SUPER Sites of the Roman Forum and Palatine Hill

Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and funny! It was a wonderful experience and we learned a lot! Highly recommend this tour!

Kristina - May 24, 2025

First want to mention that we booked 2 private tours with Through Eternity during an 8-day stay in Rome, and found them extremely professional and responsive. We had originally booked this tour for a Tuesday, but the company reached out to let us know that two of the sites we wanted to see would be closed that Tuesday, and offered to change the date. We were so appreciative that they brought this to our attention and glad we changed the date to a Friday, when all the sites we wanted would be open. So the tour itself was simply a jaw-dropping experience. I had visited the Roman forum previously but never with a private guide, and never with access to some of the newly-designated S.U.P.E.R. sites. I booked this private torch because I was with my 75-year-old mother, who loves learning as she travels but has some mobility issues and wound have had a hard time keeping up with a large group, It was a different experience entirely than trying to navigate the basic-entry sites among the crowds. The highlights without a doubt were the sites we never could have seen without the special access tickets: the houses of Augustus and Livia and the church of Santa Maria in Antiqua. The three of us were literally the only people in the House of Augustus- the actual residence of Rome’s first emperor, with astonishingly well-preserved wall frescos and mosaic floors, and with the overall house layout still evident. There was a small group in the House of Livia (his wife) because entries are timed to allow for a narrated light show highlighting specific elements in the wall frescos - but still, there were maybe a dozen people in there, and we could easily walk around and take photos and get as close as we liked without being jostled by crowds. Santa Maria Antiqua was also fascinating and sparsely visited- all a complete contrast to the general forum area, which was full of umbrella-led tour groups and selfie sticks. Nevertheless, our guide Lorenzo pointed out hidden treasures within the forum that we never would have noticed or understood, such as small groups of holes on the marble steps that were used for some type of game or gambling, and the underground area where gladiators armed themselves before the Colosseum was built. Our guide Lorenzo was excellent - highly knowledgeable, professional, and very flexible and accommodating with our pace and interests. He has a degree in art history and helped us appreciate some of the incredible artistic techniques in the wall frescos. He also took extra time to point out sites we were curious about that were not on the tour and was very kind in helping my mother navigate some of the steeper and more uneven stairs. It was truly an exclusive and fascinating experience and well worth the extra cost. Grazie Mille Lorenzo!

Melissa - Mar 23, 2025