Tourists injured after trying to break into Rome's Colosseum

The tourists scaled the gate of the Colosseum, but fell. Photo / 123RF

Two tourists have been injured - with one expected to be in hospital for weeks - after their attempt to break into the Colosseum in Rome went horribly wrong.

The pair, who Italian media identified as Brazilian nationals aged 30 and 32, were trying to illegally enter the ancient attraction shortly before 3am on Sunday, The Local reported.

They scaled the site's entry gate - which is about four metres tall - but fell.

One of the tourists was bruised in the fall but the other suffered a fractured pelvis. Both went to hospital, but the second tourist is expected to stay there for several weeks. It's expected both will be charged with trespassing.

The incident has again raised concerns about security at the Colosseum, following an incident in August last year in which two German tourists climbed the 45-metre high amphitheatre.

A Kiwi tourist landed in big trouble after a spectacular stunt off Venice's most famous bridge. Photo / 123RF

But it's also the latest on a growing list of foreign visitors who can't seem to resist the opportunity for bad behaviour in Italy - and often land in trouble for their efforts.

Last year, a reportedly drunk New Zealander was injured after he jumped from the Rialto Bridge in Venice, landing on a water taxi in the canal below and also injuring the boat's driver.

The 49-year-old's stunt prompted Venice's mayor to threaten tourists with a night in prison if they misbehaved.

Back in Rome, an Australian man and his son sparked outrage in 2014 when they used small stones and a stick to scrawl their names on the Colosseum's ancient walls. The man was charged with vandalism and his 12-year-old son was reported to the local children's court.

Tourists have also landed in trouble with authorities recently after splashing around in Rome's centuries-old fountains.

Many tourists have landed in trouble splashing around in Rome's Trevi Fountain. Photo / 123RF

In one incident, in July last year, two visitors from California were ordered to pay a $657 fine for wading through the waters of the Trevi Fountain in the style of actor Anita Ekberg in the film La Dolce Vita. In another incident that month, a tourist was fined for skylarking around a fountain at the base of Rome's Spanish Steps.

In a particularly bizarre case from 2013, a German tourist was caught carrying a Samurai sword he needed to "protect himself" outside a Catholic shrine in Naples.

And plenty of amorous travellers have gotten in trouble for having sex at popular tourist sites.

A French man and two Italian women were sprung after they climbed over the gate of the volcano-struck city of Pompeii in 2014 and had a threesome in an ancient communal bathhouse decorated with raunchy wall paintings. They were charged with trespassing.

And in 2012, two foreigners were caught having sex beneath a statue of Dante Alighieri in Piazza Santa Croce in Florence. They were photographed by two members of a right-wing political party and reportedly attracted a highly amused audience.