The Republic of Slovenia lies at the heart of Europe, where the Alps face the Pannonian plains and the Mediterranean meets the mysterious Karst.
To the north borders to Austria; Hungary is to the east; Croatia to the south and Italy to the west.
The Republic of Slovenia lies at the heart of Europe, where the Alps and the Mediterranean meet the Pannonian plains and the mysterious Karst.
In Slovenia, the sun shines approximately 2,000 hours per year. And there is plenty of snow in winter. The average temperatures are -2°C in January and 21°C in July.
Green is the dominant colour. There are many woods and forests in Slovenia – covering more than half of the country – and numerous preserved and protected plant and animal species. Mountains, lakes, waterfalls, forests, caves, hills, plains, rivers and the sea - you name it, we've got it on the 20.273 km2, as well as many natural and landscape parks.
As a small picturesque country, Slovenia makes a great tourist destination. You can ski in the morning and surrender yourself to the luxury of the Adriatic Sea in the afternoon.
The highest mountain is called Triglav - the name meaning "three-heads" - and it is 2864m high. The mountain is a true national symbol, featured on the national coat of arms and the flag.
The country is also known for its great wines and delicious traditional food.
Facts
Full name: Republic of Slovenia (Republika Slovenija)
State system: Democratic parliamentary republic, since 1991; member of the EU since 1 May 2004
Capital: Ljubljana
Official Language: Slovene, in some nationally mixed areas also Italian and Hungarian
National Flag: three equal horizontal stripes in white, blue and red with Slovenian coat of arms on its left upper side
Coat of arms: Three six-pointed yellow stars are symbols of the Counts of Celje with Triglav as a symbol of Slovenehood and underlying two wavy lines symbolizing Slovenian rivers and the sea
Anthem: the seventh stanza of France Prešeren poem Zdravljica (a Toast); melody by Stanko Premrl
Currency: Euro
Phone dial code: +386
Internet TLD: .si
Geography
Area: 20,273 km²
Time zone: GMT/UTC +1
Length of borders: 1,370 km; with Austria: 318 km; with Croatia: 670 km; with Hungary: 102 km; with Italy: 280 km
Length of coastline: 46.6 km
Landscape: the territory of Slovenia is divided into four basic types of landscapes, Alpine in the north, Mediterranean in the south-west, Dinaric in the south and Pannonian in the east.
Climate: continental in central Slovenia, alpine in the north-west and sub-Mediterranean along the cost and its hinterland
Average temperature: january –2°C; july 21°C
Highest mountain: Triglav, 2,864 m
Longest river: Sava, 221 km
Largest lake: Cerknica lake (intermittent) 26 km²
Highest waterfall: Čedca, 130 m
Longest and deepest touristic karst cave: Postojnska jama, 19.5 km
Major protected natural park: Triglav national park, 83,808 ha
Population
Population: 2.032.362 (31 December 2008)
Population density: 99,1 inh. per km²
Nationalities (2002 census): Slovenian 1,631,363; Hungarian 6,243; Italian 2,258; other 324,172
Religion: Roman Catholic 57.8%, Muslim 2.4%, Orthodox 2.3%, other Christian 0.9%, unaffiliated 3.5%, other or unspecified 23%, none 10.1%.
Main cities: Ljubljana (261,700), Maribor (108,600), Celje (38,400), Kranj (39,400)
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