We go to Ottawa 2-3 times per year for a get-a-way. We always stay at the Lord Elgin! Why?
The staff are friendly, helpful and welcoming.
The room is cozy and quiet - get one that faces Confederation Park.
The dining room staff are lovely. On our last visit we had an ill family member in hospital and we were so tired - the server was just so accommodating and kept the coffee coming.
The location of the hotel is great for the National Arts Centre, the Rideau Centre and Byward Market.
And did I mention that there is a Starbucks in the hotel. I live in a small town = no strong coffee - so Starbucks is a super treat.
We love this hotel, we make memories and we always come back!

The Lord Elgin is a nice for a good price. It has the look and style of the old style high end hotels but could use a bit of renovation in the lobby and common areas, it doesn't strictly need a renovation but it would probably make the hotel look very nice. The hotel staff were friendly, especially the front desk who helped me out quite a bit. Rooms are clean and comfortable. Exercise equipment is in good condition, the pool and hot tub were nice, on cold days the hot tub was a nice way to relax.

Only thing of note is that the rooms are all wired internet, no wireless. That's not a big deal for me and given the concrete construction of the building I can definitely see that wireless would be problematic, a good wired connection beats a poor wireless one any day.

Overall I enjoyed the hotel and would stay there again.

We stayed here last year for Winterlude. Our room overlooked the park with a spectacular view of the city. This hotel had everything we needed and more. Great location, great staff, great rooms, etc. We enjoyed talking to the guys working the valet. It seemed that most of them were hockey players. The hotel is also conveniently located close to all winterlude activities and the byward market. We would absolutely stay here again next time we visit Ottawa.

I've been to Ottawa a few times already for business and I found the hotels to vary in customer relations and room quality. The Lord Elgin is a great place to stay. The staff are very friendly and helpful and the on-site restaurant, Grill 41, is great. I don't particularily like Starbucks but there is one at the hotel.

The location of the hotel is great. There are quite a few restaurants down Elgin street and the Rideau Center is a short walk across the park to the Sears entrance.

The room itself was very small but it got the job done. I'm not sure whether it's because of the old architecture that the rooms are so small because I've had this same experience with another hotel which was at one time a fort. I think the dimensions of the room may have been about 10ft x 15ft (not including the bathroom). The bathroom was also on the small side, with the lavatory sitting behind the door.

All in all, the stay was enjoyable. Next time I'll try and see if they have a larger room.