Grand Canyon's remote, wild and forgotten North Rim is far less developed, and sees far fewer visitors that its southern counterpart. In part this is due to seasonal closure: at these altitudes (8000ft) the winter snows shut things down between October 15 and May 15. The road from Jacob Lake stays open longer, for day use and car camping – usually until the end of November.
Grand Canyon National Park North Rim
Top choice in Grand Canyon National Park
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
Cape Royal
8.11 MILES
Strategically located on the southernmost tip of the North Rim high above the great westward turn of the Colorado River, Cape Royal takes in almost every…
Grand Canyon National Park
11.85 MILES
Forged by millions of years of erosion by the Colorado River, the Grand Canyon captures the history, scale and beauty of the American West. Overlooks peer…
Kolb Studio
11.04 MILES
In 1905 Ellsworth and Emery Kolb built a small photography studio on the edge of the rim, which has since been expanded and now holds a bookstore and a…
Desert View Watchtower
16.5 MILES
The marvelously worn winding staircase of Mary Colter's 70ft stone tower, built in 1932, leads to one of the highest spots on the rim. From here, slats in…
Grand Canyon Lodge
0.19 MILES
Enter the front door of the lodge and see...the Grand Canyon, somehow looking even larger framed by the massive windows of the sunroom. Built in 1937 out…
Shoshone Point
10.68 MILES
Walk about 1 mile along the mostly level and shaded dirt road to marvelously uncrowded Shoshone Point, a rocky promontory with some of the canyon’s best…
Trail of Time
9.94 MILES
This outdoor interpretative display traces the history of the canyon's formation – each meter equals one million years of geologic history, for a total of…
Hermits Rest
13.04 MILES
Commissioned by the Fred Harvey Company and designed by Mary Colter in 1913, this low-flung stone building is the South Rim's westernmost scenic overlook …
Nearby Grand Canyon National Park attractions
1. Grand Canyon Lodge
0.19 MILES
Enter the front door of the lodge and see...the Grand Canyon, somehow looking even larger framed by the massive windows of the sunroom. Built in 1937 out…
2. Bright Angel Point
0.36 MILES
An easily accessible overlook that gives unfettered views down into Bright Angel Canyon: a maze of mesas, buttes, spires and side canyons. The South Rim…
3. Point Imperial
6.84 MILES
The highest viewpoint in Grand Canyon National Park (8819ft) takes in the entirety of Marble Canyon as it cuts northeastward into the Painted Desert…
4. Walhalla Glades Pueblo
7.6 MILES
Around 900 years ago, as the growth of the village on Unkar delta outpaced its farming output, a group of Ancestral Puebloans established a summer…
6. Cape Royal
8.11 MILES
Strategically located on the southernmost tip of the North Rim high above the great westward turn of the Colorado River, Cape Royal takes in almost every…
7. Plateau Point
8.21 MILES
A spectacular overlook with incredible river views, Plateau Point is accessible via a 1.5-mile spur trail off the South Rim's inner-canyon Bright Angel…
8. Cedar Ridge
9.59 MILES
Located 1.5 miles along the challenging South Kaibab Trail, with a descent of 1040ft, this large and flat red-dirt overlook offers some of the best views…