Rome Itinerary 2 – Visit The Colosseum, Explore Monti And Ascend The Wedding Cake 

The Colosseum is probably ‘the main event’ for a first trip to Rome, so it is the focus of this Rome itinerary. The iconic amphitheatre has been brought to life on the big screen in the Gladiator films (with Russell Crowe and more recently Paul Mescal) with a little help from AI, but how does it feel to stand on the same arena floor as those blood thirsty battles were held? Imagine the roar of the crowd and waiting for the emperor to give you a life-or-death thumbs up or thumbs down. A trip to the Colosseum does not disappoint and so here’s how to plan the perfect visit.

Tickets and tours to the Colosseum

When you buy a ticket to the Colosseum, the ticket also gives you access to the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill located nearby. This is the reason why most Colosseum tours are combined with a visit to the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill.

Split your visits

In my opinion, such back-to-back tours can be a bit overwhelming, especially when it’s hot. It’s quite a big hit of history in one go and a lot to take in. My advice therefore would be to split the Colosseum and Roman Forum into two separate visits on your Rome itinerary, so that you get the most out of both sites. Here’s how to do it:

• Book a tour of the Colosseum .  There are a few on Get Your Guide which offer the Colosseum as a separate entity to the Roman Forum.  
• Check in the small print that the tour ticket will give you 48-hour access to the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill.
• Visit the Colosseum on a tour either early in the morning around 8.30am, or late in the afternoon when the crowds are typically smaller.  
• Then return the following morning to tour the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill using the tickets from your Colosseum tour the previous day.  Then you will have fresh legs and can enjoy the Roman Forum under your own steam the following morning.

Tickets to the Underground section (Hypogeum)

Make sure that you book a tour of the Colosseum which includes access to the Underground layer (Hypogeum), as well as the Arena and Second Tier. Not all the tours include the Underground section, but you won’t want to miss it!

Check your meeting point

Check the starting point of your tour carefully, as many of the guides will meet their groups away from the chaos outside the Colosseum. Our guide asked us to meet her in a small park above the Colosseum metro station and then we walked to the Colosseum as a tour group.

Inside the Colosseum

Built in 70-80AD as a symbol of power and grandeur in Ancient Rome, the Colosseum was the largest amphitheatre of its time, housing up to 55,000 spectators seated according to rank. Whilst the marble coverings of the seats are no longer in place, you can still see the tiered seating.

The Colosseum was built to offer entertainment to the Roman people and was free for them to attend. Construction started under the reign of Emperor Vespasian but was completed just after his death when Emperor Titus had taken over.

It’s inauguration in 80AD was a 100-day spectacle including gladiatorial combats, animal hunts, and the recreation of naval battle scenes enabled by flooding the central arena.

When you stand on the Arena floor you can sense what it would have been like for the gladiators, roared on by the noise of the crowd. Then, when you descend to the Hypogeum – the network of tunnels and chambers where they used to keep the gladiators and animals – you can sense how terrifying it must have been for the gladiators waiting to enter the area; they will have been able to hear the animals in next door chambers.

Note – if you decide to explore the Colosseum under your own steam, make sure that you pay for the audio guides at the ticket desk, then you know what you are looking at as you go around.

If you are visiting with children, they offer a special audio guide for kids as outlined in my blog about what to do on a visit to Rome with teenagers.

Monti Neighbourhood (Rione Monti)

After completing your tour of the Colosseum and taking all the photos you want from the outside, you will probably be ready for a coffee, or maybe some lunch. This is the perfect time on your Rome itinerary to wander through the neighbourhood of Monti, with its trendy, hipster vibe.

Monti is the area nestled between the Roman Forum, Colosseum and Termini Station, filled with cobblestone alleys, views of ruins, and independent, vintage and second-hand clothing stores.

Follow this route on your Rome itinerary and pick up refreshments wherever you fancy along the way:

• From the Colosseum walk up via dei Fori Imperiali and admire views of the Roman Forum along the way.  
• Find via Baccina (right on Largo Corrado Ricci, left on via dell’Agnello), a small street with lovely views of the columns of the Temple of Mars Ultor at the end.
• Walk to Piazza della Madonna dei Monti which would be a great location for a coffee and to watch the world go by in the square.
• Find the Salita dei Borgia (Borgia Steps) with a great view from the terrace at the top.
• Fatamorgana is a couple of minutes away if you need a gelato.
• Then head to San Pietro in Vincoli (St Peter in Chains), an early Christian Church from the 300-400s and one of the most ancient churches of Rome.  It houses a sculpture of Moses by Michaelangelo, completed in 1505.  There are lots of other churches with ‘claims to fame’ in the neighbourhood should you wish to see some more.
• Your end point for this section of the Rome itinerary is Trajan’s Forum to the northwest of the Monti neighbourhood so enjoy a leisurely stroll, perhaps with some shopping along the way.  Mercato Monti on via Baccino is a lively weekend vintage market.
• Explore the Trajan’s Forum which was the last of the Roman Forum buildings to be constructed in 112AD.  It was the centre of commerce and politics for the Roman Empire. There is not much left to look at with the exception of part of the markets and the soaring 1,900-year-old Column of Trajan (triumphal column).

Note – Also found in the Monti neighbourhood is the Domus Aurea (Golden Palace) destroyed and buried after Emperor Nero’s death. It is an active archaeological site which is not open every day so, if you wish to include this in your itinerary, please check opening days and times.

Monument to Victor Emmanuel II

Finishing off today’s Rome itinerary, before freshening up before dinner (if you’re going to), take the outdoor elevator to the top of the Monument to Victor Emmanuel II, Italy’s first king. The building is a national monument built between 1885 and 1935, with the nickname of ‘the Wedding Cake’. This marble monument is certainly fit for a king!

There is a fee to take the elevator to the top, but worth it for the fantastic views over the Roman Forum and down to the Colosseum.  

Try out some rooftop bars

If you fancy a cocktail with a view, then you could visit one of the following rooftop bars, however note that they are luxury hotels and so you will need to be smart to visit.

• The Court cocktail bar with Colosseum View – at the 5-star luxury hotel Palazzo Manfredi. Dress Code and pricey.
• NH Collection at the Fori Imperiali – for views of the ‘Wedding Cake.
• Minerva Hotel rooftop bar – this one is a little further away but offers a great view of the Pantheon, and the Wedding Cake in the distance.  It has the bonus of being less smart which is useful after a day of sightseeing when you’re tired.

Alternatively, on your Rome itinerary, as the Monti neighbourhood is full of life in the evening, you could return to Piazza della Madonna dei Monti for Aperitivo time and sunset. Follow your aperitifs with dinner at La Carbonara, a Roman institution from 1906 which encourages diners to add graffiti to the walls, leave your mark on the Eternal City!

For other itinerary ideas, check out my blog about what to do on your first visit to Rome.

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