Based on a discussion of how long to stay in the Orkneys, I decided to spend 4 nights (14-18 May) in Kirkwall. I will use train and ferry to get there and fly back to Aberdeen.
I previously decided to take the ScotRail scenic route to Thurso and a bus to John o' Groats on 13 May, spend the night and take the JoG ferry to Orkney the next morning. I must admit that I was strongly influenced by sticky toffee pudding on the menu of the place I would likely stay in JoG.
Now, I'm not so sure about where to stay or what ferry to take. The JoG ferry takes about half the time, but John o' Groats is a very tiny village and requires a bus ride from Thurso. Most people who responded to the earlier question spent the night in Thurso and took the Scrabster ferry.
Is there any advantage to taking one ferry over the other or staying one night in one town over the other? The departure times for the two ferries are almost the same. Both have buses that meet them. Does one go by better scenery than the other?