Nova Gorica is a town in western Slovenia, on the border with Italy. It is the seat of the Municipality of Nova Gorica. Nova Gorica is a planned town, built according to the principles of modernist architecture after 1947, when the Paris Peace Treaty established a new border between Yugoslavia and Italy, leaving nearby Gorizia outside the borders of Yugoslavia and thus cutting off the Soča Valley, the Vipava Valley, the Gorizia Hills and the northwestern Karst Plateau from their traditional regional urban centre. Since 1948, Nova Gorica has replaced Gorizia as the principal urban centre of the Gorizia region (Slovene: Goriška), as the northern part of the Slovenian Littoral has been traditionally called.
The largest municipality in the Goriška Region, Nova Gorica is one of the eleven city municipalities of Slovenia and seat of all the major regional institutions. The municipality lies in the western part of Slovenia along the border with Italy stretched across 280 square kilometres. The population is currently 31,752 and the average age is 44.3 years.
The municipality is divided into 19 local communities with 44 settlements: Banjšice, Branik (Branik, Preserje, Spodnja Branica, Steske, Pedrovo), Čepovan, Dornberk (Brdo, Budihni, Dornberk, Draga, Potok pri Dornberku, Saksid, Tabor, Zalošče) , Gradišče nad Prvačino, Grgar, Grgarske Ravne – Bate (Grgarske Ravne, Bate, Dragovica), Kromberk – Loke (Kromberk, Loke), Lokovec, Lokve – Lazna (Lokve, Lazna), Nova Gorica (Nova Gorica, Pristava), Osek – Vitovlje (Osek, Vitovlje), Ozeljan (Ozeljan, Šmihel), Prvačina, Ravnica (Ravnica, Podgozd), Rožna Dolina (Ajševica, Rožna Dolina, Stara Gora), Solkan (Solkan, Šmaver, Sveta Gora), Šempas, Trnovo (Trnovo, Nemci, Voglarji).
The neighbouring municipalities are: Brda, Kanal, Tolmin, Idrija, Ajdovščina, Komen, Miren – Kostanjevica, Šempeter – Vrtojba, Renče – Vogrsko and Gorizia (Italy).
The Mediterranean Sea, the Alps and continental Europe are all quite close to the city and therefore the climate is mostly sub-Mediterranean with plenty of sunshine, mostly mild, rainy winters and hot summers. The Karst plateau might also affect the local climate. The land is also greatly varied as it comprises different types of land with the Soča River running through all of them. Mount Sabotin rises to the northwest of the city and the mountains stretch out from the left bank of the Soča River as the western part of the High Karst: the last branches of the Dinaric Mountains, which include the Banjšice Plateau and the Trnovo Forest. These two plateaus are cut off on each side by steep valleys: the Soča valley to the west, the extremely dry Čepovanski dol to the east and the south, and the Idrijca valley to the north. The passage from south-west is slightly more gradual, as the Banjšice plateau descends towards the Grgar Basin and into the Soča Plain at Solkan. The terrain then rises against towards the south onto the Karst plateau, and the winegrowing lower Vipava Valley lies in the middle of all that. Nova Gorica lies in a strategic intersection of transport routes between the Po Valley to the southwest, the Soča valley reaching far north into the Alps, and central Slovenia, which leads on to the Balkans and the Pannonian Basin.
Since May 2011, Nova Gorica has been joined together with Gorizia and Šempeter-Vrtojba in a common trans-border metropolitan zone, administered by a joint administration board.
Coordinates:  45°59′N 13°44′ECoordinates: 45°59′N 13°44′E | |
| Country |  Slovenia |
|---|---|
| Government | |
| • Mayor | Klemen Miklavič |
| Area | |
| • Total | 280 km (110 sq mi) |
| Population (2018) | |
| • Total | 31,691 |
| • Density | 110/km (290/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02 (CEST) |
Culture and education
Nova Gorica hosts one of the three national theatres in Slovenia. The Goriška Museum is also located in the town’s Kromberk district, hosted in Kromberk Castle.
The University of Nova Gorica is located in the suburb of Rožna Dolina. The Nova Gorica Grammar School, located in the city centre, is one of the most renowned high schools in Slovenia.
The cultural magazine Razpotja is published in Nova Gorica.
SIGHTS
Kostanjevica Hill
To the south of the town stands Kostanjevica Hill, home to the Church of the Annunciation of Our Lady and a 17th-century Franciscan monastery with rich treasures from the past. The last members of the Bourbons, the French royal family, are buried in a crypt beneath the church (Charles X himself, and members of his family and entourage including his son Louis-Antoine de France, and his grandson Henri d’Artois, nephew of Louis (neither Louis-Antoine nor Henri ever reigned as kings)). He fled France following the revolution in 1830, finding refuge in Gorizia, and eventually died there. Also buried there is Pierre Louis Jean Casimir de Blacas, a Bourbon nobleman who also died in exile (in 1839).
Sveta Gora
Opposite Kostanjevica Hill, north of the town is the settlement of Sveta Gora with Holy Mount (Slovene: Sveta gora) a 682-meter (2,238 ft) peak that has attracted pilgrims for 450 years. The view from there is exceptional, and on a clear day visitors can see as far as Istria, Venice, the Dolomites, and the Kamnik and Julian Alps. The mountain top is home to a magnificent basilica, where concerts are occasionally held, a Franciscan monastery, and a museum of the Battles of the Isonzo.
Contacts
OFFICE HOURS
Mondays 8 am to 12 pm and 1 pm to 2 pm
Wednesdays 8 am to 12 pm and 1 pm to 4 pm
Fridays 8 am to 12 pm and 1 pm to 2 pm
INFORMATIONS
Mayor: Dr. Klemen MIKLAVIČ
Population: 31,752
Area: 280 sq km
Statistical region: Severnoprimorska
Number of settlements: 44
Activity code (SKD): 84.110 – General public administration activities
VAT identification number: SI53055730
Registration number: 5881773000
Bank account: IBAN SI56 0128 4010 0014 022 (Bank of Slovenia Ljubljana)
SERVICES
Mayor’s Cabinet
Mayor’s Secretary: +386 5 335 01 01
Director’s Office
Secretary’s Office: +386 6 335 01 21
Environment, Spatial Planning and Public Infrastructure
Secretary’s Office: +386 5 335 01 41
Social Activities
Secretary’s Office: +386 5 335 0 161
Economy and Public Services
Secretary’s Office: +386 5 335 0 131
Project Office
Secretary’s Office: +386 5 335 0 171
Finances and Accounting
Secretary’s Office: +386 5 335 0 151