Watrous and Manitou Beach: unsinkable fun for all

Find a variety of fun that bridges the generation gap

by Gail Jansen-Kesslar — April 14, 2013

kids in pool — The pools of Manitou Springs are fun for the whole family. — Photo courtesy Watrous Manitou Marketing Group

Saskatchewan’s Watrous/Manitou Beach area is the home of the famous Manitou Springs spa waters, once the most popular hot springs in all of Canada. There’s new life in the springs these days, with recent renovations making the pools a favourite family destination while the day spa—which features new additions—offers a break from the kids.

RV park and golf

With a variety of pull-through, serviced and non-powered sites for RVs, the Manitou & District Regional Park boasts a playground for younger campers as well as trails to nearby Wellington Park, where you can have a little stroll beside the stream, claim a picnic table for lunch, visit Wellington’s playground or pick saskatoon berries in season.

The park also offers golf and camping packages that give you two nights of camping along with two nine-hole rounds of golf with power cart and two buckets of range balls. And with a nearby minigolf course overlooking the beach and disc golf for those who like golfing of a completely different variety, there’s plenty of fun to be had within walking distance.

Watch a movie or dance the night away

Perhaps one of the area’s most popular attractions for families of all generations is the Jubilee Drive-In. One of the last active drive-in theatres in the province, the Jubilee offers a trip down memory lane for older family members and a fun introduction to the drive-in movie for kids of all ages. Just don’t forget the blankets and pillows for those who can’t stay up past the opening credits. Open weekends from May to October and nightly through July and August, the drive-in offers a great way to help bridge the generation gap.

The same can be said of the wildly popular Toonie Tuesdays evenings at Danceland, Manitou’s historic landmark dance hall built in 1928. For a toonie you can dance the night away on the world’s only remaining dance floor built atop a cushion of horsetail hair.

Unsinkable fun

For kids of all ages, the biggest attraction at Watrous/Manitou Beach will always be the beaches themselves. Here you’ll find three, each with its own washroom and shower facilities, a playground and access to Little Manitou Lake. Kids always have unsinkable fun in the lake’s buoyant water thanks to the rich mineral content. Little Manitou is said to possess healing powers similar to those found in the Dead Sea of Israel.

Watrous Fun Run Show ’n' Shine

One of rural Saskatchewan’s largest car shows, the Watrous Fun Run Show ’n' Shine features a full day’s offering of family-friendly activities, starting with a pancake breakfast and followed up with some great free, family-friendly entertainment. This year it takes place July 28.

Filled with classic cars, muscle cars, trucks, motorcycles and customs with a few specialty cars and antique tractors thrown in for good measure, the Watrous Fun Run Show ‘n Shine is now in its 20th year. While cars will fill the attention span of your family’s car aficionados, younger family members will find amusement throughout the day provided by Saskatchewan’s Agility Dogs, Beeper the Clown, face painting, kid’s entertainers, a giant rummage sale and much more.

To wind the afternoon down, a parade of all show participants makes its way down the highway between Watrous and Manitou Beach, with locals and visitors lining the streets elbow to elbow. The night finishes with a supper buffet.

Date: July 28, 2013
Location: Main Street Watrous