New Zealand is situated in a diverse oceanographic environment. As an island, the weather and climate are largely determined by the conditions of the surrounding oceans. With a relatively long latitudinal extent, New Zealand extends from the subtropical gyre to the northern edge of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current. The east coast of northern New Zealand is the western boundary of the South Pacific Gyre, with the East Auckland Current being a unique example of a separated western boundary current (the East Australian Current) reattaching to a landmass. Further south, the Subtropical Front dips around the South Island coast before separating from the landmass along the crest of Chatham Rise while the Subantarctic Front runs adjacent to the southern continental shelf. This talk will present our knowledge of the oceanographic features around New Zealand, place New Zealand’s oceanography in a larger perspective and discuss present and planned research in the New Zealand region.