12,173 sq km (4,700 sq miles).
Population:3,361 (2014).
Population density:0.3 per sq km.
Capital:Stanley.
Government:British Overseas Territory, which is not recognised by Argentina, as it considers the Falkland Islands to be part of Argentina.
Head of state:Queen Elizabeth II since 1952, represented locally by Governor Nigel Haywood since 2010.
Head of government:Chief Executive Keith Padgett since 2012.
Electricity:240 volts AC, 50Hz. British-style plugs with three square pins are used.
Nineteenth-century shipwrecks and a plethora of marine life are among the attractions awaiting visitors to the Falkland Islands. The islands may well be known as the battle ground of the eponymous 1982 war between Britain and Argentina, but this archipelago in the Atlantic is an intriguing and relaxing holiday destination.
Wildlife lovers will find five different species of penguins, whales, and sea birds. Head to Volunteer Point for the islands' largest group of king penguins, and there are a predictably vast amount of sea lions to be found on Sea Lion Island. Most of the Falkland Islands' population live in the capital Stanley, over whose harbour much avian life can be seen circling above the waves.
Reminders of the 1982 conflict do remain, with battlefields, such as Goose Green and Pebble Island, now tourist attractions.
