The country sits in the Upper Rhine valley of the European Alps, and though it is fairly elevated offers a mild climate because of the prevailing southerly winds and so the winters never get extremely cold, although there is enough snow fall to make the place popular for winter sports. The highest point in the country is the Grauspitz, which reaches 2,599 metres. Interestingly Liechtenstein is one of two doubly landlocked countries in the world; this means that it is a landlocked country which is then completely surrounded by other landlocked countries