Carinthia   

 

Carinthia is a federal state, located in the south of Austria.

It consists mostly of a basin inside the Alps, with the Carnian Mountains making up the border to Italy and Slovenia. The Tauern mountains divide it from Salzburg.

To the East lies the state of Styria, and it makes up a continuous valley with the eastern part of the Tyrol to the West. Its lakes are a major tourist attraction. The main river is the Drau.

The capital is Klagenfurt. The only other important town is Villach; these two towns are strongly linked economically.

The current governor (German: Landeshauptmann) is Jörg Haider of the Austrian Freedom Party FPÖ.

Carinthia has a continental climate, with hot and moderately wet summers and long harsh winters. In recent decades winters have been exceptionally arid. Its average sun index is the highest in Austria. In autumn and winter temperature inversion often dominates the climate, characterised by air stillness, a dense fog covering the frosty valleys and trapping pollution to form a smog, while mild sunny weather predominates higher up in the foothills and mountains.

 Photos