Depending on your home country you might need a valid passport to visit Italy. If you live in one of the countries that has implemented the Schengen Agreement you only need a valid ID card or passport, if you don't live in one of the Schengen countries you need a passport, your ID card won't be accepted.

Depending on your citizenship, the stability of that country and the duration and reasons for your stay you may need to obtain a visa before coming to Italy.

The economy of Pistoia is based mainly on the commercial sector, where plant and flower nurseries play a dominant role. Also the industrial sector has some important points of excellence in textile, engineering, furniture, footwear, mechanical, food and plastics factories.

With a population of about 90.000 the city is well developed and is home to many offices for companies in the Pistoia, Prato and Firenze metropolitan area.

The climate in Pistoia is what you can expect anywhere in Italy: hot summers and cold winters, but not too cold. In summer temperatures can go as high as 40°C and, due to humidity being sometimes very high, the perceived temperature is extremely high. Fortunately this doesn't happen everyday in summer. Periods of very high temperatures usually don't go over two or three weeks spread over the entire summer. Winters, specially due to the fact that the city is bordered by the Apennine Mountains, are usually cold and rainy.

Pistoia is located in central-northern Italy, in the region of Tuscany. Florence is the regional capital of Tuscany. The Ombrone river has its source in the Apennine Mountains at north of Pistoia and flows through areas surrounding the western side of the city.

Pistoia is bordered at north by the Apennine Moutains with beautiful woods and famous ski areas.

Pistoia borders the provinces of Bologna and Modena (both in the Emilia Romagna region), Prato, Firenze and Lucca.

The province of Pistoia covers an area of 965 km².

Before becoming a Roman colony in the 6th century BC Pistoia has been home to Gallic, Etruscan and Ligurian settlements, as several archaeological artifacts found in the area suggest. During the Roman northward expansion Catiline was defeated near Pistoia.