Getting Roman Forum tickets is actually much easier than you’d imagine.
The Roman Forum is one of Rome’s many ancient marvels. Located between the Palatine and Capitoline Hills, at its peak it was an important center of life in ancient Rome. It was the site of public gatherings, combat, trials and elections, and was home to grand temples and monuments – the ruins of which can still be seen to this day.
There is no other way to put it: this is a site you must absolutely visit, especially if it is your first time in Rome. Unfortunately though, you can’t just show up and expect to get tickets at the door. How do you get in then? Continue reading this post, and I will share the most useful information to help you plan your visit and make the most of it.
Make sure to read my post A Complete Guide To Visiting The Roman Forum.
Ways Of Getting Roman Forum Tickets
First of all, great news! Roman Forum tickets are the same you will be using to access the Colosseum and the Palatine Hill. That’s right: one ticket, three incredible attractions – and for a very convenient price.
Now, the bad news: there is no longer a ticket office for the Roman Forum. That means that you aren’t able to buy your tickets on the day you intend to visit, when you arrive at the site. Instead, you’ll have to buy them in advance. But that’s ok, there are plenty of different ways to secure your ticket – and I will highlight them all.
Make sure to also read my posts A Guide To Visiting The Palatine Hill and The Most Interesting Facts About The Colosseum.
Get Roman Forum tickets via the official site CoopCulture
There is no physical ticket office to get tickets to the Roman Forum. Getting online tickets via the official site is the most budget friendly way of getting tickets to the Roman Forum – yet the one that I recommend the least because it allows zero flexibility.
CoopCulture is the official site for tickets the Roman Forum and other historic sites in the Italian Capital and throughout Italy. A single ticket purchased through the site is valid for 24 hours from when it is first used. Tickets on CoopCulture are available 30 days in advance – this means that (for example) on 30 May you can buy tickets up to 29 June, but no further.
It includes:
One entrance to the Colosseum at a specific time-slot
Open entrance to the Roman Forum, Palatine Hill and the Imperial Forum
Admissions to exhibitions currently ongoing
You can check ticket availability and choose a time slot on the website – it’s pretty easy to use. You can also call CoopCulture to check availability – their number is +390639967700.
Tickets bought on the official site cost €18 – that’s €16 for the ticket and €2 for the online booking fee.
If you have a Roma Pass (more about that in a bit), you’ll still have to book your reservation for the Colosseum – the booking fee is €2. Even if you have a reservation, you’ll still need your Roma Pass. But more on this later!
Tickets purchased from CoopCulture cannot be rescheduled once your time slot is booked, and there are no cancellations or refunds offered. So definitely make 100% sure that you’re visiting on the day you want to go.
You should also note that you cannot collect your tickets at the desks of any of the sights included in the ticket. Instead, your ticket has to be printed off in advance or you can use a mobile ticket.
If you are traveling with children you still need to make sure they have secured a free ticket for a pre-booked time slot at the Colosseum; this also needs to be printed off in advance (or use a mobile ticket).
You can go online and purchase tickets for the Roman Forum via CoopCulture here.
Get Roman Forum tickets on third party sites
If you want straightforward skip-the-line tickets, this is the best overall option.
There are a number of different third party sites that you can use to purchase tickets for the Roman Forum. These sites offer up a similar service where you can book online or via telephone. Different websites offer different packages.
These third party sites are easy to use and usually have excellent customer service. They usually also have a refund service if you cancel your reservation within 24 hours. The only downside with these sorts of websites is that they are slightly more expensive than booking through the official CoopCulture website – but honestly it’s just a matter of a couple of euro in exchange for excellent customer service and more flexibility.
Third-party booking sites also have more availability, and will be your best bet if you are trying to purchase tickets at the very last minute.
Examples of third-party booking sites include GetYourGuide (my personal favorite); Viator and Tiqets.com. Some tickets that they offer don’t just include the Roman Forum, but are tailor-made ticket packages that include sites other than the Colosseum, Palatine Hill and Imperial Forum.
Get your Roman Forum tickets on GetYourGuide here.
Get your tickets on Tiqets here.
For very last minute tickets, check out the availability on Tiqets here.
Go on a guided tour of the Roman Forum
Of all the available options, this is the one I recommend the most.
A guided tour of the Roman Forum allows a more in-depth visit to this ancient site. There are a number of different tours that you could opt for. The cheapest is a self-guided audio tour, which is around €6 per person in addition to the ticket.
The plus point of the audio guide is that it comes in various different languages. The con is that it’s not an actual guide, you can’t ask questions and it can be quite generic, not offering as much information as a knowledgeable guide would.
To book an audio-guided tour of the Roman Forum, click here.
Taking a guided tour will really bring the Roman Forum to life. The guide will help to explain the detailed history of the site, helping to enrich your experience.
Tours range in prices, depending on the company or individual guide, but typically start at €30 depending on what they include. Tours can be individual / private or in groups, each one with its own set of pluses and minuses. One thing you should definitely do is book your guided tour way in advance, especially if you’re visiting during tourist season.
For the most budget friendly tour of the Roman Forum – perfect if you have already visited the Colosseum and already have your tickets – click here.
For a classic tour of the Roman Forum, Palatine Hill and Colosseum, click here. If you’d rather go on a private tour, click here.
For a guided tour of the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill that also goes to the Colosseum Arena and Underground, click here – this would be my personal recommendation.
For a very comprehensive tour of the Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill, click here or here.
Get the Roma Pass
The Roma Pass is a fantastic option for those who want to see a number of different museums and historic sights in the city. There are different passes that you could opt for and in most cases you will have to go to the CoopCulture site to select a time-slot for your visit (and pay the €2 booking fee) for the various attractions included in the pass.
Rome Tourist Card
Of all the Roma Pass options, this is by far the best one – though also the most expensive one as it costs €93. It gives you access to five attractions and upon getting the pass you can also easily select the time-slot of your visit directly on the site, without having to jump from one site to the other.
Contrary to all other pass options, this one includes the Sistine Chapel and Vatican Museums, as well as an audio-guide for the Pantheon, and a hop-on hop-off bus tour of Rome.
Get your Rome Tourist Card here.
Roma Pass 48 Hours
For €35 this gives you access to a long list of historical sights, museums and monuments in Rome including the Roman Forum, Mausoleo di Augusto and the Capitoline Museums. As the name suggests, you’ll have 48 hours to visit as many as you can.
You’ll also be able to use the pass to ride on the city’s public transport network free of charge for 48 hours from the moment of validation. The first site you visit is free, after which you can use the pass to get discounted prices to museums and archaeological sites within that time period.
Keep in mind the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel are not included.
You can get your 48-hour Roma Pass here.
Roma Pass 72 Hours
Much the same as the above, except this time it costs a little more – €55. The difference, apart from the longer time period, is that you are able to have access to the first two sites you visit for free. After this, the pass gives you discounted entrance fees as mentioned above.
Keep in mind the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel are not included.
You can get your 72-hour Roma Pass here.
Rome Underground Pass
This pass gives you access to the Colosseum, Roman Forum and Palatine Hill and to the undergrounds of Piazza Navona, where you can see the remains of Domitian’s Stadium, and of Trevi Fountain. What’s good about it is that you can book the time-slot for your visit directly on the site where you buy the pass – so it is quite efficient. It costs around €44 so it’s good value for money.
Get your Rome Underground Pass here.
Other Useful Information
Official price of Roman Forum tickets
Full price: €16
European citizens between 18-25: €4
Children; those with disabilities; visiting on the first Sunday of each month: free (remember you still need to book)
There is an additional €2 fee for online bookings, which are mandatory.
Roman Forum opening hours
From 27th March to 31st August, the Roman Forum is open daily from 9:00 am to 7:15 pm. Last admission is one hour before closing.
For the rest of the year, it is open every day from 10:30 am to 4:00 pm. Again, the last admission is an hour before closing. Note that the site is closed on the 25th December and the 1st January.
Further Readings
These other posts may be useful when planning your trip to Rome:
- The Most Important Landmarks In Rome
- The Best Ancient Sites In Rome
- The Best Rome Travel Tips
- The Best Itinerary To See Rome In 3 Days
- How To See Rome In A Day
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