Saskatoon

Saskatoon straddles the South Saskatchewan River with a series of bridges linking its halves, and the riverbank park system that runs through the middle of the city is its defining feature.

The Meewasin Valley Trail follows both banks for tens of kilometres through the centre of the city, past the Bessborough hotel, the Remai Modern art gallery and the weir. Downtown sits on the west bank with Broadway Avenue's independent shops and theatres directly across the river in Nutana, the oldest neighbourhood in the city.

The University of Saskatchewan occupies a large greystone campus on the east bank and anchors both research employment and the rental market. Established neighbourhoods such as City Park, Varsity View and Caswell Hill sit near the core, while Stonebridge, Evergreen and the newer suburbs ring the edges.

Potash and agriculture underpin the wider economy, with the university and health system the largest in city employers. Housing is substantially cheaper than in Calgary or Vancouver, and Saskatoon regularly posts some of the strongest rental yields among Canadian cities.