Last Updated on 25 July 2024 by TT
Colosseum Entry Ticket
Colosseum Entry Ticket – You will encounter various ticket options and long queues for the Colosseum. Therefore, it is advisable to purchase your entry ticket in advance. Here, you can view the prices for guided tours and skip the line tickets and make a secure reservation. Entry is free for visitors under 18 years old and discounted for EU citizens aged 18 to 25. The price for earphones is €5.50..
Colosseum, Roman Forum, Palatine Hill Entry Tickets
With the same ticket you use to enter the Colosseum, you can also visit the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill in Rome. FYI, your Colosseum entry tickets will be valid for two consecutive days.
How to get to Colosseum by Metro
Location: Colosseum is located in the center of Rome, nearby the Roman Forum, at a walking distance 1 km from Piazza Venezia.
Address and transportation by metro; Piazza del Colosseo (at the walking distance of 800 meters to Piazza Venezia), Metro Colosseum (Line B / Blue Line).
Opening | Closing Days and Hours (2024)
Colosseum is open 7 days a week. Last entry is one hour before the closing time.
Opening days and hours
- January 2nd to February 15th; 08.30 to 16.30
- February 16th to March 15th; 08.30 to 17.00
- March 16th to last Saturday of March; 08.30 to 17.30
- Last Sunday of March to August 31st; 08.30 to 19.15
- September 1st to September 30th; 08.30 to 19.00
- October 1st to last Saturday of October; 08.30 to 18.30
- Last Sunday of October to December 31st; 08.30 to 16.30
Closed dates; 25.12, 01.01, 01.05
What is Colosseum?
The Colosseum is also known as Flavian Amphitheater and is the largest ancient theater building in the world. It is the second most visited museum in Italy and with 6 million visitors in a year, the eighth most visited museum in the world . It is also one of the most important monuments in world architectural history.
Colosseum is an amphitheater as it has a full circular shape. On the contrary the examples carved into a hill in ancient Greece it was constructed in a circular shape without leaning towards a slope and this is the most important characteristics of Colosseum. Colosseum was constructed on the site of the Roman Emperor Nero‘s Palace. The construction was started in the east side of Roman Forum Area in 72 AD by Emperor Vespasian and completed by Emperor Titus, the son of Vespasian, in 80 AD.
More Information on Colosseum
The opening celebrations of Colosseum lasted for 100 days and more than 5000 people and animals were sacrificed during the celebrations. Supplements were made to the building by Emperor Domitian between 81-96 AD and some of its parts were restored. As the three important Roman Emperor who constructed Colosseum were from the Flavian Dynasty, another name for Colosseum is Flavian Amphitheatre.
So, where does the name Colosseum come from? The root of the word Colosseum is “Colossus” and it means “huge, gigantic” in the Ancient Greek. In the past, there was a gigantic statue of Roman Emperor Nero by Colosseum with a height of 30 meters. The name Colosseum was given with reference to this statue.
Colosseum was used for three centuries and it is estimated that 500.000 people and 1 million animals were killed brutally during that period. Italians leave the lights on for a week when a person is put to death at any point of the world to draw attention to these unprecedentedly inhuman wild games and to express their regrets.
Gladiator Fights
In the Ancient Roman, the wild animals of Africa like alligators, lions, tigers, rhinos were captured and brought to Rome. These animals were the most important figures of the games and entertainment in Colosseum.
These animals were starved in the barns under the Colosseum and they were branded to make them more aggressive. These animals were starved and sometimes they were made to fight with each other and sometimes they were made to fight with gladiators. “Feed (one) to the lions” idiom comes from these wild games. The Roman people watched these games joyfully for free, together with their children, bringing their food with them. Among these games, there were innovative ones as well the brutal ones. For example, in one of the games, several battle scenes were portrayed. In this game, the inner walls of Colosseum were isolated and filled with water. This water was brought from River Tiber, a few km away, through the canals made with a certain slope. The pool was filled with alligators and snakes and a sea warfare was portrayed with boats.
What is the meaning of “Gladiator” ?
Gladiator comes from “gladius”, a Roman war sword. Gladiators were composed of slaves and prisoners. The gladiators were specially educated in schools and they were bought and sold. The people, who wanted to be famous and risked death, other than the gladiators may join the fights. The gladiators may fight with each other or with animals. The only aim of the gladiators was to win. They were able to be free only by this way. After the fight, the gladiator looked at the Emperor and watched him indicating with his finger. If the finger of Emperor was upward the gladiator would be free if it was downward, he would be killed. Yes, many films were taken and computer games were made on the gladiator games and it was such a cruel entertainment.
The strongest love poison
The gladiators were the pop stars of that period. They were famous and their fights were told mouth-to-mouth for years. For women, they were both objects of desire and a means to reach their goals. Women and young girls almost worshipped to some gladiators and made their names written on their bodies and beds. Even, women rushed to the area after the fight and they crushed each other to take from the blood and sweat from the groin of the gladiator. According to the belief, the potion made of these liquids was the strongest love potion.
The seating order in Colosseum
The seating order in Colosseum was completely class-oriented. Emperor and the noble and rich class sit in the lower parts, the closest parts to the arena, and upper parts were for the public and the uppermost parts were for slaves and women. The slaves sat in the seats in the lower parts and they warmed the lower seats for Emperor and the noble before game had started.
Architectural characteristics of Colosseum
Colosseum was inspired by the amphitheaters in the Ancient Greek but it was not constructed on a mountainside or hillside like them.It is not a full circle but an ellipse with 189×156 meters and it takes a space of 24.000 m2.This gigantic building is composed of the two unaccustomedly nested walls. The Arena can be emptied easily in only 5-10 minutes by means of its 80 gates. The building made of travertine and its siding was made with marble. When you look at it from the outside, the holes on the walls are the places where these marbles are attached with iron rods. By the time, these marbles were displaced and fell off due to earthquakes and the iron rods were stolen at the times when the iron was valuable. Due to the damages of earthquakes, the inner walls are visible.
Useful Links;
- Rome Public Transportation Networks
- The official website of the City of Rome tourism
- Colosseum Entry Ticket, Entrance tickets to enter fast for Colosseum and Roman Forum
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