Jet lag is the absolute worst. If you wanted to cross the most time zones without leaving one country, where would you go?

France spans more time zones than Russia

The answer is France, if “one country” includes its overseas territories. Metropolitan France—the part in Europe—uses just one time zone. But French territory also includes islands and regions scattered across the Atlantic, Indian and Pacific oceans. Taken together, they cover 12 time zones, more than any other country; Russia, by comparison, spans 11.

The reach comes from islands far from Europe

France’s overseas territory is not one continuous stretch of land. It includes places such as French Polynesia in the Pacific, Réunion in the Indian Ocean and French Guiana in South America. Their clocks reflect their positions around the globe: when it is daytime in one territory, it may be late at night in another. The time-zone spread is therefore a consequence of France’s far-flung geography, not of the size of its European mainland.

That distinction also matters for a traveler. Crossing France from Paris to another French city will not produce a dramatic clock change. To cross many of the country’s time zones, you would have to travel between distant overseas territories—an itinerary with long flights and substantial time differences. The country with the widest time-zone span is not necessarily the easiest place to cross it.