A gay Canadian couple claims a Sheraton hotel in the gay-friendly resort city of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, discriminated against them, as part of what critics of the hotel chain claim is a pattern of anti-gay behavior.

Jeremy Alexander and Ryan Sheepwash, of Vernon, British Columbia, posted a video to social media detailing the months of back-and-forth they engaged in when trying to book a wedding with 50 guests at the resort.

The two had gotten engaged in February 2024 in Puerto Vallarta and had hoped to return to the gay-friendly vacation destination for their nuptials. 

The couple scouted potential resorts where they could hold their destination wedding, and settled on the Sheraton Buganvilias Resort and Convention Center.

They claim that Gabriela Esponiza, the hotel’s wedding coordinator, told them during their tour that a deluxe wedding package ceremony would cost them $8,500.

Upon returning home in late November, the couple requested an official quote for a wedding in February or March 2026.

A few weeks later, Espinoza informed them that the hotel had no remaining wedding availability until March 2027.

Alexander and Sheepworth requested a rate for that month, to which Espinoza responded with a quote of $485 per person per night, based on an estimate of 50 guests staying in 25 rooms for three nights. The total was $72,750.

Additionally, the ceremony would cost $11,500, bringing the final total to over $84,000.

To reserve the date and rooms, the couple would have to put down a deposit equal to 50% of the total room costs, or $36,375.

Sheepwash, floored by the astronomical cost, Googled the terms “Sheraton Buganvilias Puerto Vallarta homophobic.”

The results included a story about the resort refusing to book a same-sex wedding for Josh Rimer, a television host, travel vlogger, and Mr. Gay Canada 2019, and his then-fiancé.

Sheepwash also encountered a TikTok video posted by Daniel Galecio, a wedding planner in Puerto Vallarta, who claimed to have received an email from Espinoza on Nov. 13 — the day before Alexander and Sheepwash toured the Sheraton resort with Espinoza — saying that because of internal company policies, the resort was unable to host same-sex weddings.

Galecio told NBC News that he had initially reached out to the Sheraton Buganvilias to request a quote for an opposite-sex wedding. After receiving that quote, he told Espinoza that he had gay clients who were interested in getting married there, prompting her to elaborate on the de facto ban on same-sex weddings.

He was shocked by the response because same-sex marriage was legalized in 2022, and Mexico’s laws have prohibited anti-gay discrimination in public accommodations since 2001.

“That hotel has a history of years of discrimination, and all the city knows — all the gays know,” Galecio said.

Alexander and Sheepwash enlisted the help of a few friends to gauge whether the hotel was treating them unfairly.

In January, their friend Marcia Escontria requested a quote for a deluxe wedding package and weeklong stay for 50 guests in 25 rooms in February 2026, the month the couple had initially requested. 

In February, Ximena Esparza, a junior wedding planner for the resort, told Escontria that the hotel had availability for a wedding on Saturday, Feb. 21, 2026, providing her a quote of $254 per person per night, with a ceremony cost of $8,500.

To reserve a date and the block of rooms, the couple would have to put down a deposit of 20% of the ceremony cost, or $1,700, rather than 50% of the room costs, as Alexander and Sheepwash had been quoted. 

Four days after Escontria received her quote, Alexander emailed Espinoza, the wedding planner for the resort, to “confirm if any dates could work in 2026,” to which she responded that there was no availability remaining in 2026.

To get an “apples to apples” comparison of the rate they were offered, Alexander and Sheepwash enlisted the help of a second friend, Simon, who requested a similar wedding package and three-night stay in March 2027 for his guests. 

In response to Simon’s request, Esparza, the junior wedding planner, told him that 50 guests staying in 25 rooms for three nights would be $272 per person per night, with the ceremony costing $9,350, for a total cost of $50,150. To reserve the date and the block of rooms, the couple would have to put down a deposit equal to 20% of the ceremony cost, or $1,870.

Alexander and Sheepwash ultimately decided to speak out about the experience.

“We just want to let other people know,” Sheepwash told NBC News. “How many people have had the same situation happen to them?”

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

The couple’s video has been shared widely on Instagram and TikTok, amassing more than 150,000 views.

 

 

 

 

 

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A post shared by Jeremy Alexander (@illuminaughtytriangle)

The Sheraton Bugnvilias didn’t respond to a request for comment from NBC News.

When confronted about the email correspondences and differences in room rates given to Alexander, Sheepwash, and their friends, Esparza declined to comment, and Espinoza didn’t respond.

A spokesperson for Marriott International, the parent company of Sheraton Hotels and Resorts, said in an email to NBC News 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.”

The spokesperson also said that the Sheraton Buganvilias is “operated by a third-party franchisee,” but didn’t provide further information about how that affects the resort’s policies.

Alexander later confirmed to NBC News that a diversity, equity, and inclusion representative from Marriott called him after he posted the video and told him that the hotel chain was looking into the incident. 

Marriott has previously claimed to support the LGBTQ community. It has been a member of the IGLTA, the LGBTQ travel association formerly known as the International Gay and Lesbian Travel Association, since 2010.

The hotel chain also earned a perfect 100 score on the Human Rights Campaign’s 2025 Corporate Equality Index, which rates companies based on their LGBTQ-inclusive policies and benefits.

Alexander wants Marriott to commit to meaningful change at all of its subsidiaries and their respective properties.

“It’s very clear there’s an issue all the way to the top at this particular Sheraton of homophobia,” he told NBC News. 

He added that 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.”