EZTrip.com International Destination Guide and Hotel Listings

All long-distance and local bus services use North Battleford bus station , located on the edge of the town centre at 75 E Railway Ave; there's a daily service leaving Saskatoon for North Battleford at 5.15pm (4.30pm on Sat). The Tourist Information Centre (June-Aug daily 8am-8pm; tel 445-6226) is on the outskirts 2km away, at the junction of hwys 16 and 40 East, and there's also one in the Fred Light Museum (mid-May to Aug daily 9am-8pm; tel 937-7111) in Battleford, at the junction of hwys 4 and 40. City buses connect the two towns, and there's also one taxi firm, Crown Cab (tel 445-8155), which charges about $12 for the trip from the bus station to Fort Battleford.

Most of North Battleford's central hotels are dispiriting, the haunt of the drunk and the dispossessed. Better alternatives include the Best Canada Motor Inn , on the corner of 11th Avenue and 100th Street (tel 445-8115 or 445-2447; up to $40), with reasonably comfortable rooms, and the pleasant Tropical Inn , on Hwy 16 (tel 446-4700 or 1-800/219-5244; $40-100), about 1km east along the Yellowhead from the bus station. North Battleford is short on good restaurants - but there are several cheap and central places with filling menus. Try the Dragon Palace , 1292 101st St at 13th Avenue, where simple Chinese dishes start at $6.75; or O'Grady's , 2491 99th St, serving up standard steak-and-rib fare. Alternatively, Smitty's Family Restaurant , just outside the town centre in the Tropical Inn , has good, basic dishes from $9, and Da Vinci's , also in the Inn , features some Saskatchewan specialities on its menu.

Battleford has just one motel , the popular Five Star , 322 22nd St W (tel 937-2651; up to $40-80), with simple, clean air-conditioned rooms, plus large family units with kitchenettes. The town also has a splendid campsite - the Eiling Kramer Campground (tel 937-6212 or 937-6216; $11-14; early May to Sept) - overlooking the river valley from beside Fort Battleford. For food , Pennydale Junction , in a converted 1908 CNR train station at 92 22nd St and Main Street, has great seafood, pizzas and steaks from $12. The Saskatchewan Handcraft Festival , held in the town each mid-July, is one of the largest and best for crafts in the province.