www.slovenia.info Travel Agent´s Manual 2010

Dear partners and friends of Slovenia,
Welcome to a green land!
With almost 60% of its territory covered by forest, Slovenia is the second most forested country
in Europe, and the fi rst in terms of natural forest areas. Slovenia has several preserved
original forest reserves, one of them located just 60 kilometres from the capital, Ljubljana.
A full 36% of the territory of Slovenia lies inside Natura 2000 areas (a network of protected
areas of European importance). Over 22,500 animal and plant species place Slovenia among
the countries with the highest level of biological diversity in Europe. Slovenia accounts for
less than 0.004% of the Earth’s surface but is home to more than 1% of all known living
creatures and more than 2% of all land and freshwater species. A fi fth of Slovenia’s coast
enjoys protected status. In terms of the quantity of fl uvial water per inhabitant, Slovenia
is one of the richest countries in Europe. Drinking water in Slovenia is among the purest in
Europe and even the world.
Th ese are facts. Facts of which we are proud. Proud, because Slovenia is a green destination.
Green tourism is no mere phrase in Slovenia, green tourism is an opportunity and an
advantage that Slovenia has over many other destinations. At the same time, we are aware
of the great responsibility entrusted to those of us involved in determining the development
of Slovenian tourism. For this reason we at the Slovenian Tourist Board are committed
to ensuring that the adjectives ‘green’, ‘eco-friendly’ and ‘sustainable’ permeate all of
our activities in the future. We are committed to conserving forests, inland waters, the sea
and other natural riches to the greatest possible extent, so as to preserve the trump card
of Slovenian tourism for the generations that come after us. Even today, in order to raise
awareness of the importance of mitigating the eff ects of tourism on the environment and
adapt tourism products to the concept of sustainability, we have set down guidelines for
the development of Slovenian tourism. We have prepared and are continuing to prepare
green tourism measures and a strategy for green tourism in Slovenia. We are carrying
out research and analysis of green tourism, keeping tourism providers informed about
the sustainable development of Slovenian tourism at every step, addressing the target
public on this topic through our marketing activities, and including the sustainable
development of tourism in our partnerships. We have announced incentives for the
introduction of green tourism and prepared low-carbon study tours. We intensively
support the EDEN project, where the development of tourist destinations is based on
the sustainable development of tourism. And since an old Slovene proverb says that
“fi rst you must sweep your own doorstep”, this year we have introduced the “Sloveniafriendly
offi ce” project at the STB, we endeavour to use the most environmentally
friendly materials possible (for example in the production of our catalogues and
brochures), at tourism fairs we use a Slovenian tourism stand made of natural materials
that helps demonstrate the unspoilt nature of Slovenia’s countryside, we prepare
promotional gifts made from environmentally friendly materials, organise events on a
strictly ‘green’ basis, and so on. We realise that green tourism is not merely a (shortterm)
trend, but something that we hope will fi ll visitors to Slovenia with enthusiasm
– and will be the fi rst thing that comes to mind when they think about Slovenia after
returning home from their holiday.
Dear partners in Slovenian tourism. Th e publication you are holding, as well as containing
a large amount of practical information on the wide range of tourism products
that Slovenia has to off er, is also a promise that in Slovenia you will experience
green tourism in the form of genuine, preserved and unspoilt nature. And fi nally:
even the logo of Slovenia and Slovenian tourism – I FEEL SLOVENIA on a green
background – is no coincidence. It is a refl ection of what is unique about Slovenia
and of what we Slovenes are particularly proud of: our unspoilt green countryside.
Dimitrij Piciga, M.Sc.
Director of the Slovenian Tourist Board