The Colosseum
Questions
Do I need to book Colosseum tickets in advance?

The Colosseum under a break in the clouds

Do I need to book Colosseum tickets in advance?

Yes. Every Colosseum ticket has a time slot, and the park sells timed tickets 30 days before the visit day. The underground is sold online and goes first. The Full Experience Arena ticket is the exception: on sale 7 days ahead and at the ticket office on the day.

Updated 22 October 2026 Hours and tickets Parco archeologico del Colosseo, last read <time data-read datetime="2026-10-22">22 October 2026</time>; tour listings read 20 October 2026

Timed tickets 30 days ahead standard, underground, attic → Full Experience Arena 7 days ahead online; the ticket office sells it on the day → On sale today 17 November the newest visit date on the official shop →

The rule is the park's: entry at a different time from the booking is not possible, and the ticket carries the visitor's name. Two need no booking: the Forum Pass SUPER, with no slot, and the free-day tickets, handed out by queue.

Which ticket

Which Colosseum tickets need a booking, and how far ahead

Standard, €18

Timed. On sale 30 days before the visit day on the official ticket shop. Morning slots go first in high season.

Full Experience Underground and Arena, €24

Timed, online, 30 days ahead, in groups of up to 25 with a park guide. No ticket-office sale; the first ticket to sell out.

Full Experience Attic, €24

Timed, 30 days ahead; attic slots run from 8:30 to 14:30 only.

Full Experience Arena, €24

Timed, online 7 days before the visit. The ticket office sells it on the day of the visit.

24h Only Arena, €18

Timed: 20 minutes on the floor at the booked time, on sale 30 days ahead, last entry 18:00. €11.50 with the Roma Pass.

A Night at the Colosseum, €50

Tuesday and Thursday, on sale 7 days before, nominative with no name change.

Forum Pass SUPER, €18

No slot and no date: buy any day, use within 30 days. It excludes the Colosseum and is not valid on free Sundays.

Free days

First Sunday of the month, 25 April, 2 June, 4 November: no online sale, tickets at the two ticket offices in order of arrival.

Plan around: buy on the release day, 30 days before your date, for the underground and the standard morning slots.

Ways in

What to do without a booking

Three things still work on the day. The Full Experience Arena ticket is sold at the ticket office on the day, if slots remain; it includes the arena floor and the tiers. A tour with a Colosseum ticket inside is the second. Operators hold group slots and sell them with a guide: €59 on the standard route, €149 with the underground. The Forum Pass SUPER, €18, for the Forum, the Palatine and the SUPER sites without the Colosseum.

Nothing works for the underground on the day: it is sold online, 30 days ahead, or inside a tour.

Plan around: the ticket office is for the Arena ticket and free days; everything else is online.

Via dei Fori Imperiali towards the Colosseum

The rules

Names, ID and the slot

Every ticket is issued in the holder's name and checked against an identity document at the park entrances. One name change is allowed by midnight on the seventh day before the visit, only for a clerical error in the name, the wrong ticket type bought in the same transaction or a serious documented reason; the night visit allows none. Entering at a time other than the booked slot is not possible.

Plan around: book in the names on your IDs and keep the ID visible with the ticket at the gate.