Whilst Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal might be heavyweights when it comes to strip bars, sex clubs and erotic massage, what can Saskatoon and Regina offer the adult tourist looking for fun?
With a population of just over a million people, Saskatchewan is home to just 3% of the population of Canada and is the 6th largest of the country’s 13 provinces. As a result of its diminutive size and lack of major cities, Saskatchewan is often said to be lacking in many of the facilities that are afforded to areas like Ontario, Quebec and British Colombia. In particular, the adult entertainment scene in Saskatchewan is said to be sorely lacking by comparison
In this guide, we find out more about the adult entertainment in Saskatchewan and whether it truly is the worst province for these kind of delights.
Saskatchewan in Summary
Saskatchewan is a prairie province in western Canada and although a sizable one, is covered by a lot of fresh water lakes, rivers and reservoirs as well as forests in the North. It has no coast, not natural borders and, outside of the two principle cities of Regina and Saskatoon, is sparsely populated. In fact, over half of the population of Saskatchewan live in and around these two metropolitan areas.
Cities like Saskatoon and Regina are quite busy but are minnows compared to a metropolis like Montreal, Vancouver and Toronto. Image via MaxPixel.
The main economy in the province is energy, mining and agriculture with few notable landmarks, cultural attractions or tourist destinations. As a result, the number of visitors to the area is considerably lower than Canada’s busiest visitor hot spots:
- Toronto
- Montreal
- Vancouver/Whistler
- Niagara Falls
- Vancouver Island
- Calgary
- Rockies
- Okanagan Valley
- Ottawa
Of course, Saskatchewan does have plenty of redeeming features including the highest density of golf courses per capita, the remains of the largest T-Rex found in North American and some great museums.
Saskatchewan and the Adult Entertainment Industry
Stripping in Saskatchewan has effectively been banned since a change in the law in 2015 restricted such activity to unlicensed premises. There was a brief spell from 2014 to 2015 when stripping was legalized in bars but the change to restrict the activity to premises that didn’t serve liquor proved that ‘dry’ strip clubs were not popular.
Stripping and liquor laws are tight in Saskatchewan and you wont find them together. Image via Wikimedia Commons.
The exception to the rule is that stripping is allowed once a year for charity events where licensed premises may apply for a special permit to host such an event. All the proceeds must go to charity and local government are particularly strict about those establishments that are granted a stripping license.
The laws follow a long-held belief in the province that strip clubs are inherently linked to organized crime and human trafficking. Residents of Saskatchewan are fed a government doctrine that supports this view including comments made by retired police officer, Richard Lepp who has been particularly vocal on the issue of stripping in Saskatchewan. His statement that he believed (during his time on the force):
“the majority of booking agencies in Canada handling the contracts of exotic dancers had direct ties to organized crime.”
has certainly been influential on the direction that local legislation has taken. But, are the authorities right to be taking such a hard line?
Well, according to the Maclean’s Database on Canada’s crime rates, Saskatchewan takes the top spot for the most dangerous place in the country for 2018 with North Battleford with an off-the-scale crime severity index (CSI) of 353 (compared to the second placed Thompson, Manitoba at 284).
Three other Saskatchewan towns and cities appear on the top 25 list:
- 3rd most dangerous place in Canada – Prince Albert (CSI 244)
- 13th most dangerous place in Canada – Yorkton (CSI 149)
- 20th most dangerous place in Canada – Regina (CSI 132)
- 22nd most dangerous place in Canada – Saskatoon (CSI 128)
Regina (and Saskatoon) are two of the crime capitals of Canada. Image via Flickr.
In fact, Saskatoon and Regina are considered the two crime capitals of Canada given their size and CSI rating.
So, it might be little wonder that the province is so famously strait-laced on the issue of stripping if there is any hint that these venues are linked to organised crime.
Since the change in legislation, Saskatchewan’s last strip bar, the Codette Hotel, is now forced to offer karaoke and hypnotist shows instead of nude dancers.
But, what about other adult services? How does Saskatchewan compare to other provinces?
Saskatchewan Compared
According to the 2016 Census, Saskatchewan is the 6th largest province in Canada with a population of 1,098,352 people (3.1% of Canada’s 35.1 million residents). This compares to other provinces as follows:
| Canadian Province | Population | Proportion |
| Ontario | 13,448,494 | 38.30% |
| Quebec | 8,164,361 | 23.20% |
| British Columbia | 4,648,055 | 13.20% |
| Alberta | 4,067,175 | 11.60% |
| Manitoba | 1,278,365 | 3.60% |
| Saskatchewan | 1,098,352 | 3.10% |
| Nova Scotia | 923,598 | 2.60% |
| New Brunswick | 747,101 | 2.10% |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 519,716 | 1.50% |
| Prince Edward Island | 142,907 | 0.41% |
| Northwest Territories | 41,786 | 0.12% |
| Nunavut | 35,944 | 0.10% |
| Yukon | 35,874 | 0.10% |
The five most populous regions in Canada account for almost 90% of the country’s residents so it is little wonder that most of the country’s entertainment can also be found in these areas. So, how does Saskatchewan compare on the matrix of adult entertainment venues?
| Canadian Province | Escorts (1) | Erotic Massage (2) | Sex Shops (3) | Swingers Clubs (4) |
| Ontario | 355 | 355 | 107 | 11 |
| Quebec | 333 | 96 | 47 | 3 |
| British Columbia | 133 | 67 | 109 | – |
| Alberta | 199 | 89 | 50 | 5 |
| Manitoba | 49 | 7 | 3 | – |
| Saskatchewan | 3 | 7 | 6 | – |
| Nova Scotia | 3 | – | 10 | – |
| New Brunswick | 5 | 3 | 5 | – |
| Newfoundland & Labrador | – | 9 | 4 | – |
| Prince Edward Island | – | – | – | – |
| Northwest Territories | – | – | – | – |
| Nunavut | – | – | – | – |
| Yukon | – | – | 1 | – |
- Figures taken from number of escorts in largest cities in province registered with EscortDirectory.com
- Figures taken from rubmaps.ca
- Figures taken from Google search
- Figures taken from SwingersClubList.com
Of course, there are additional clubs that are not listed on these matrices which appear on other lists but as a general guide, we can clearly see that Saskatchewan does fall somewhat short, by comparison, when it comes to adult entertainment.
Is Saskatchewan the worst province for adult entertainment? The residents of Yukon might have something to say about that! Image via GoodFreePhotos.
However, we can categorically state that Saskatchewan is not the worst province for adult entertainment as residents of the Yukon, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories can clearly attest. However, for quality, quantity and diversity of adult entertainment, the five most populous regions win hands down for giving tourists and residents a good time.
Featured image via Wikimedia Commons.
