Central Canada.

GMT - 6 (GMT - 5 in summer).
Summer officially lasts from the first Sunday in April to the Saturday before the last Sunday in October.

547,704 sq km (211,468 sq miles).

1.2 million (2005 estimate).

2.15 per sq km.

Winnipeg. Population: 702,400 (2004).

Manitoba is bordered by the US states of North Dakota and Minnesota to the south, Saskatchewan to the west, Ontario to the east, and the Northwest Territories and Nunavut to the north. The province is also known as Heartland Canada. The landscape is diverse, ranging from rolling farmland to sandy beaches on the shores of Lake Winnipeg, and from the desert landscape of the south to northern parkland covered by lakes, forests and sub-Arctic tundra.

Although Canada is officially bilingual (English and French), English is commonly spoken in Manitoba.

Smoking is prohibited in Manitoba in all public places including restaurants, drinking establishments, shopping malls and sporting events.