Couple planning Puerto Vallarta wedding claims discrimination

The pair had been planning their wedding for months, including a trip to PV to check out prospective venues. They say a tour of the Sheraton Buganvilias Resort won them over, with hospitable staff and a price within their range.

But the couple’s experience with the hotel’s wedding planner deteriorated over a succession of efforts to lock the wedding in. When a quote finally arrived after three months, Alexander and Sheepwash were provided with an outrageous estimate of the bill.

The invoice said 25 deluxe, all-inclusive ocean view rooms would set guests back $970 each; the hotel demanded a $36,000 deposit for half of the rooms.

“It’s not reasonable,” Alexander said. “No one can afford that.”

It was also much more than the hotel had initially quoted the couple. The Sheraton also said they couldn’t accommodate the couple until March of 2027.

Alexander and Sheepwash got engaged in Puerto Vallarta in February 2024.

Shocked at the estimate, the couple decided to ask a straight friend to “request a quote just to see apples to apples what it looks like.”

That inquiry for a hypothetical wedding, planned for the same dates Alexander and Sheepwash wanted, came with a different outcome: a “deluxe package” for 50 people was $8,500, or $254 per person per night, and required a deposit of just $1,700 — on the same dates Alexander and Sheepwash had requested.

“We just feel defeated,” said Sheepwash in the TikTok video. “It’s not fair because we love each other and we really want to get married, and we want to make it special and we want to make it perfect.”

“We felt we’d be indirectly complicit to the system if we’re aware of it and we’re not combating it,” Alexander told NBC News. “That was the major driving factor in us wanting to put the story out there.”

The hotel is a “third-party franchisee” of the Marriott corporation and declined to comment.

Marriott International said in a statement that the company has reached out to the couple “to learn more about their experience and are working with the property to offer a solution.”

“The Sheraton Buganvilias has been active in the LGBTQ community in Puerto Vallarta for years, not only hosting LGBTQ+ weddings and groups but also supporting Pride events in Puerto Vallarta,” the spokesperson said. “Marriott remains steadfast in our commitment to ensure guests are treated with respect and understanding.” 

“It’s very clear there’s an issue all the way to the top at this particular Sheraton of homophobia,” Alexander said. Marriott “would need to make some seriously impactful change before I’d be entertaining what they have to say there. They are part of a lot of queer travel alliances, and the actions have to line up with reality, and right now it doesn’t.”

Alexander and Sheepwash aren’t the first to experience the hotel’s discriminatory treatment. “Just Google it,” Alexander advises on Insta.

In 2019, Josh Rimer, a television host and Mr. Gay Canada 2019, and his then-fiancé were turned away from the hotel after choosing it to host their own wedding.