Tours › Colosseum · Rome
Colosseum Arena Floor Tour with Gladiator Gate Entry
From €66.50 per person
- Duration
- 3 hours
- Group size
- Up to 24 people
- Entry
- Skip the line
- Guide
- GBESDEFR
Through the gladiators' gate and onto the arena floor
The Gladiator Gate is the entrance on the short axis of the amphitheatre, the one fighters, animals and stage machinery used to reach the sand, and it is closed to standard tickets. On this tour it is your way in. You come up out of the service corridors and step onto the arena floor, in the middle of the building, with the empty tiers rising on every side. It is the one view the Roman public never had, because it belonged to the people who fought.
Part of the modern floor is left open, so from the arena you look straight down into the hypogeum: the corridors, cages and lift shafts where animals and scenery waited in the dark before being winched up into the daylight. You do not walk through it, that is a separate restricted area, but from where you stand you can see exactly how the machinery worked. The same ticket then takes you across the Roman Forum and up the Palatine Hill, so the visit ends with the square where the city governed itself and the hill where the emperors chose to live.
At a glance
- Duration
- About 3 hours
- Group size
- Up to 24 people, the limit the arena allows
- Languages
- English, Spanish, German, French
- Entry
- Skip-the-line entry to the Colosseum and the arena floor through the Gladiator Gate
- Meeting point
- Our tourist hub, Via delle Terme di Tito 93 - look for the Enjoy Rome logo
- Where it ends
- Inside the Roman Forum or at the Colosseum, depending on the day's entry order
- Cancellation
- Free up to 24 hours before the start time
- Best for
- Visitors who want to stand where the gladiators entered, not look down from the tiers
Highlights
- Skip-the-line Entrance to the Colosseum first
- Enter through the Gladiator Gate, the passage closed to standard tickets
- Stand on the arena floor and look down into the hypogeum below
- A licensed guide in the language you book: English, Spanish, German or French
- Roman Forum and Palatine Hill on the same ticket, with no second queue
- A group capped at 24, the limit the restricted area allows
What’s included
- Guided tour with a licensed guide in the language you book
- Skip-the-line entry to the Colosseum
- Restricted-area access to the arena floor through the Gladiator Gate
- Skip-the-line Entry to the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill
- Radio headsets for the whole tour
Not included
- The Colosseum underground, the hypogeum: you look into it from the arena, you do not walk through it
- Food and drinks
- Hotel pick-up and drop-off
- Gratuities
Itinerary
Meeting pointOur tourist hub, Via delle Terme di Tito 93
We start indoors, at our hub a few minutes uphill from the Colosseum. You are checked in, handed your radio headset and introduced to your guide before anyone walks anywhere. Bring a valid ID for every participant: arena tickets are issued in names and are checked at the gate, which is not the case with a standard ticket. Arrive fifteen minutes early, because the Colosseum entry slot cannot be moved and the group leaves without latecomers.
1Colosseum and Gladiator GateThe arena floor, through the fighters' entrance
You enter with a reserved time slot and walk the corridors towards the short axis of the amphitheatre, where the Gladiator Gate opens straight onto the arena. Standing in the middle of the building your guide explains what it actually did: how a day of games was programmed and paid for, how the wooden floor was laid over the hypogeum and covered in sand, how the awning was rigged above the crowd, and where the emperor sat. Through the open section of the floor you look down into the tunnels, cages and lift shafts that fed the arena from below.
2Roman ForumThe square where the Republic governed itself
Down the hill you walk into the Forum along the Via Sacra, the road every triumph took. Your guide takes you past the Curia where the Senate met, the platform where Caesar was cremated, the arches of Titus and Septimius Severus and the basilicas where Romans came to trade, argue and be judged. This is where Roman politics happened out loud, in the open air, in buildings designed so that a crowd could see who was speaking.
3Palatine HillThe hill where Rome began, and where the emperors stayed
The tour climbs to the Palatine, the hill Romulus is said to have chosen and the address every emperor from Augustus onward kept. You walk through the remains of the imperial palaces, look down over the Circus Maximus from the terrace the emperors used to watch the races, and see the vantage point that explains the whole layout of ancient Rome below you. There is almost no shade up here, which is why the order of the visit matters.
Good to know
- Bring a valid photo ID or passport for every participant, children included: arena tickets are nominative and are checked at the gate
- The full name of each participant must match the booking, or entry cannot be guaranteed
- Arrive at our hub 15 minutes before the start time: the Colosseum entry slot cannot be moved
- Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the start time; after that the booking cannot be refunded
- The arena floor can close at short notice in extreme weather; the rest of the tour runs as planned
- There is an airport-style security check at the Colosseum entrance, and it can queue
- The order of the three sites can change depending on the entry time the Colosseum assigns
- Large bags, glass, pets and sharp objects are not allowed inside, and there is no cloakroom
- The route is not suitable for wheelchair users or visitors with limited mobility
Who this tour is for
This tour is for
- Visitors who want to stand where the gladiators entered, rather than look down from the tiers
- Anyone who has already seen the Colosseum from the seating levels and wants the part a standard ticket cannot reach
- Photographers: the arena floor is the only place that gives you the amphitheatre from the inside out
- Travellers who want the Colosseum explained in Spanish, German or French rather than English
Look elsewhere if
- Anyone hoping to walk through the underground tunnels: the hypogeum is a separate restricted area and is not part of this tour
- Visitors who only need entry and a commentary, who are better served by the ticket with audio guide
- Wheelchair users and visitors with limited mobility: the route has stairs, gravel and uneven ancient paving
- Travellers who prefer to move at their own pace, because the arena slot is fixed and the group stays together
Not sure which Colosseum tour to pick?
Frequently asked questions
What is the Gladiator Gate?
It is the entrance on the short axis of the amphitheatre that opens straight onto the arena, the one fighters, animals and stage machinery came through. It is closed to standard tickets: only restricted-area tours use it, and that access is what you are booking on this tour.
What is the difference between this tour and the standard Colosseum tour?
Where you stand. The standard guided tour looks down onto the arena from the tiers where the Roman public sat. This one enters through the Gladiator Gate and puts you on the arena floor itself, at the level of the fighters. Both cover the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill on the same ticket.
Can you see the Colosseum underground from the arena floor?
Yes. Part of the modern floor is left open, and from the arena you look straight down into the hypogeum: the corridors, cages and lift shafts that fed the games from below. Walking through the hypogeum is a separate restricted area and is not part of this tour.
Is the arena floor original?
No. The Roman floor was a wooden deck covered in sand, laid over the hypogeum, and it disappeared centuries ago. What you stand on is a modern platform built over part of the underground so that visitors can reach the centre of the building. The level and the sightlines are the ones the fighters had.
How long does the tour last?
About three hours for all three sites: the Colosseum with the arena floor, the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill. That is half an hour more than the standard guided tour, because the arena adds time at the gate and in the centre of the amphitheatre.
Is one ticket valid for all three sites?
Yes. Your ticket covers the Colosseum with arena access, the Roman Forum and the Palatine Hill. The Forum and the Palatine are a single archaeological area, so you do not queue twice.
Why is the group limited to 24 people?
Because the arena is a restricted area and the Colosseum caps the size of the groups allowed onto it. It is not a marketing number, it is the limit, and it happens to be small enough that questions still get answered. If you would rather share the arena with fewer people, our small group arena tour follows the same route with 12 at most.
Which languages is this tour available in?
English, Spanish, German and French. Your guide speaks the language you book, so choose it before paying: a booking cannot be moved to another language afterwards.
Do children need a ticket?
Everyone needs a ticket, including infants, and everyone counts in the booking. Under-18s enter free, but the free ticket still has to be issued in their name, so book a place for every member of your party.
Can I cancel or change my booking?
Yes. Cancel up to 24 hours before the start time and you are refunded in full. Inside the last 24 hours the booking is non-refundable, because the arena tickets have already been issued in your names. If you need to move to another date, write to us as early as you can and we will do whatever the availability allows.
What happens if I arrive late?
The group leaves at the start time and the Colosseum entry slot cannot be moved, so arriving late means the tour is lost and the booking cannot be refunded. Aim to be at our hub fifteen minutes early, and if you are running late call the office straight away.
What happens if the arena floor closes?
In extreme weather the Colosseum can close the arena at short notice. When that happens the visit runs as a guided tour of the amphitheatre, the Forum and the Palatine. It is a decision taken by the site and not by us; we tell you as soon as we know, and the office will go through your options with you.
Is the site accessible for wheelchair users?
The Colosseum itself has lifts, but this tour reaches the arena through the service corridors and then crosses the Roman Forum and climbs the Palatine Hill, where the ground is gravel, cobble and uneven ancient paving. We do not recommend it for wheelchair users or anyone with limited mobility. Write to us and we will tell you honestly what is workable.