Peter Leach, a visitor from Glasgow, Scotland, stopped at Arthur's Pass last Wednesday to take in the views at a rest area along State Highway 73.
He left the windows down as he snapped photos of the scenery, including one of an unusual bird on the ground near his vehicle, stuff.Co.Nz reported.
"A Canadian couple walked by and said: 'We've just seen that bird take something out of your campervan'," Leach laughed.
"It took all the money I had. I was left with 40 dollars in my pocket," he said.
The tourist had stashed his travel cash - about 1300 New Zealand dollars - in a small cloth drawstring bag and left it on the dashboard, where the bird apparently found it while rummaging through other items.
The kea grabbed the bag and made a clean aerial getaway.
Hoping to recover his money through travel insurance, Leach sheepishly reported the incident to Timaru police.
"The man I dealt with was very serious for the first few questions. Then he said, 'Do you mind if I just stop to laugh?'" Leach said.
The Kea is a large species of parrot found in forested and alpine regions of the South Island of New Zealand.
Keas are known for being intelligent and strong, but also highly mischievous, with a reputation for opening rubbish bins, damaging furniture and vandalising cars.
