If John Key expected to be asked the soft questions when he bowled up for Question Time with school children in Niue yesterday, he was sorely disappointed.

Niue's Premier Toke Talagi says China aid in the small country is significant and China is a "friend" to Niue, but he does not expect it to ever rival New Zealand.

Words can't do justice to majestic Niue, discovers Alexia Santamaria

Andrew Louis brings his island prize of whole cooked crab back through Customs.

Niue's scariest inhabitants are also utterly non-threatening, writes Andrew Louis.

Andrew Louis captured this striking - and highly venomous - fellow while snorkelling off the west coast of Niue.

Andrew Louis works up a sweat amid rugged scenery.

Graham Reid travels to Niue, one of the Pacific's most accessible islands.

With help from a local, Graham Reid goes in search of an elusive meal on Niue.

The singing of whales as they gather in the warm Pacific waters to calve is so powerful you can feel its vibrations in the water if you go swimming with them.

Jim Eagles has a spiritual experience listening to the mournful melody of a humpback whale.

The PM has dismissed accusations of cronyism in the Govt's choice of appointments to boards and working groups.

New Zealand Mint has been commissioned to manufacture a new series of Star Wars coins, to be used legally in Niue.

As John Key prepares for a White House visit next week, New Zealand's Pacific role is growing in value.

Jim Eagles enjoys the sweet taste of Niue's lush land and lifestyle.

I've always felt that food was one of the great reasons to travel. But you'd have to say that until relatively recently it wasn't top of the list of reasons for visiting the South Pacific.

Jim Eagles attends a practice run for Niue High School's fundraising foray into tourism.

Royal couple Prince William and Kate Middleton haven't tied the knot yet - but already they are being torn apart.

A friendly club, but don't visit when it blows from the west, writes Jim Eagles.

Pacific island nations now occupy the top seven places in the World Health Organisation's global obesity rankings.

There's a world of music down in Niue's caves, as Jim Eagles discovers.

Competition schedule for New Zealand athletes on the seventh day of the Delhi Commonwealth Games on Monday, October 11:

The name suggests he's stumbled into the wrong tower block at the athletes' village, but Ian McKenna is all Niue islander.

Jim Eagles comes face to face with a terrifying but tasty monster in the forests of Niue.

I've had a bit to do with beauty queens over the years.

Geoff Thomas shares infectious enthusiasm and fishing tales from a neighbouring island.