The best part about the North Rim of the Grand Canyon has to be the Lodge which is built right on the rim of the canyon. There are many trails for hiking from the North Rim but the drive from outside of the park is very long which is why you should plan ahead and reserve your spot at the North Rim Lodge before making the drive. Other than camping, this is your only bet for a place to stay because there really is nothing outside of the North Rim area of the park.
But the best thing about the lodge is not having a place to stay but all of the programs they have to keep you entertained. We were at the Lodge on a night when they had an astronomy program. Through the telescope you could see Jupiter and all of its moons and the guy manning the telescope was able to point out all of the constellations which was impressive because I have never seen so many stars in the sky.