Best time of year to visit New Zealand?

From the standpoint of vegetation/flowers how does the time period from 26Nov to 02Dec compare to the rest of the year?

BTW, I wasn't planning on bringing gear to shoot birds but if the time period above is good for birding then I'll reconsider my decision.

Because this trip is part of a cruise I'm not expecting a lot good photo opportunities ... just looking to shoot "typical" tourist landscapes. The word "typical" is used because I have no control over the time-of-day of the shore excursions and seriously doubt the "right place" during the golden hours of the day will be a possibility.

Thanks in advance for any help you can provide.

Regards,

Joe Kurkjian

Galleries: http://www.pbase.com/jkurkjia

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