The Early Bird Gets into the Colosseum

For which Rome museums, monuments, and sights do you really need to reserve admission tickets ahead of time?

In the age of the Internet, many sights across Italy offer the opportunity to book your admisison tickets in advance for a set entry time...usually for a nice little booking fee of €1 to €5.

But are reserved tickets strictly necessary? Well, for many attractions, no. You can usually waltz up to the door and get right in—maybe you'll have to wait all of five minutes in line. In that case, I recommend you don't book ahead, as it can cramp your travel style, locking you into too many scheduled events and leaving little room for spontaneity. Plus, you can avoid paying that superfluous $2.

However, for a select few major museums and monuments, reserving an entry ticket ahead of time can save you a wait of one, two, or even three hours in line—well worth the paltry booking fee.

In some cases—especially if it's a sight that allows only a limited number of visitors in at a time—reserving ahead may make the difference between getting in and getting turned away at the door.

It's true; frequently I see people arrive at the ticket window only to discover that entry to the Galleria Borghese has already been sold out for the next two or three days.

Now, there are dozens of admissions you can book online, but here are the sights in Rome for which I truly recommend booking admission tickets before you leave (or at least a few days in advance from on the road).

• Galleria Borghese (Limited admission; booking is obligatory, and though technically you could show up and "book" an entry for right then and there, in practice the museum truly is often fully sold out several days in advance. Since this is my favorite museum in Rome, I always pony up the usurious €5 booking fee in advance.)
  » BOOK IT: tel. +39-06-32-810, www.ticketeria.it 
  
  
• The Colosseum (Otherwise the long lines mean you might have to wait for an hour or two; bonus: ticket includes the Palatine Hill.)
  » BOOK IT: tel. +39-06-3996-7700, www.pierreci.it
  
  
• Palazzo Massimo alla Terme (Limited, timed admission to the upper floor; if you book ahead, you won't have to "come back this afternoon" for the entry time you've been assigned.)
  » BOOK IT: tel. +39-06-3996-7700, www.pierreci.it

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