Saskatoon sits along the South Saskatchewan River in the heart of the Canadian prairies, a medium-sized city that feels surprisingly vibrant and laid-back. Its riverbank trails, leafy parks, and nine bridges give it a scenic backbone, while the compact downtown blends historic brick buildings with a growing mix of restaurants, breweries, and galleries. Largely overlooked by virtue of being in the middle of Saskatchewan, I reckon Saskatoon is one of my favourite Canadian cities.
The region has long been the traditional territory of the Plains Cree, Saulteaux, Dakota, Nakota, and Métis peoples, who travelled the river valley for thousands of years. The name comes from the Cree word misâskwatômina , for the sweet purple berries that still grow wild around the region. European settlement in the late 19th century reshaped the area into an agricultural hub, with the river as its main artery for trade and transport.
Today, Saskatoon feels like more than just a prairie outpost. You can walk the Meewasin Trail along the river, explore the Remai Modern’s contemporary art collection, or visit Wanuskewin Heritage Park to connect with the deep history of the Northern Plains Indigenous peoples. There are a surprising amount of shops where you can discover local artisans and food producers. Add in a thriving food and craft beer scene, plus festivals that animate the city year-round, and it quickly challenges the flat, empty image most people expect of Saskatchewan.
In this guide, I’ve detailed all the best things to do in Saskatoon. If I’ve missed something (and I probably have), feel free to let me know.
Summer is the best time to visit Saskatoon, when the city’s festivals, trails, and patios are in full swing. The SaskTel Jazz Festival, Taste of Saskatchewan, and the Fringe all take over the downtown and riverside parks, and the dry prairie heat makes it easy to explore the Meewasin Trail or rent a canoe on the South Saskatchewan. Fall is cooler but still active, with bright foliage along the river and fall suppers taking place in nearby communities. Winter is long but not dead, with cross-country ski trails through the city, snowshoeing in Meewasin, and events like Winterruption and Nutrien WinterShines. Spring brings thaw and mud, but also the return of migratory birds to the Northeast Swale and Wanuskewin, along with the reopening of the farmers’ market and a wave of seasonal menus at local restaurants.
Best Things to Do in Saskatoon
1. Connect With History at Wanuskewin
Wanuskewin is an Indigenous-run cultural site and archaeological preserve about 15 minutes north of Saskatoon, set in a stretch of river valley that’s been used as a gathering place for over 6,000 years. It’s home to a museum on Plains Indigenous history, along with a rotating gallery of contemporary Indigenous art. In the summer, cultural performances take place in the outdoor amphitheatre most afternoons – drumming, powwow dancing, and storytelling.
Trails loop through the Opimihāw Creek valley, passing tipi rings, bison kill sites, a rubbing stone, and a reconstructed medicine wheel. Or take the ten minute walk to the bison viewing platform to see the herd that was reintroduced in 2019 and has since grown to about two dozen animals.
The restaurant serves bannock, wild rice bowls, stews, bison burgers, and prairie teas. It’s easy to overlook thanks to a slightly cafeteria-like interior, but actually it was where I had one one my favourite meals in Saskatoon.
2. Explore Contemporary Art at Remai Modern
Remai Modern is Saskatoon’s contemporary art museum, built on the riverbank just south of downtown. It replaced the old Mendel Art Gallery, which had been the city’s main public gallery for decades before closing in 2015. The new gallery opened in 2017 and now houses both rotating exhibitions and the Mendel’s old collection.
The permanent highlight is the world’s largest collection of Picasso linocuts – over 400 prints from the 1950s and ’60s, shown in small curated groups that rotate regularly. Most of the museum space is dedicated to temporary exhibitions, usually focused on conceptual or political work by Canadian and international artists.
3. Have Saskatoon Berry Pie at The Berry Barn
The Berry Barn is a seasonal farm café and berry U-pick spot about 15 minutes south of Saskatoon, tucked along a picturesque bend in the South Saskatchewan River. It’s best known for Saskatoon berries, which grow wild across the prairies and are usually in season from early to mid-July. They look like blueberries but are firmer, less sweet, and have a mild almond-like flavour from the seeds. If you’ve never had one before, this is the easiest place to try them.
When the crop is ready, you can pick your own by the bucket, with plastic containers and wagons available at the stand near the parking lot. If you’d rather skip the work, the café serves Saskatoon berries in pies, waffles, milkshakes, jam, and syrup. The pie is easily the most popular thing on the menu.
4. Shop Local at the Farmers’ Market
The Saskatoon Farmers’ Market is a year-round, vendor-run market in an industrial area near the airport, about 10 minutes from downtown. It moved here in 2019 after a long stint at River Landing, but it’s been going since 1975. The setup is mostly indoors, with additional tents and stalls outside on weekends during the growing season. What I like about the market is that it’s open two days a week – both Saturday and Sunday. That said, if I had a choice I’d definitely come on Saturday when there’s more energy, and when all the vendors are guaranteed to show up.
5. See the City From the Meewasin Trail
The Meewasin Trail is the best way to see the South Saskatchewan River, and to get the best views of the Saskatoon skyline. It’s a long, mostly paved path that winds along both banks, with open views of the water and grassy river valley. The nicest stretches are the ones where the trail drops close to the shoreline and you can watch pelicans gliding near the weir or catch the sun setting over the bridges. Even in the middle of the city, you get moments that feel quiet and green.
8. Step Into Prairie Life at the Western Development Museum
The Western Development Museum is Saskatoon’s largest museum and one of four WDM branches across the province. It’s also one of my absolute favourite places to visit in the city. The museum is home to a life-sized 1910 “Boomtown” street – complete with a general store, blacksmith shop, barbershop, church, schoolhouse, and dozens of other reconstructed buildings that you can actually step into and walk through. Most of the interiors are furnished with original artifacts, and a few – like the print shop and fire hall – still have moving parts or working equipment. There’s also a large transportation gallery packed with vintage cars, tractors, steam engines, and early farming equipment, most of it from Saskatchewan’s first half-century. I did not know that I would find a room full of hundred-year-old tractors super cool, but now I do.
The one weak point in the museum is the small dim room that highlights local Indigenous history. In contrast to the colourful and brightly-lit exhibits that fill the rest of the museum, this small reading-heavy room feels like it’s just begging to be ignored.
9. Try The Mushrooms at Hearth
Hearth was opened in 2018 by local chefs Thayne Robstad and Beth Rogers, both veterans of Saskatoon’s fine dining scene. The name refers to the wood-fired oven at the center of the kitchen, but also to the prairie-inspired comfort food they’ve become known for. Originally located just off Broadway, the restaurant moved to a much larger space inside the Remai Modern in 2022.
The menu changes often, but you can usually expect dishes built around wild game, lake fish, foraged mushrooms, and whatever is in season from local farms. The must-try dish that everyone seems to recommend though is the mushrooms, and it’s well worth the hype.
12. Have a Bison Burger at Calories
Calories has been a fixture since 1986, when it was opened by Pascal and Murielle de Montbrun as a patisserie. Over the decades, it evolved from a dessert café into one of Saskatoon’s most respected full-service restaurants. In 2012, it was taken over by long-time staffer Remi Cousyn, who shifted the menu toward contemporary prairie cuisine, keeping the focus on seasonal ingredients and thoughtful presentation without losing the French-influenced pastries that built the restaurant’s reputation in the first place.
Dishes rotate seasonally based on what local ingredients are available, with specials posted on the board just inside the door. I tried the bison burger and it’s one of the best I’ve had anywhere. And of course, the pastry case by the entrance still draws a steady stream of takeout customers.
13. Order a Flight at Crossmount Cider
Crossmount Cider Company is located about 15 minutes south of Saskatoon, on a rural property that is actually a part of a retirement village. When it opened in 2016, it was Saskatchewan’s first craft cidery and was originally meant to serve just the local seniors. Since then, it’s grown into a popular destination producing a range of dry, semi-sweet, and fruit-infused ciders made from prairie-grown apples that the cidery worked closely with the University of Saskatchewan to develop, supplemented with apples from BC and Ontario.
The taproom offers indoor and seasonal outdoor seating, with a dozen or so ciders on tap and tasting flights available. Some are traditional dry apple ciders, while others are blended with haskap berries, sour cherries, or honey.
The grounds around the taproom include a small orchard, picnic tables, ice creamery, cafe, and wedding garden. Come for the cider of course, but also consider picking up some of the locally made cheese – some of which is made with the cider itself.
15. Cuddle Cats at the Purrfect Cup Cat Cafe
Since 2022 the Purrfect Cup Cat Café – the only cat café in Saskatchewan – has helped nearly 200 cats get adopted in partnership with the Battlefords Humane Society.
The cat room itself is a cozy side lounge with low furniture, wall-mounted perches, and usually around 15 to 20 cats wandering, napping, or wrestling in a corner. Some ignore you completely, and others follow you around like they’ve already picked you. There’s a small entrance fee, and you can grab yourself a snack or coffee as you head in.
17. Try the Croissants at The Night Oven Bakery
Since opening in 2014, the flour used in the bread, pastries, and pasta available at The Night Oven Bakery has been milled in-house from Saskatchewan-grown grain. They source organic spelt, rye, red fife, and other heritage grains directly from local producers, grind them in-house, and bake everything overnight in a wood-fired oven. The cute and airy bakery is open mornings and early afternoons, with a tight menu that includes naturally leavened loaves, laminated pastries, brownies, scones, seasonal tarts, and sausage rolls. The croissants are exceptionally good – truly crisp, flaky, and far better than what I’ve found in most Canadian bakeries.
18. Grab a Bite at Loqui
Loqui was opened in 2024 by the Skalicky family – Mel, Alisa, and their son Jackson – after spending time travelling across Canada and the U.S., gathering ideas for a restaurant. They wanted to create a spot in Saskatoon that served globally-inspired dishes made with locally sourced ingredients. The menu focuses on shareable plates, with popular items like Khao Soin and Gua Bao. Come at the right time of year, and many of the dishes will be beautifully garnished with flowers grown nearby.
The atmosphere is simple and unpretentious, with wood accents and an emphasis on a relaxed vibe. The mid-century modern interior is super charming, and the food helps too.
19. Pick up Some Pottery at Clay Studio Three
Clay Studio Three is a pottery co-op and gallery founded in 1975 by three local ceramicists – Olive Kalapaca, Joan Ashenhurst, and Marlene Zora – who wanted a shared space to work and sell their pieces. It’s still a working collective, now run by about a dozen Saskatchewan potters who rotate shifts staffing the shop and keeping the shelves stocked with new work. You can find mugs, bowls, plates, teapots – alongside the occasional decorative piece.
20. Explore Saskatoon’s Breweries
Saskatoon’s craft beer scene may still be developing compared to those in BC or Alberta, but it’s rapidly gaining momentum. For visitors to the city, exploring the dozen or so breweries in and around Saskatoon offers a great opportunity to experience the growing local beer culture. 9 Mile Legacy makes some of my favourite Saskatoon beers, though currently they don;t have a taproom. Better Brother and High Key also have great beer and pub food, as well as great atmosphere. Shelter is also worth mentioning for its beer, as well as its menu of Mexican eats. Other breweries in the city that I haven’t tried (yet) are Prairie Sun , Churchill , Paddock Wood , City Limits , Saskatoon , 21st Street , Homebound , and Paradox ,
21. Stroll Through the Saskatchewan Railway Museum
The Saskatchewan Railway Museum is a seasonal outdoor museum located about 15 minutes southwest of Saskatoon. Operated entirely by volunteers, it’s open only during the summer months, typically from May through Labour Day. The museum focuses on the early history of rail in the province, with a collection that includes vintage train cars, locomotives, restored railway stations, and maintenance equipment gathered from across Saskatchewan. Visits begin with a five-minute ride on a railroad speeder, after which you’re free to explore the site at your own pace. Many of the cars and buildings are open to walk through, while others can be viewed from the outside. It ended up being one of the most unexpectedly fun stops during my time in Saskatoon.
22. Shop For Snacks at The Little Market Box
The Little Market Box is a small storefront owned by Julianna Tan, who opened it in 2020 after getting her start selling handmade chocolate through her business, Those Girls at the Market. She launched the shop as a way to give other local producers a steady place to sell their goods outside the weekend farmers’ market circuit. Almost everything in the store comes from small Saskatchewan-based farms, kitchens, or studios. Inside, shelves are packed with local jams, hot sauces, baking mixes, kombucha, handmade soaps, and frozen meals like dumplings, perogies, soups, and of course, chocolate..
23. Dine Farm-to-Table at Odla
Odla opened in 2019 as a collaboration between chef Scott Dicks, sommelier Kyle Michael, and the team behind Farm One Forty – a 140-acre regenerative farm just outside Saskatoon. The idea was simple: serve food from the farm, prepared by a chef with fine-dining chops, in a space that felt casual enough to drop by for a cocktail and a snack. Nearly everything on the menu is grown, raised, or foraged in Saskatchewan, and what isn’t local is still sourced with care. The name “Odla” is Swedish for “to farm or to cultivate,” and it reflects the restaurant’s ongoing focus on seasonal prairie ingredients. The bar program is just as thoughtful, with house-fermented shrubs, syrups, and cocktails that highlight prairie spirits and fruit.
24. View Fine Craft at the Saskatchewan Craft Council
The Saskatchewan Craft Council Gallery & Fine Craft Boutique is a nonprofit arts space that’s been running since 1975. It began as a way to support Saskatchewan artists, and today it hosts six to eight contemporary craft exhibitions a year, while offering a curated retail shop of work made by SCC-certified artisans.
The gallery presents solo, touring, or juried shows in mediums like ceramics, fiber, glass, and wood. changing every few months. Adjoining that is the boutique: handcrafted one‑of‑a‑kind jewelry, stained glass, hand‑woven textiles, sculptural wood pieces, pottery, fine paper goods, and wearable art.
25. Meet the Cows at Sunnyside Dairy
Bas and Martha Froese-Kooijenga run Sunnyside Creamery, a small family-run dairy farm just north of Saskatoon. In 2019, they became the first in Saskatchewan to offer self-serve pasteurized milk on tap. The automated dispenser sits beside their Farmyard Market store – bring a clean jar or pick up a reusable bottle onsite, press a button, and fill up for about $2.50 per litre. If you’re just after a taste, a quarter gets you a small sip.
The milk is non-homogenized and comes from a herd of roughly 30 Holstein cows raised just steps from the creamery. Inside the adjacent market, you’ll find yogurt, cream, cheese curds, and butter, as well as sausages, perogies, preserves, honey, and baking sourced either from the farm or nearby producers. Around the property, visitors can also find rabbits, goats, pigs, and of course, cows.
26. Pick up a Souvenir at Hardpressed Print Studio
Hardpressed Print Studio was founded in 2012 by local designer Justin Harder as a small screenprinting project focused on Saskatchewan-inspired graphics. It’s since become a Saskatoon fixture, with a storefront and working print studio sharing the same space. Most of what’s sold – T-shirts, sweatshirts, tote bags, posters, and stickers – is both designed and printed in-house, and you can usually catch the press and screens in action at the back of the shop.
The designs draw heavily on local imagery: grain elevators, prairie birds, bison, small-town highway signs, hockey rinks, and other unmistakably Saskatchewan icons. If like me, you’re not a fan of made-in-China “I heart [city]” souvenirs, this is the kind of shop to pick up something that you’ll actually wear.
27. Learn Immigrant Stories at the Ukrainian Museum
The Ukrainian Museum of Canada is a small by-donation museum that focuses on Ukrainian settlement and culture in the Prairies, especially Saskatchewan. It’s been around since the 1930s and moved into its current building near the riverfront in 1980. The space is compact – just a few rooms – but packed with textiles, religious items, carvings, embroidery, and artifacts brought over by early Ukrainian immigrants or made by their descendants.
The permanent exhibit covers immigration, homesteading, and community life through objects and photographs, mostly from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The temporary exhibit space rotates every few months and usually features either folk art, Ukrainian-Canadian artists, or special collections tied to seasonal events.
28. Step Inside a Cockpit at the Aviation Museum
The Saskatchewan Aviation Museum is a volunteer-run hangar museum located near the Saskatoon airport, featuring a collection of military trainers, bush planes, and Cold War-era jets. Most of the aircraft are housed indoors, wing to wing in a spacious hangar, A few are open for visitors to climb inside – if you can squeeze in. The museum also includes a flight simulator and an active restoration workshop where volunteers work on aircraft in various stages of repair. Outside, additional planes are on display, including one that’s available for flights.
29. Cool Off at Parkerview Brews Kombucha
Parkerview Brews began in 2017 when Amy Kaban started brewing kombucha at home and selling small batches at the Saskatoon Farmers’ Market. By 2018 she had opened a taproom and brewery on 36th Street East. The business has since grown into Saskatchewan’s largest kombucha producer. The taproom is housed in the front portion of their brewery – a modest space with large windows facing the street. Inside, you can fill growlers or cups from draft or take home cans.
30. Start Your Day at Living SKy Café
Living Sky Café, opened in May 2018 by Taylor Morrison, has become a favorite spot for locals and visitors alike in Saskatoon. The café focuses on locally sourced ingredients, and though they’re open until 3, I suggest coming in early for breakfast. On the way out, make sure to check out thes mall market space. Here, you’ll find a selection of house-made jams, sauces, dressings, and syrups – perfect for taking home or as gifts.
31. Try Saskatchewan Spirits at Stumbletown
Stumbletown Distillery was founded in 2016 by Craig Holland and has built a reputation in Saskatoon for producing small-batch spirits with a strong local identity, one of the most important things for me when visiting local distilleries. The distillery uses Saskatchewan-grown grains—including purple wheat, lentils, and quinoa—to craft its vodka, whiskey, and an especially impressive range of gins that highlight regional botanicals. Of the two distilleries I visited in the city, Stumbletown stood out for the creativity of its spirits, as well as the well-made cocktails served in its tasting room.
Not a cocktail lover? The space is also home to City Limits Brewing, a microbrewery operating under the same roof. Visitors can sample both spirits and beers in tasting flights, and of course purchase bottles and cans directly on site.
31. Chow Down at goblin’s Grill
In 2023, Danny Demchenko and Jody Taylor opened Goblin’s Grill in a small strip mall, bringing traditional goblin burgers, hot dogs, poutine, sandwiches, and milkshakes to Saskatoon for the first time. After decades running fast food franchises around the city, they were ready to do something smaller and more local.
The menu’s short, but a lot of thought went into the basics. They worked with Prairie Meats on a custom chuck and brisket blend that’s ground fresh daily. Nestor’s Bakery makes their potato buns, and Pig and Pantry developed the deli meats. You order your burgers at the till and wait until your name is shouted out.
With burgers regularly creeping toward $30 in other places, paying under $20 here feels like a win. I tried the War Pig, which is absolutely loaded up with bacon – and not the paper-thin fast food kind either. The milkshakes and poutine looked just as promising – I’ll be back for those.
32. Catch a Show at Amigos
If you’re visiting Saskatoon (or anywhere really), catching a live show is one of the best ways to get a feel for the city’s personality and maybe even make a couple new friends. The local music scene punches above its weight, so it’s unlikely you’ll be disappointed.
Amigos Cantina has been a cornerstone of the city’s music scene since 1988. It’s one of the city’s most iconic venues, known for its lively atmosphere and stacked calendar of shows that feature both local bands and touring acts. The space is casual and dive-y in all the best ways – dim lighting, cheap drinks, and a stage just big enough to get loud.
It also doubles as a Tex-Mex restaurant, serving up hefty burritos, enchiladas, quesadillas, and nachos that are honestly better than you’d expect. A big fat burrito with a cold beer is hard to beat while waiting for the headliner to go on.
33. Shop Local Crafts at Handmade House
Handmade House is a long-standing artist-run cooperative founded in the early 1970s by five women who launched a seasonal Christmas craft shop. Strong community interest turned it into a full‑time venture, and today it represents over 100 Saskatchewan artisans and makers, with a rotating roster of working members who staff the store and manage new stock.
Inside, you’ll find a wide mix of fine craft mediums: ceramics, woven textiles, glass and metal art, woodwork, jewelry, printed stationery, and wall art. Everything is handmade in Saskatchewan and if you want to bring me back a gift, maybe this is the place to find it.
34. Try Spruce Tip Ice Cream at Fable
Fable Ice Cream was founded by Jordan and Lauren Ethridge and opened in June 2017. They began with a small shop serving scratch-made ice cream using organic milk and cane sugar, with as many locally sourced ingredients as possible.
Their original storefront outgrew its space, and in 2025 they expanded into the adjacent unit, creating a larger shop with cozy indoor seating and a full coffee menu beside the ice cream offerings. The core product remains small-batch ice cream: unique flavors like Prairie Berry Lavender, Sour Cherry Cheesecake, Spruce Tip, Vegan Toasted Coconut, and more standard options like Madagascar Vanilla and Salted Caramel.
39. Take a Distillery Tour at Lucky Bastard
Lucky Bastard Distillers opened in 2012, but the story started six years earlier when Michael Goldney and Lacey Crocker won $14.6 million in the Lotto 6/49. Too young to retire, they teamed up with their friend Cary Bowman to open a craft distillery – Saskatoon’s first since prohibition. Their most popular product is their dill pickle vodka, but I found myself more drawn to their more locally inspired products; sour cherry, haskap, and saskatoon berry liqueurs all highlight Saskatoon ingredients. Tours are free with advance notice, so it’s worth calling or emailing ahead. They also host cocktail classes regularly if you’re curious about how to actually use those bottles once you get them home.
40. Grab Saskatchewan Goods at SaskMade Marketplace
SaskMade Marketplace was opened by the Saskatchewan Food Producers Association in the early 2000s to connect local farmers and producers with a broader Saskatoon audience. It’s set up like a small grocery store on 8th Street East, but nearly everything inside – jams, pickles, baking, frozen meals, sauces, soap, meat, and gift boxes – is made somewhere in Saskatchewan.
The space is clean and straightforward: wide aisles, a few coolers for perishable goods, and shelves lined with local preserves, mustard, teas, and baking mixes. A freezer section near the back holds perogies, bison burgers, and Saskatoon-berry desserts. You’ll also find handmade soap, beeswax products, and spice blends near the front counter. It’s also worth checking out the small selection of Saskatchewan-focussed cookbooks in order to get some inspiration.
