The Domus Aurea is the palace Nero had built after the Great Fire of Rome in 64; its rooms survive beneath the Colle Oppio park, a few minutes' walk from the Colosseum. It can only be visited from Friday to Sunday, on a guided tour booked in advance, with departures every 15 minutes from 9am to 3:30pm; the ticket with guided tour and virtual reality costs €26. The visit lasts 75 to 90 minutes depending on the option, in small groups of no more than 23 people. The rooms are underground: it is cool and damp all year round, and the floor can be slippery.
Highlights
The Octagonal Room
Covered by a dome pierced by an oculus, this eight-sided hall opens onto radiating rooms lit from above. It is one of the first large domes in Roman architecture, attributed to the architects Severus and Celer.
The frescoes and the "grotesques"
The walls and vaults keep painted decoration attributed to the painter Fabullus. At the end of the 15th century, artists such as Pinturicchio and Raphael climbed down through holes into these buried rooms, which they took for grottoes: their motifs gave us the word "grotesques".
A palace buried by Trajan
After Nero's death in 68, his successors returned the land to the public and Vespasian had the [Colosseum](/fr/attractions/colisee-rome) built on the site of the palace's artificial lake. Trajan had the rooms filled with earth to build his baths on top, which preserved part of the paintings.
Virtual reality
During the guided tour, a virtual reality headset shows the rooms and spaces of the palace as they were in the 1st century, when Nero lived there.
Domus Aurea Highlights
On the third Thursday of the month, the Colosseum Archaeological Park runs 1 hour 30 minute themed tours that open routes usually closed to visitors, at €26; in 2026: 15 October, 19 November (light in the Domus Aurea) and 17 December (ancient games).
Opening hours and tickets
Open Friday to Sunday, departures every 15 minutes from 9am, last entry at 3:30pm, visits end at 4:30pm; closed Monday to Thursday. The park also publishes exceptional closure days: check your chosen date on colosseo.it before booking. Ticket with guided tour and virtual reality: €26. Booking online on the official ticket office of the Colosseum Archaeological Park is compulsory; this ticket is separate from the Colosseum-Roman Forum-Palatine ticket.
Infos pratiques
Tips
Book as soon as sales open, 30 days ahead: with groups of 23 people, weekend slots fill quickly (prices checked in October 2026). Bring a jacket even in summer, and closed shoes. Combine the visit with the Colosseum on the same day, or with the [Basilica of San Clemente](/fr/attractions/basilique-saint-clement-rome), another underground site ten minutes' walk away.
How to get there
Viale della Domus Aurea 1, 00184 Rome, in the Colle Oppio park, above the Colosseum. Metro Colosseo (lines B and C), then a few minutes' uphill walk through the park. Buses 51, 75, 85 and 87 to Piazza del Colosseo.
Opening hours
Nearby
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