience, the arena and the underground: what you really need, what it costs, and when to buy.
At the Colosseum, the time is lost not at the entrance but at the ticket stage: there are nearly ten types, and half of all visitors take the wrong one. Here is what you really need, what it costs, and how not to be left without the arena.
The main thing: book online, and ahead
Tickets are sold by the Park's official site (Parco archeologico del Colosseo). They open exactly 30 days before the date, at midnight Rome time. Standard ones hold for days, but the arena and the underground go in minutes. The ticket is personal; you will be asked for ID at the entrance.
The standard ticket (€18)
This is what most people need. It includes the Colosseum (the first and second tiers, views of the arena and the underground from above) plus the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill on the same ticket within the day. There is a €2 fee for online booking on top. EU citizens aged 18–25 pay a reduced rate, under-18s go free, but a booking is required all the same.
Full Experience (€24)
The same €6 more opens one of three: the arena, the underground or the upper tiers (the attic), plus the 'super sites' in the Forum and two days for the Forum with the Palatine. For a first visit it is worth it.
The arena and the underground
- The arena: you stand on the very floor the gladiators came out onto. The time slot is about 20 minutes; in summer it goes weeks ahead.
- The underground (the hypogeum): only with a guide, the scarcest ticket of all, gone in 60–120 seconds the moment it opens 30 days ahead. Be ready to book at midnight exactly.
If you are not taking the arena or the underground, the standard ticket covers 80% of the impression.
Free, but not always convenient
On the first Sunday of the month entry is free, but there is no online booking, the queue is enormous, and the arena and the underground are closed. For a calm visit it is not the best day.
A tip on the spot
If you have no ticket and are heading for the ticket desks, go not to the Colosseum's main entrance but to the desk at the entrance to the Roman Forum (Via dei Fori Imperiali). The tickets are the same, the queue is usually shorter.
The Colosseum is the morning of your one-day route. And the second half sensibly goes to the Vatican: here is how to get through it without the queue.
Next, open the City Map of Rome and tie the Colosseum to the other points. In Prime I show what time to set the slot for, so as not to cross paths with the crowd.
