Slovenia celebrated its 18th birthday on June 25th 2009. The day the country declared independence from Yugoslavia on June 25th 1991.

To mark the country’s coming of age, here are 18 facts about Slovenia that travellers might not know:

1. Slovenia is bordered by four countries; Austria, Italy, Croatia and Hungary

2. Although Slovenia’s total surface area is only around 20,000 km2, it has almost 10,000 km2 of forest

3. Slovenia’s Adriatic coastline is 46.6 kilometres long

4. Over 400 brown bears make their home in Slovenia

5. Slovenia has over 7,000 km of marked mountain trails, with 165 mountain huts and shelters

6. 216 square kilometres of Slovenia is covered in vineyards

7. Triglav National Park is one of the oldest parks in Europe, with the first efforts to protect the area dating back to 1906

8. Slovenia has lots of quirky food festivals including the Salt Makers’ Festival, Cabbage Festival, Chestnut Sunday and Bean Day to name a few