The Colosseum in Rome is one of the seven wonders in the world and everyone who visits the eternal city wants to experience the Colosseum in all its glory.
The problem? Tickets are very hard to buy.
Regular tickets may not be hard, but the ‘full experience’ which includes access to the Arena where gladiators battled – and more importantly access to the Underground areas where wild animals and the gladiators were kept – these tickets are almost impossible to purchase from the official website.
This article is an ultimate guide on buying tickets from the official website. It has a couple of secret tricks which can help you get your tickets.
We would like to divide Colosseum tickets into two categories:
- Tickets from the Official Website (Coopculture.it).
- Tickets from hundreds of other websites.
Advantages of buying tickets from the official website:
- The tickets are significantly cheaper (70% cheaper or more!)
- Tickets are confirmed.
Disadvantages:
- They are hard to buy. ‘Full Experience’ tickets which give access to the Arena floor and take you Underground the Colosseum – usually sell out in seconds.
- You cannot cancel or change your tickets. They are non-refundable.
Advantages of buying tickets from third-party websites:
- They are more easily available (but not confirmed)
Disadvantages:
- Tickets cost more. Significantly more.
- The tickets are not confirmed. The travel company will buy tickets from the official website. If they are unable to book the tickets, your booking will be cancelled.
This article will focus on helping you buy tickets from the official website.
Do remember, the full experience tickets are incredibly hard to buy. You need to have a lot of patience and time. If you do not have both, it is better to pay more and buy from reliable websites like Klook, Getyourguide or Viator.
Types of Colosseum tickets on Coopculture
- Regular ticket – 18 Euros
- Full Experience Arena ticket (No underground access) – 24 Euros
- Full Experience Underground and Arena ticket – 24 Euros
- Full Experience Underground and Arena ticket with English Guide – 34 Euros
- Colosseum at Night – 25 Euros
The first ticket (Regular) should be easy to book. Booking well in advance is still recommended.
The second ticket (Without underground access) is quite easy to book in advance too.
Ticket No 3 and No 4 with underground access sell out in seconds. Even if you have the computer screen ready in front of you, by the time you add tickets to the cart – they get sold out.
Ticket No 5 (Colosseum at Night) with access to Arena and Underground is available once a week on Saturdays. During the summer months (May – August) ticket could be available twice a week on Thursdays and Saturdays. This can change. Tickets are limited and are fairly easy to book if you plan and book in advance.
Colosseum Ticket Price Difference
The price difference between tickets which Coopculture sells and those put on sale on third-party websites, can be significant.
Here is an example:
- Colosseum Tour with English Guide on Coopculture – 34 Euros (2 Euros for Kids under 6).
- Guided Colosseum Tour on third-party websites – 100 Euros or more (75 Euros for Kids above 2 years).
It is hard to find a guided tour for less than 100 Euros. And even after booking in advance, the tour company can cancel your ticket if they do not manage to procure the tickets from the official website – for your dates.
Colosseum tickets how far in advance to book?
- The Colosseum tickets go on sale exactly 30 days prior.
- A few more tickets go on sale 7 days prior.
Do note, 25 tickets will go on sale exactly at the time of your planned visit (Rome time).
Example:
- Today is 9th March 2023. On this day, tickets for 8th of April 2023 will go on sale.
- 25 Tickets for the 10:30AM Colosseum visit will go on sale today at 10:30 AM (Rome Time).
- Tickets for 12PM tour on 8th April will go on sale at 12PM on 9th March. And so on.
- Tomorrow (10th March 2023), tickets for 9th April will be made available.
I hope this is clear. If you have questions, comment below, and ask.
Important: Tickets are not sold for the first Sunday of every month. On this day, the Colosseum is free to visit for everyone (it is extremely crowded and there is no underground access).
How to book Colosseum ticket from the official website?
Here is the step-by-step process to get the tickets:
Step 1: 30 days prior to the date of your visit, go to the link of the page on the Coopculture page for which you want to book tickets. (We have posted the links above)
Step 2: You have to also visit the website at exactly the same time as your tour (Rome Time).
Step 3: Visit the page a couple of minute early and keep refreshing the page till you see your date going green.
Step 4: Click on your date, select the ticket, then select the number of adults and children (See the screenshot below, we have selected 2 adults and one child under 6 years). Then click ‘Add to Cart’
There will be a CAPTCHA to make sure you are not a robot. Tick it.
Step 5: Now, if your tickets get added to the cart – congratulations, you have secured your ticket for the next 15 minutes. (It should look something like the image below).
Step 6: Click ‘Check out’ and move to the next page. Enter your name and all the other details.
Important: Your name should be exactly the same as the name on your passport. If it isn’t the same, you might be denied entry.
Step 7: Move on to the next page, which is to enter your credit card details and make the payment.
Important: Make sure your credit card supports 3D secure pin. Else, your payment could get rejected.
After the payment, take a screenshot of the payment successful page and keep it with you.
Within a few minutes, you should receive the Colosseum tickets in your Inbox.
The procedure to book the ticket is easy. You need to be quick enough to add the ticket to the cart.
Why are Colosseum Underground tickets so tough to get?
The problem is simple. Demand is high, Supply is very low.
Only about 150 tickets are sold for the English guided tour per day. And 150 tickets for the tour without a guide.
That is about 300 tickets a day which allow you to see the Underground of the Colosseum. And the demand could be in thousands.
Companies who sell tickets and make more than 100 Euros per adult, are also trying to book tickets on the official website. They are quick and have experience of booking these tickets every day of the week.
Normal visitors like you and me, cannot compete against them.
When those 25 tickets go on sale, they are grabbed in less than 10 seconds. If you are lucky, you could get 20 seconds to add the number of tickets and click ‘Add to Cart’. If you are a little late, tickets will be sold out.
You have to try again.
Secret Tips to get your Colosseum Underground Ticket
Now we get to the main part. A few secret tips on getting an Underground ticket, which no one will tell you – except us here at Buying Tips.
Here we go:
- Many transactions fail and those tickets go back on sale exactly 15 minutes after the tickets first go on sale. If tickets go on sale at 10:30AM and you fail to get those tickets, keep refreshing the booking page 10:44AM onwards. You can sometimes find 2 or 3 tickets are still available. These are from the failed transactions. Grab them.
- After all tickets are sold out for the day, more tickets can sometimes – randomly – go on sale. This usually happens after 2PM Rome time. If you have the time and patience to refresh the page multiple times during the day, you will get your tickets. For us, the success rate has been high using this strategy.
- If you fail to get the tickets 30 days prior, wait until the ‘7 day prior’ tickets go on sale. The demand this time around will be relatively lower. You still have to be quick if your Rome trip is during the peak tourist months of May to August.