Italy fines Roman Colosseum ticket agencies 20 million euros for 'stealing' tourists

Italy's competition authority imposed fines of 20 million euros on Tuesday against a dozen tour operators for ticket-hoarding practices that made it almost impossible for regular visitors to buy basic tickets online to visit the Roman Colosseum.

An investigation began in July 2023 after widespread complaints about how it was almost impossible to buy tickets at official prices online.

The country's antitrust authority, ACGM, said this ticket hoarding led to "significant and prolonged unavailability" of standard-priced tickets for Italy's most popular tourist attraction.

Tourists were forced to buy tickets at higher prices accompanied by additional services, such as tour guides or the ability to skip the line.

The director of the Colosseum declined to comment on the fines, his office said. He said the Colosseum was Italy's most visited monument in 2023, with over 12.3 million visitors.

How did agencies make buying tickets almost impossible?

The Cooperative Culture Society, which managed ticket sales for the Colosseum from 1997 to 2024, received the lion's share of the total fine of 7 million euros.

This was for failing to prevent automated ticket collection and for reserving a large portion of tickets for its own guided tour packages.

Six tour operators based in Italy, Germany, the Netherlands and Ireland were also fined for using bots and other automated systems to purchase large quantities of tickets, making them unavailable to individual tourists.

The authority did not list prices, but the Colosseum Archaeological Park, which is operated by the Italian Ministry of Culture, lists the price for entry to the ancient Roman arena at €18 for adults.

For this price, visitors can spend 20 minutes on the main floor of the Colosseum.

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