South Pacific.

New Zealand: GMT + 12 (GMT + 13 from the last Sunday in September to the first Sunday in April).
Chatham Island: GMT + 12.75 (GMT + 13.75 from the last Sunday in September to the first Sunday in April).

270,534 sq km (104,454 sq miles).

4,116,000 (CIA estimate 2007).

15 per sq km.

Wellington. Population: 431,400 (2007). Auckland, with a population of 1,330,000 (2007), is the largest urban area in the country.

New Zealand is 1,930km (1,200 miles) southeast of Australia and consists of two major islands, North Island (116,031 sq km/44,800 sq miles) and South Island (153,540 sq km/59,283 sq miles), which are separated by Cook Strait. Stewart Island (1,750 sq km/676 sq miles) is located immediately south of South Island, and the Chatham Islands lie 800km (500 miles) to the east of Christchurch. Going from north to south, temperatures decrease. Compared to its huge neighbour Australia, New Zealand's three islands make up a country that is relatively small (about 20% more land mass than the British Isles).

Two-thirds of the country is mountainous, a region of swift-flowing rivers, deep alpine lakes and dense subtropical forest. The country's largest city, Auckland, is situated on the peninsula that forms the northern part of North Island. The southern part of North Island is characterised by fertile coastal plains rising up to volcanic peaks. Around Rotorua, 240km (149 miles) south of Auckland, there is thermal activity in the form of geysers, pools of boiling mud, springs of hot mineral water, silica terraces, coloured craters and hissing fumaroles, which make Rotorua a world-famous tourist attraction. South Island is larger, although only about one-third of the population lives there. The Southern Alps extend the whole length of the island, culminating in Mount Cook, the country's highest peak. In the same region are the Franz Josef and Fox glaciers.

There are also four Associated Territories: The Cook Islands, about 3,500km (2,175 miles) northeast of New Zealand; Niue, 920km (570 miles) west of the Cook Islands (area 260 sq km/100 sq miles); Tokelau, three atolls about 960km (600 miles) northwest of Niue (area 12 sq km/4 sq miles); and the Ross Dependency, which consists of over 700,000 sq km (270,270 sq miles) of the Antarctic.

Note: Cook Islands and Niue have separate individual sections in the World Travel Guide.

Constitutional monarchy since 1907.

HM Queen Elizabeth II since 1952, represented locally by Governor-General Anand Satyanand since 2006.

Prime Minister Helen Clark since 1999.

Helen Clark became New Zealand's first woman deputy prime minister in 1989 and prime minister in 1999. She was re-elected as prime minister for a third time in September 2005. Her Labour Party won 50 seats in parliament and formed a coalition with the Progressive Party. Her government voted a number of controversial measures such as the decision to legalise prostitution. The government's opposition to the invasion of Iraq in 2003 raised tensions with the USA, one of the country's main trading partners. In 2005 disaffected Maori MP Tariana Turia left the Labour Party to form the Maori Party, which went on to win four of the seven Maori seats at the 2005 election.

English is the common and everyday language, but other languages are also spoken, including Maori, which is New Zealand's second official language (spoken by the indigenous Maori people who constitute approximately 15% of the population).

55% Christian: Anglican, Presbyterian, Roman Catholic and Methodist are all represented.

230 volts AC, 50Hz. Most hotels provide 110-volt AC sockets (rated at 20 watts) for electric razors only.

Should a visitor be invited to a formal Maori occasion, the hongi (pressing of noses) is common. Casual dress is widely acceptable. New Zealanders are generally very relaxed and hospitable. Stiff formality is rarely appreciated and, after introductions, first names are generally used. Smoking is restricted where indicated. It is banned in pubs and restaurants as well as on public transport or in public buildings.