Roman Forum & Colosseum

The heart of the Roman Empire. Wine was distributed free during Colosseum games to keep crowds happy. Walk where emperors walked, then explore wine bars in the ancient streets of Trastevere.

What to do there

5 things to do

1. 1 Find the Number Still Painted Red Above Gate 23 History · Price: moderate

   Two thousand years ago, spectators weren't given tickets — they were given tessera: small shards of pottery stamped with their arch number, staircase, section, row, and seat. The entire system was so efficient that 50,000 people could fill this building in 15 MINUTES. Before entering the Colosseum (Piazza del Colosseo, 1), walk the full exterior perimeter clockwise and look up at the arches ringing the exterior — each surviving arch still has its Roman numeral carved and faintly painted above it. Gate 23 on the northeast side is one of the best-preserved with visible numerals. Book standard Colosseum + Roman Forum + Palatine Hill tickets (€18) at ticketing.colosseo.it — releases 30 days before your visit, buy the moment they open or they're gone.

   Backup: Even if numerals are faded at your chosen gate, the structural logic of 80 entrances — 76 for ordinary citizens, 2 for the emperor, 2 direct to the arena — is legible from the architecture alone. Count them.

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2. 2 Descend Into the Hypogeum Where 28 Elevators Made Lions Appear from Thin Air Adventure · Price: high

   Stand in the actual shaft of one of the 24–28 mechanical elevators the Romans built beneath the arena floor. Each one could lift 600 lbs — the weight of two lions. To run all the lifts at once required more than 200 men turning heavy wooden shafts. A tunnel on the east side ran directly to the Ludus Magnus gladiator school, so fighters arrived without the crowd ever seeing them walk in. Then a trapdoor opened, and a tiger appeared from nowhere. Book the underground tour at ticketing.colosseo.it (from €63 with English-speaking guide) — these sell out 'within seconds' of release. Set a calendar alert for 30 days before your visit date. The tour includes the hypogeum AND arena floor access. Bring a flashlight app; it is genuinely dark.

   Backup: If underground is sold out, the Arena Floor-only ticket (from €31, max 20 minutes) still gets you onto the sand. Look for the bolt holes in the stone where the wooden elevator shafts were anchored — they're visible from floor level.

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3. 3 Stand Before the Arch of Titus and Read the Menorah That Became a Nation's Symbol History · Free

   Domitian built this in 81 AD to celebrate his dead brother Titus's victory over Jerusalem in 70 AD. The south inner panel of the Arch of Titus (Via Sacra, southeastern entrance to the Roman Forum) shows Roman soldiers carrying the Temple Menorah through the streets of Rome in triumph — carved in deep relief, originally painted gold with a blue background. That exact same menorah became the emblem of the State of Israel. For nearly 1,900 years, Rome's Jewish community refused to walk under this arch in mourning — until May 1948, when Israel was founded and they finally walked through it in celebration. Pass through the arch and look immediately left to see Titus being carried in triumph on a Roman eagle, then turn around and study the menorah panel with its eight branches.

   Backup: If the arch is under conservation scaffolding (periodic), the relief panels are documented and described on explanatory boards at the site. The Via Sacra stones and Palatine Hill views are always accessible.

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4. 4 Watch the Forum Turn Gold from Palatine Hill at Sunset Adventure · Free

   Below you from the Palatine Hill viewpoint, the eight columns of the Temple of Saturn — Rome's oldest temple, 497 BC, where the state treasury was kept. To your right, the columns of the Temple of Castor and Pollux. Directly ahead, the Arch of Septimius Severus. When the sun drops behind the Capitoline Hill and hits these ruins at a 15-degree angle, every column turns the color of old Frascati — warm amber-gold like the wine the emperors who lived on this hill drank while looking out at exactly this view. After the Arch of Titus, follow signs uphill to Palatine Hill (included in your Colosseum + Forum + Palatine combo ticket). Time your arrival for 90 minutes before sunset and head to the Farnese Gardens terrace at the northwest corner.

   Backup: If weather is overcast, the Forum walk itself along the Via Sacra at dusk is extraordinary — cobblestones worn smooth by 2,000 years of footsteps, with dramatically angled evening light even on grey days.

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5. 5 Taste the Wine Romans Drank on These Streets at Enoteca Trastevere Wine · Price: low

   You're now in Trastevere — 'trans Tiberim,' across the Tiber — where Julius Caesar had a villa and Rome's first Jewish community settled during the Republic. Enoteca Trastevere (Via della Lungaretta 86, 25-minute walk from the Forum) has 376 wine labels and 95 grape varieties, with particular focus on Lazio wines. Order Cesanese del Piglio DOCG — the native red grape grown in the same volcanic soil (tuff) that made Lazio's wine famous during the Empire. Or ask for Frascati Superiore DOCG — the white wine the Alban Hills produced for Roman emperors, just 28 minutes from where you're sitting. Sit at the bar or at a sidewalk table on the ancient cobblestones and ask staff for a Lazio-region recommendation.

   Backup: If Enoteca Trastevere is packed, Vineria Trapizzino around the corner serves only Lazio-region wines including a wide selection of Cesanese reds, plus their famous triangular stuffed bread pockets.

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Insider tips

• Book Colosseum underground tour in advance — essential

• Forum at sunset is magical with fewer crowds

• Trastevere wine bars are more authentic than tourist areas

• Combine with Palatine Hill — emperors' vineyards were here