Festivals make summer the easiest time to visit, when Territorial Days and a rodeo come to town. North Battleford lies on the North Saskatchewan River in west-central Saskatchewan, a city of about 14,000 that pairs with Battleford just across the water. Together they are called the Battlefords, and North Battleford has long acted as the gateway to the north of the province.
Visitors get a few solid history stops: the Western Development Museum with its recreated 1910 boomtown, Fort Battleford National Historic Site over in Battleford, and the Allen Sapp Gallery. Battlefords Provincial Park is close for beaches and camping, and river valley trails wind through town. Winter means junior hockey. Costs are low, with affordable homes and rents. The honest tradeoff is safety. Crime rates are among the highest of Saskatchewan cities, concentrated downtown and in inner-city blocks, so take care after dark. Winters are severe, and blizzards are common.
Cities with a similar character, anywhere on the site.
Out of 10. Open any score to see how it’s worked out. “Data-based” scores come from published figures; “Hey! En Route estimate” scores are worked out from what we know about the city; “Hey! En Route rating” scores were set by our editors.
- Known as
- The Battlefords; Gateway to the North; Saskatchewan's seventh largest city; home of the Western Development Museum and Sask Polytechnic Battlefords campus; twin of Battleford across the river
- Founded
- 1905 railway arrival and settlement; 1906 village; 1907 town; 1913 city (population 5,000)
- Languages
- English (dominant); Cree, Michif and Dene spoken by First Nations and Metis communities; French, Ukrainian and Tagalog by small groups; English is sufficient for all visitor services
- Airports
- North Battleford (Cap Kitchen) Airport (CYQW), small, seasonal or limited scheduled service; Saskatoon John G. Diefenbaker International (YXE), about 140 km southeast (about 1 hour 30 minutes by car); Edmonton International (YEG), about 480 km west; Lloydminster Airport (about 130 km west)
- Tipping
- Restaurants 15-20% of the pre-tax bill; bars $1-2 per drink or 15-20% of tab; taxis and rideshare 10-15%; hotel housekeeping $3-5 per night; bellhops $2-5 per bag; tour guides 10-15%; counter service optional (all amounts CAD; Saskatchewan adds 5% GST plus 6% PST on most goods and services, so about 11% tax on listed prices)
About this data
Population 13,836 (city) and CA 19,374 (2021 Census), area 33.55 sq km, elevation 548 m, coordinates and dates are from Wikipedia (fetched); the metro figure is the North Battleford census agglomeration. visitor_website (Battlefords tourism site) and event_calendar (City of North Battleford home page, no dedicated events page seen) were not confirmed by fetch; these are the regional and city sites. Event names and months, hotel ranges, rent, prices, crime index, cost of living and distances are recalled or approximate and not verified. All money in CAD.
