With early morning ferry reservations looming, we stayed at the Castle Arms so that we would be able to start the day fresh and have a sort drive to the ferry. We were comfortable and well cared for during our short stay. We had dinner in the restaurant and thoroughly enjoyed it. It looks out on a lovely garden area as did our room. The room was spacious and once I got rid of my "inner american"... I was able to figure out the shower controls.
The room was spacious and had tea amenities. If you are British or Scottish, of course you would expect this. I think of it as a wonderful extra!
At breakfast, I was in the mood for only some scrambled eggs and I specifically said that I did not want any toast. The cook must have felt sorry to send out only a plate of eggs and nothing else (even though that was all I wanted) and there must have been an entire dozen on my plate! Anyway, my plate was heaped with a pile of fluffy delicious scrambled eggs. Positively heaped!

Stayed here for a night whilst touring around Scotland. Very handy for visiting the Castle of Mey which is just down the road. The annex room was clean, spacious, comfortable and warm (the heating was on, even though it was early June and the weather was unusually warm!) and had the benefit of easy access to the car park and not having to carry luggage upstairs. We had booked a twin which comprised both a double and a single and were given choice of a room with either bath or shower. Plentiful tea, coffee, biscuits etc in the room. Evening meal was lovely - the Steak and Ale pie was tasty and huge! Service could not have been friendlier.

As most other people have said, this is an acceptably quirky place in an area of Scotland with a derth of good hotels. John & Myra certainly make this hotel a joy to visit. Yes the rooms are a bit "Sixty-ish" Yes they could do with a bit of work, but they are clean and tidy and are good value.
The area had a power cut (Due to storms) just when we arrived and John & Myra took it in their stride. A very nice dinner was served by candle light and the whisky tasted even better in the dim light. The power came back on in time for bed and a good night was had by all.
All in all a delightful stay in a traditional Scottish Inn hosted by traditional Scottish hosts

The Castle Arms is not for you if you want a modern swanky hotel, but you probably won't one of those in Caithness anyway. It has a bit of an amateur feel about it, and in this small village loaction manages to double as the village shop, pub, restaurant and hotel, but it's totally charming and the hosts are friendly, attentive and welcoming.
So, the TV, kettle and shower looked a bit dated, but they all worked perfectly fine, and there was a large selection of teas and coffees in the room, which was round a courtyard garden at the back of the hotel, with easy access to the carpark, without having to walk through the hotel. The bed was very comfortable and the linen fresh and modern, and the breakfast really was outstanding value, with juice, tea, coffee, cereals, a huge supply of toast and a choice of items from a fry up menu, which was delivered piping hot.
The hotel also does evening meals and had a great selection when I was there includng things you won't see in chain hotels - the rabbit stew seeed popular amongst other guests.
You can't fault the location - yes, John O'Groats is a tacky, but the Castle Arms in Mey is just minutes away from the beautiful white sands and dunes at Dunnet Bay, a forest walk, mainland Brtitain's most northerly point at Dunnet Head, the sensational scenery and wildlife at Duncansby Head, the ferry to Orkney and is literally just 100 yards from the Queen Mother's Castle of Mey home.
During a tour of the highlands I was only able to stay one night - I wish I could have stayed longer and wouldn't hesitate to come back.
Plus, the weather was fantastic - I think it's always sunny and warm in the highlands, they just pretend it's always snowing/raining to keep the place to themselves.