Small Group Colosseum Underground and Arena Floor Guided Tour

Enjoy the most exclusive areas of the Colosseum, where most visitors cannot access. Visit the Amphitheater’s restricted areas, the “Hypogeum” (or Underground level). The Hypogeum is a suggestive place, with narrow corridors and large blocks of travertine, where gladiators waited for the moment of glory. As you wander deep into its tunnels, you will almost hear the air resonate with their fierce battle cries, and the growls of the hungry animals ready to feast on their prey. The underground Colosseum was the behind-the-scenes of the deadly spectacles of the Flavian Amphitheatre. You will admire fragments of the original floor, the ancient drainage system, the rooms where gladiators waited to fight, the animals cages. You will see the reconstruction of an ancient lift which, anchored to a system of trapdoors above, connected the underground with the Arena floor, the central sand-covered wooden platform where the fights took place (‘arena’ was the Latin word for ‘sand’).

Colosseum

With this VIP TOUR you will also access in the center stage of the Arena floor, the central sand-covered wooden platform where the fights took place (‘arena’ was the Latin word for ‘sand’). Access through the special Gladiator's Gate  and have your camera ready to take amazing pictures on the Colosseum. After visiting the underground chambers and the Arena floor, the tour will continue on the first and second tiers of the Colosseum. Here, the panoramic terraces will give you an excellent opportunity to take more stunning photos and admire the monument from a privileged position. Learn more about its history, the bloody games it hosted, and loads of anecdotes and curiosities. For example, why is the Colosseum called Colosseum?

Foro Romano

Your tour will then lead you on a journey through history, visiting the area of the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill. The Roman Forum was the political, administrative and social heart of Rome, today one of the most extraordinary archaeological areas, where the illustrious past of the city echoes in the suggestive ruins of its ancient monuments. Explore the public spaces, sacred temples and market areas where the daily life of the Romans unfolded. Admire the the Basilicas in the Roman Forum where the great administrative trials took place and the great orators made their famous speeches. Walk along the Sacred Way where the religious processions paraded; pause in the Temple of Vesta where the Vestal Virgins guarded the sacred fire of the city and kept it alight. History has never been so alive!