Accessories in the rooms?

I know that microwaves aren't included with the hotel rooms.

I'm not sure about refrigerators or not, I'll let someone from the Westin comment on that.

It's a hotel room, not a suite.
Hotel rooms generally do not have a microwave oven or a refrigerator.
That is true in this case as well.

If you reserve a suite at the Westin, that's a different story. And I don't know what those have.

A little ingenuity means using the ice machine down the hall,
and someone mentioned using the coffee maker to boil water.

The answer I got from our hotel contact was:

We only have limited rooms that do provide mini refrigerators. We also, have a limited stock for people that request them; however, we will not be able to accommodate everyone. Also, there are NOT any microwaves available for any of the rooms.

Firstly, Hotels don't want you cooking in the rooms, because of the risk of fire from burning food or cooking oil, or from overheated or unattended appliances; then there is the issue of leaving the room smelling like a kitchen; it will have to be thoroughly aired-out and deodorised before another guest can be lodged there.

Secondly, this hotel has this marvelous energy-saving setup, where the power is turned off to the room, when you aren't there; it relies on you inserting your keycard in a slot by the door, before the power in the room - for lights, wall outlets, TV, heating/airconditioning - will come on. When you leave the room, you are expected to take the keycard with you. So forget about a mini-fridge, keeping your drinks chilled.

Instead, use an ice-chest. Good ice-chests can keep supplies chilled without requiring re-icing for typically 2 days. If you want to travel light, consider one of the new, collapsible beverage cooler bags, which fold up and fit in your luggage when not in use. I can put 9 pre-chilled cans of coke in one, and with one icing, still have cold drinks and vestiges of ice-cubes 18 hours later.

About the cooking - the hotel would really rather that you didn't...but a microwave or a crockpot, used with due caution, might satisfy. Toaster-ovens, hot-plates, or _anything_ with an open-flame should be regarded as stricktly verbotten. The crockpot would be the best bet, set up wherever the hotel's coffee-brewer is perched (taking measures to protect the surface of whatever this happens to be), is probably the best, safest bet, make sure not to overfill it, nor set the heat higher than necessary to simmer something with a high-moisture content (don't let it dry out!), no fast-cooking here.

You can make a creditable pot roast or beef stew with one of these, or things wrapped in aluminum foil and immersed in simmering water or broth; hot dogs, or beef patties in cream-of-mushroom soup for gravy...when done cooking with a crockpot, if there is any greasy residue left in the pot, drain it off into a container (like an empty cocktail peanuts can), DO NOT POUR IT INTO THE SINK OR TOILET!, dispose of the grease container in a garbage bag, and into one of the wastebaskets.

Cooking with any such restrictive appliance is an art, I suggest practice before coming to a convention.