5 quick overnight trips from Regina

JennSmith Nelson is a writer and a travel columnist onThe Morning Edition.

Looking for a getaway that is more than a day and less than a week, yet not too far from Regina?There are several options to choose from with some suggested activities that vary between twoto fivehours.

Grasslands National Park 3 hours, 48 minutes away

Grasslands National Park is a vastpark in southernSaskatchewanthat is broken up into east and west blocks.

Grasslands National Park offers tipi camping in both blocks.

It is Canada's darkest Dark Sky Preserve and the perfect place to stargaze and if you are lucky, catch the Northern Lights.In fact, the Astronomical Society is on hand with telescopes for visitors to use asthey walk you through the constellations during a night tour (available in bothblocks).

Our recent trip to the west block of Grasslands included a hike up to 70 MileButte to catch the sunset (2.5 km). It's a very easyhike for the kids but plan to spend about an hour trekking up. It's a great way to take in the view.

I highly recommend taking advantage of the great Parks Canada programmingavailable. My boys became Junior Naturalists for an afternoon. Equipped withdigital cameras, they had interpretive staff teaching them all about local flora,animals of the park and more.

We also did a guided Eco Tour with Parks Canada stopping at five very cool stopsin the west block. This included a visit to two black-tailed prairie dog colonies, amarsh where the boys were armed with nets and caught frogs andalassoinglessonat Larson Homestead.

Over the course of three days we sawhundreds of bison, aburrowing owl, a fox, a badger and scads of deer!

Be sure to pick up a Parks CanadaXplorersbooklet.The booklet will help keep kids busy and theyare full ofactivities for kids.

Yorkton 2 hours, 2 minutes away

I like Yorkton.It seems to have one of everything including a super water park at theGallagher Centre that my kidsabsolutely love. With a lazy river, wave pool andtwo-story waterslide, you could have trouble pulling your kids out of the water. I am seaking from experience here.

I likeYorkton.It seems to have one of everything.- JennSmith Nelson

TheBMX and skateboardpark off Broadway Avenue is a perfect stop for active boys like mine

Also be sure to add Yorkton's Western Development Museumwhich chroniclesthe stories of immigrants to Saskatchewan.

Saskatoon 2 hours, 39 minutes away

The tough part with Saskatoon is narrowing down just what to do because there is so much!

Hike the trails of Wanuskewin Heritage Park andlearn all about the area's rich First Nation's history.Overnight teepeecampouts are available along with interesting exhibits and liveperformances.

You can also visit the Saskatoon Zoo.

Definitely check out Valley Road. Ithas farmer's markets, you-pick hotspots such asTierra del Sol and Berry Barn and you can't missCrickle Creek whichfeatures ice cream, mini golf and bouncy castles!

Also downtown, across from the new Remai Modern Art Gallery is a fantastic play area on the banks of the Saskatchewan River.

Hop aboard The Prairie Lily River boatfor a different perspective of the city.

Cypress Hills (Maple Creek) 3 hours, 49 minutes away

Great camping, boating, someof the Saskatchewan's best trout fishing and other activities await in Cypress.

The whole family will enjoya visit to Cypress Hills Eco-Adventureswhich features a high ropes adventure course, zip lines, treetopdrop, mini-zips, slack lines and a great rock-climbing wall

Also nearby and worth a stop is National Historic SiteFort Walsh. Take a step back in time to learn how the Northwest Mounted Police broughtlaw to the West.

Waskesiu, Prince Albert National Park 5 hours, 31 minutes away

Another great spotto try camping out is Prince Albert National Park.

By day,soak up the sun on the beaches of Waskesiu Lake, then plan to hike onone of the many trails

Take a drive down the Narrows Road in search of rich wildlife; fish the Heartlakes or canoe/portage to Grey Owl's Cabin.

If you can't make it to Cypress to zip, don't worry as Eco-Adventures recentlyopened a new zip line course up at Elk Ridge Resort.