Airbnb invests $1.5 million for the Colosseum and also funds ... a course for gladiators

Collaboration between Airbnb and the Archaeological Park of the Colosseum (PArCo ) with the aim, the Park makes known, of boosting the promotion of conscious tourism. Despite the fact, therefore, that short term rentals, i.e., Airbnb’s core business , are considered one of the elements that encourageovertourism (it is just today’s news that Florence has placed a ban on keyboxes in areas under Unesco protection), the platform of short term rentals guarantees an investment of $1.5 million for the Colosseum. In particular, Airbnb is supporting the Il Colosseo si Racconta (The Colosseum is Told) project, which includes the renovation of the permanent exhibition inside theFlavian Amphitheater and a series of initiatives to engage visitors in the history of the Colosseum. In particular, Airbnb users will have the opportunity to book an immersion in gladiatorial art, thanks to a collaboration with the associations Ars Dimicandi and Gruppo Storico Romano. The experience includes a philological reenactment of gladiatorial fights, reconstructed to the smallest detail, in the heart of the Colosseum.

The agreement thus aims to disseminate, nationally and internationally, the knowledge of ancient gladiature (through a rigorous and scientific approach, the Park makes known) using the techniques of experimental archaeology. Guests will thus go back in time almost 2,000 years, thanks in part to the displays that, the archaeological park again points out, will restore the ancient function of the amphitheater as a performance venue. The experience, to be held on May 7 and 8, 2025, will be available for up to 16 people and can be booked on the Airbnb platform at a cost of 0 euros from November 27 until December 9.

The collaboration is part of a wider plan to enhance the monument, which in recent years has seen major excavations and restorations including in the southern part and the hydraulic system. The revamped visit to the Colosseum will not be limited to the mere display of artifacts, but will provide the opportunity for a tour that will connect the archaeological finds to the place where they were found, thus expanding the visitor experience with new installations and insights. By booking the experience on Airbnb, guests will access the Colosseum at sunset, after it has closed to the public. They will be taken on a tour of the underground corridors, which gladiators used to walk through before fighting, and then make their way into the arena. Here, they will have the opportunity to learn the techniques of gladiatorial combat thanks to expert reenactors from the associations involved.

“The Colosseum continues to arouse very strong emotions in our visitors, who by the millions each year visit it. To the fascination of its imposing architecture, we now also add the historical reenactment of the fights and duels between pairs of gladiators who competed for victory and with it fame through a judicious and scientific reconstruction of the sites,” explained Alfonsina Russo, Director of the Colosseum Archaeological Park.

“With this collaboration - which fits perfectly in the groove of our work to promote and enhance heritage tourism, which has seen us contribute some 10 million euros for initiatives to promote European cultural heritage - we intended to do our part to collaborate with the Ministry of Culture and the Colosseum Archaeological Park in allowing an even wider public broader enjoyment of the spaces in which the collective imagination is brought closer with the historical reality, rather than separated from it,” commented Valentina Reino, Head of Institutional Relations at Airbnb Italy.

“For us it is a great opportunity and we are honored to bring our gladiators to the Colosseum arena. We sincerely thank the Colosseum Archaeological Park, in the person of Director Alfonsina Russo and Dr. Federica Rinaldi, for granting us this privilege and for recognizing the Roman Historical Group and Ars Dimicandi, led by our friend Dario Battaglia, as the Scientific Committee of reference for this project. We are also grateful to Airbnb for supporting this unique initiative, which not only enhances the Colosseum as a living monument, but allows all of us to share an authentic immersion in the history of ancient Rome,” says Andrea Buccolini, External Relations Manager of the Roman Historical Group.

“Reliving the magnificence of the Colosseum at night has not only provided excitement, but has given meaning to 30 years of research on gladiators, the purpose of their sacrifice, their weaponry and training techniques. The dissemination mandate given to us by the Colosseum Archaeological Park in the persons of Director Alfonsina Russo and Dr. Federica Rinaldi and carried out in collaboration with the Roman Historical Group, allowed us to undertake with Airbnb a truly unique and unprecedented initiative: not a simple cultural tourism but the projection of the modern world ”inside“ the past. An initiative, therefore, that is not limited to mere suggestions, but brings the experience of the participants to a deep reflection,” says Dario Battaglia, President of Ars Dimicandi.

Airbnb invests $1.5 million for the Colosseum and also funds ... a course for gladiators

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