Night flying's great. Especially x-country.
The official benefit is that the rating (as it was) allows you to take passengers at night. Without one you can still fly solo at night. Personally, I put it in the box marked "extra safety precautions" for those occasions when the darkness reaches your airfield before you do. Like having a maglite in the bag "just in case".
Just one proviso though. Lots of people put their airstrips to bed at night, so it is not a "get out of jail free" card.
Still it's good fun, and does not expire.
