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Pistoia

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Pistoia, Tuscany, Italy

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Overview

Pretty Pistoia sits snugly at the foot of the Apennines. An easy day trip from Pisa, Lucca or Florence, it thoroughly deserved its 2017 status as European City of Culture. A town that has grown well beyond its medieval ramparts, its centro storico (historic centre) is well preserved and stands guardian to striking contemporary art.

Attractions

Must-see attractions

  • Antico Palazzo dei Vescovi

    Antico Palazzo dei Vescovi

    Pistoia

    The bishops' palace, wedged next to the cathedral, provides a fascinating tour of Pistoia's urban history, ranging from touchable scale models of…

  • Cattedrale di San Zeno

    Cattedrale di San Zeno

    Pistoia

    This cathedral with beautiful Pisan-Romanesque facade safeguards a lunette of the Madonna and Child between two angels by Andrea della Robbia. Its other…

  • Fattoria di Celle

    Fattoria di Celle

    Pistoia

    A teahouse, an aviary and other romantic 19th-century follies mingle with cutting-edge sculptures and art installations created by top contemporary…

  • Chiesa del Tau

    Chiesa del Tau

    Pistoia

    This tiny 14th-century chapel, frescoed Gothic-style from top to bottom by the School of Giotto, is a dramatic guardian to Marino Marini's monumental…

  • Palazzo Fabroni

    Palazzo Fabroni

    Pistoia

    Take a breather from the ancient with this airy modern- and contemporary-art museum, host to riveting temporary exhibitions and a permanent collection…

  • Chiesa di Sant'Andrea Apostolo

    Chiesa di Sant'Andrea Apostolo

    Pistoia

    This 12th-century church was built outside the original city walls, hence its windowless (fortified) state. The partly white-and-green striped marble…

  • Museo dello Spedale del Ceppo

    Museo dello Spedale del Ceppo

    Pistoia

    The beautifully restored facade of this former hospital, operational from 1277 until 2013, stuns with its 16th-century polychrome terracotta frieze by…

  • Pistoia Sotteranea

    Pistoia Sotteranea

    Pistoia

    Delve into the underbelly of subterranean Pisa with a one-hour guided trek (in English) of passageways snaking beneath 13th-century hospital Ospedale del…

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