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Want to visit the Colosseum by night?
You can! And it's an amazing way to see it!
Find out everything you need to know, from what you will see to how to book.
Colosseum night visits are back!!
Update for summer 2022
You can now visit the Colosseum Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights from May 20 - December 31, 2022!
If you want to visit the Colosseum at night, you need to know:
Visiting the Colosseum at night is really special, not only because of how beautiful it is from the outside (which you can of course see regardless.)
When you first go in, you will see and really appreciate the architecture of the corridors, because they are totally empty!
Then, as you go around on the main level of the Colosseum, your first impression will be of the silence.
It's dark all around you and hardly anyone else is there, so you get to appreciate what you are looking at even more, because there is no sound, other than the guide, to distract you.
On a night visit to the Colosseum, you will visit the main and second levels of the Colosseum, which you can do also during the day.
But you will also get to go out onto the Colosseum arena floor . . .
. . . and, you will visit the Hypogeum below.
This is another thing that makes this visit so special, as these areas are not accessible with a regular daytime entry ticket, and booking a visit of them (along with the third ring above), can be hard to come by as there is limited number of tickets to those areas.
You will NOT see the 3rd or 4th/5th rings on the Colosseum night tour.
They are simply off limits at that time (and at this time, they are closed in any case.)
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No.
The Roma Pass allows you free (or discounted) entry to the Colosseum/Roman Forum/Palatine Hill, but only during regular daytime hours.
The Colosseum night tour is considered a special event, and is not offered at any discount or with the Roma Pass or any other Combo pass.
The full-fare ticket to visit the Colosseum by night, which includes a tour in English (or Spanish or Italian), is 25€. There is no additional booking fee so that is the final price per person.
For anyone under 25, the reduced fee is 22€.
For ages 3-6, it's free, but you still need a ticket (it's a free ticket but you have to reserve as it's consider a "spot" on the tour.)
Want more information about the Colosseum in Rome and how to visit it?
Check out my YouTube videos!
No, it's not the same.
A normal day-time visit to the Colosseum costs 16€ if purchased on site, or a bit more if you pre-purchase.
And it includes a visit to the Roman Forum/Palatine Hill area over a 24-hour period.
Any other kind of visit to the Colosseum, such as underground, to upper tiers, and, the subject of this page, visiting the Colosseum by night, is considered a special event. (It's also why they are not always available.)
These tickets must be purchased in advance, and always include a tour with someone from the staff of CoopCulture. You cannot wander in on your own, and you cannot just walk up and purchase a ticket.
For all these special events, there is a limited number of spaces available, and as they are popular, they tend to sell out fast so you really have to book in advance, sometimes long in advance.
These are two really different visits, and different ways to see the Colosseum.
Here are the pros of visiting the Colosseum by day:
Here are the cons of visiting the Colosseum by day:
Here are the pros of visiting the Colosseum by night:
Here are the cons of visiting the Colosseum by night:
All about the Rome Colosseum
So which one should you do?
If you have never been to Rome before, you may want to do the daytime visit so you can also see the Roman Forum/Palatine Hill.
And take a tour of that so you get all the history and info.
And, if you've been to the Colosseum before, or if you have time on your trip to Rome, add a night visit.
You will never look at the Colosseum the same way again.
The Colosseum night tour is a relatively new thing.
In recent years, it was only available during spring/summer/fall. As of this writing in 2022, visits begin in April or May and go through the New Year Holidays.
As the season slows down and it gets colder, there are fewer of them. In winter months, you can only go on the weekends.
Also note it will NOT be available on the Free Sunday or other free dates (on the first Sunday of each month October - March, and some other dates during the year, state sites and museums are free for everyone, and there are no special visits that day.)
As for what time they go, they start having visits about an hour after the regular closing time, and stagger the entry times.
So for example, in July, when the Colosseum closes at 7pm, they start visits sometime after 8pm, but you might get an entry time of say, 9:40pm. This way it's always in the dark, and as they stagger the entry times, you will not spend much time together with any other tour groups.
The perfect 3-day itinerary in Rome
Trying to figure out how to organize your visit to Rome? I've got the perfect 3-day itinerary for first-time visitors (or those who have not been here in a while.) It works for a 2.5 day visit as well.
In my 3-day itinerary, you'll see all the major must-see Rome attractions like the Vatican, Colosseum, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Navona, Spanish Steps, Castel Sant'Angelo, and much more.
And if you have more time, or want suggestions for extra/other things to do, you'll find that there too.
Visit my page with the best 3-day itinerary in Rome for first-timers.
Yes, to visit the Colosseum by night (or any other special visit), you must take a tour.
And the tour has to be with someone from CoopCulture, the organization that manages the Colosseum and its ticket sales.
When you book a tour with an outside company, you will still get the guide you booked, who works for that company.
But when you enter for the Colosseum night tour, someone from CoopCulture just comes along, in part to make sure you keep to your time-table. But rest assured, you will have the tour guide you booked.
A Colosseum night tour through CoopCulture lasts just over an hour.
A tour with an outside company will likely last longer, as they usually try to cover some more ground and information, to make it a more complete tour. The length will depend on the tour company but usually it will be around 2 - 2.5 hours.
There are two ways to book a tour of the Colosseum by night, through CoopCulture, or through a private tour company.
If you book through CoopCulture, it will cost less, but if you want a more complete tour, or, if you find CoopCulture tickets sold out, you may want to try booking a tour with an outside company.
CoopCulture is the entity that runs the ticketing for the Colosseum (and other sites in Rome and throughout Italy.)
You can book your Colosseum night tour directly through Coopculture, online.
Unlike with other special tour events like the underground and/or third or 4th/5th rings, you do not need to buy a separate entry ticket to the Colosseum.
The 25€ ticket you buy for the Colosseum night visit, through CoopCulture is a ticket for entry and includes the guide in the language you choose.
If you want a more complete tour, that includes other parts of Ancient Rome by night, you may want to consider booking a Colosseum night tour through a tour agency.
Alessandro and I took this tour with The Roman Guy and we absolutely loved it.
We began at the Vittoriano monument (the "wedding cake"), and walked from there to Campidoglio for some night Roman Forum views.
Take Walks is another trusted partner - book your tour here.
While we walked along the via dei Fori Imperiali, all lit up, we were treated to a fun and entertaining history lesson about Ancient Rome and some colorful emperors.
Once we arrived at the Colosseum, our guide handled everything and in we went (you do have to pass through security so I remind you, no selfie sticks or tripods allowed.)
We had the place nearly to ourselves. A guide from the Colosseum joined our group, but mostly served to keep us on track time-wise. Our guide was the one who guided us the whole time, and it was fantastic. I really recommend this tour with them.
You may also wish to book a Colosseum night tour on GetYourGuide because it's hard to book and because space is so limited.
When you go on a tour booking site like these, you can enter your date(s) and see WHO has a tour available then.
Yes, booking a tour with an agency is more expensive than with CoopCulture.
But you will have a more complete tour this way. And, if the tickets through CoopCulture are sold out, you may find that by booking a tour, you can find space available.
Full disclosure
I was a guest of The Roman Guy, but nobody tells me what to write. I assure you, if I hadn't thoroughly enjoyed the tour, I would not have mentioned them at all.
But I really did love it and would go with them again in a heartbeat. It's a superb experience.
No matter what season you visit Rome, here are 4 things never to leave at home:
Disclosure: If you make a purchase through a link on this page, I may receive a small commission - at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting my site!
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