https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Italy in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed A couple of US tourists who broke into Rome's Colosseum to enjoy a drink with a view have been hit with a hefty fine, police said. https://www.thelocal.it/20211118/us-tourists-fined-e800-after-breaking-into-romes-colosseum-to-drink-beer Thu, 18 Nov 2021 13:44:24 +0100 us-tourists-fined-e800-after-breaking-into-romes-colosseum-to-drink-beer Visitors will soon be able to stand in the centre of Rome's famed Colosseum following a revamp using "super technological and green" materials, according to plans unveiled at the weekend. https://www.thelocal.it/20210503/high-tech-and-green-the-new-restoration-plan-for-romes-colosseum Mon, 03 May 2021 15:24:42 +0200 high-tech-and-green-the-new-restoration-plan-for-romes-colosseum The Colosseum, the Vatican Museums and other famous attractions reopened this week after being closed for 88 days due to coronavirus restrictions - the longest closure since World War II. https://www.thelocal.it/20210202/no-tourist-pressure-romes-biggest-attractions-reopen-without-the-crowds Tue, 02 Feb 2021 16:15:58 +0100 no-tourist-pressure-romes-biggest-attractions-reopen-without-the-crowds Imagining yourself as a gladiator on the arena of Rome's ancient amphitheatre will soon be possible thanks to plans to build a high-tech retractable floor over the ruins at the base of the iconic site. https://www.thelocal.it/20210106/romes-colosseum-to-get-high-tech-floor-like-in-gladiator-times Wed, 06 Jan 2021 14:08:32 +0100 romes-colosseum-to-get-high-tech-floor-like-in-gladiator-times Police in Rome seized a drone and reported its owner, a 40-year-old Polish man, after he crashed it inside the Colosseum. https://www.thelocal.it/20200915/tourist-lands-in-trouble-after-crashing-drone-i-romes-colosseum Tue, 15 Sep 2020 15:55:24 +0200 tourist-lands-in-trouble-after-crashing-drone-i-romes-colosseum An apartment building has been evacuated and a street closed off after a sinkhole opened up in Rome, near the Colosseum. https://www.thelocal.it/20200120/building-evacuated-after-sinkhole-opens-up-near-romes-colosseum Mon, 20 Jan 2020 15:57:12 +0100 building-evacuated-after-sinkhole-opens-up-near-romes-colosseum The cost of visiting the Colosseum, one of Italy's top tourist attractions, will increase by €4 from November. https://www.thelocal.it/20190923/rome-raises-the-price-of-visiting-the-colosseum Mon, 23 Sep 2019 15:32:17 +0200 rome-raises-the-price-of-visiting-the-colosseum Emergency services had to coax a man down from the Colosseum on Tuesday afternoon, after he clambered up to the second level and threatened to jump. https://www.thelocal.it/20190709/man-climbs-rome-colosseum-and-threatens-to-jump Tue, 09 Jul 2019 15:33:27 +0200 man-climbs-rome-colosseum-and-threatens-to-jump A team of archaeologists has discovered a secret chamber decorated with detailed frescoes during restoration work at Emperor Nero's Domus Aurea or Golden Palace constructed two millennia ago. https://www.thelocal.it/20190511/spectacular-frescos-found-in-secret-chamber-in-neros-palace Sat, 11 May 2019 12:15:12 +0200 spectacular-frescos-found-in-secret-chamber-in-neros-palace The latest incident of vandalism at Rome's treasured Colosseum comes just days after another tourist carved their initials into the monument. https://www.thelocal.it/20190430/tourist-caught-vandalising-colosseum-in-rome Tue, 30 Apr 2019 13:27:43 +0200 tourist-caught-vandalising-colosseum-in-rome Italian police caught a tourist trying to make off with a Roman brick from the Colosseum as a "souvenir" yesterday, they said. https://www.thelocal.it/20181211/tourist-caught-trying-to-steal-a-brick-from-romes-colosseum Tue, 11 Dec 2018 12:08:04 +0100 tourist-caught-trying-to-steal-a-brick-from-romes-colosseum Italian police busted an Austrian teenager trying to make off with a piece of ancient brick from the Colosseum as a "souvenir", they said on Sunday. https://www.thelocal.it/20180618/tourist-steal-rome-colosseum Mon, 18 Jun 2018 11:01:56 +0200 tourist-steal-rome-colosseum The recently appointed director of the Colosseum has pledged to clear the “souk” surrounding the monument. https://www.thelocal.it/20171205/colosseums-new-director-pledges-to-rid-the-area-of-the-suk Tue, 05 Dec 2017 11:59:13 +0100 colosseums-new-director-pledges-to-rid-the-area-of-the-suk Parts of Rome's Colosseum which have never before been open to tourists are now accessible on guided tours, following a major restoration project. https://www.thelocal.it/20171003/romes-colosseum-italy-open-its-upper-levels-to-tourists-public Tue, 03 Oct 2017 17:28:05 +0200 romes-colosseum-italy-open-its-upper-levels-to-tourists-public Italy’s Culture Ministry has won a legal battle that will allow it to go ahead with a plan to create an archaeological park around the Colosseum. https://www.thelocal.it/20170725/top-italian-court-gives-go-ahead-to-colosseum-archaeological-park Tue, 25 Jul 2017 14:16:54 +0200 top-italian-court-gives-go-ahead-to-colosseum-archaeological-park It is famed as the place where gladiators battled lions to the amusement of the citizens of ancient Rome. But of the six million visitors who flock to the Colosseum each year, how many know that during mediaeval times, it was also the fortress base of a powerful Roman family for over two centuries? https://www.thelocal.it/20170307/colosseums-secret-history-revealed-in-a-new-exhibition Tue, 07 Mar 2017 10:20:30 +0100 colosseums-secret-history-revealed-in-a-new-exhibition You'd think tourists would have got the message by now: vandalizing Italy's centuries-old, painstakingly restored cultural monuments is not cool. https://www.thelocal.it/20170215/tourist-charged-after-carving-name-into-colosseum Wed, 15 Feb 2017 10:23:17 +0100 tourist-charged-after-carving-name-into-colosseum Break-ins and vandalism are a long-running problem at Italy's many ancient cultural sites, but preventing them can be tough and costly. The issue has once more been thrust into the spotlight after two incidents at Rome's Colosseum - a break-in and graffiti - over the weekend. https://www.thelocal.it/20170119/italy-steps-up-surveillance-and-punishments-for-monument-vandals Thu, 19 Jan 2017 08:59:22 +0100 italy-steps-up-surveillance-and-punishments-for-monument-vandals A horse's head isn't generally a good omen in Italy - or at least, not in Italy-based movie franchise The Godfather. But archaeologists at Rome's Colosseum were delighted to stumble across a medieval equine skull on Tuesday. https://www.thelocal.it/20170119/archaeologists-just-found-a-medieval-horses-head-at-the-colossseum Thu, 19 Jan 2017 09:44:16 +0100 archaeologists-just-found-a-medieval-horses-head-at-the-colossseum Unexpectedly stumbling across a horse's head might not sound like a pleasant event - at least not to anyone who's seen The Godfather - but archaeologists were delighted with their find on Tuesday. https://www.thelocal.it/20170119/archaeologists-just-discovered-a-medieval-horses-head-at-the-colosseum Thu, 19 Jan 2017 09:22:45 +0100 archaeologists-just-discovered-a-medieval-horses-head-at-the-colosseum