Mr Bell, as part of his work as a zone 6 (Otago and Southland) representative on the National Council of Local Government New Zealand, was invited to go to Waitangi along with others.
Mr Bell said it was a great chance to head to a historical landmark on a significant occasion, especially without it costing the ratepayers.
"I was lucky enough to be invited. This year there was an event in Queenstown for Waitangi Day, but it’s pretty rare to go to Waitangi, so I took that opportunity.
"LGNZ were paying for accommodation and food costs, so it made sense to go up there and rub shoulders with ministers and see it all in action," he said.
Mr Bell said the trip was a chance to network and learn with the leaders of Aotearoa.
"The group got to meet with a bunch of the iwi chairs up there and speak on a whole range of subjects.
"I was lucky enough to be a part of the parliamentarian powhiri and got invited to have kai with them afterwards. It was a great chance to go and catch up with ministers," he said.
In terms of specifics, Mr Bell said he was fighting the good fight.
He said he had a "fruitful conversation" with Simon Watts, whose portfolios include local government, "about him coming down and talking to us about the challenges we have there" and had talked about "our water CCO (council-controlled organisation)".
He also spoke with Education Minister Erica Stanford about Māruawai College which is split across campuses, "getting some certainty around that".
It was hard to say when these conversations might have happened if not for the trip.
"Interactions like that are pretty hard to come by without doing lots of letters and talking to the right people.
"It’s just great when you’re there in person. You can have those quick conversations to get results over the line," he said.
Mr Bell said it was not a cheeky trip up north, but instead a valuable chance to advertise the district and the South Island to more people.
"It definitely wasn’t a holiday. I do think it was fruitful, even small interactions ... "
During the powhiri he interacted with guests from around the world. .
"We were sat at a table with the Iranian and Qatar ambassadors and it was great to talk to them about our country music festivals and [invite them to] come visit the South Island, the Deep South.
"I remember even the broadcaster, when we were on the Waitangi broadcast, saying it’s so cool to see so much representation from the deep South, especially when the prime minister’s not even there," he said.
