The financial crisis has seen some developers turning increasingly to inspection trips as a means to shift slow-moving properties. Polaris World is one company which is offering trips for just £99 to view its resorts in Murcia, Spain, including flights and two nights stay in a five-star hotel. The money is usually refunded if you buy. Others offer trips to the Alps, Morocco, the Caribbean and even further afield, to those who express an interest in buying property.
But inspection trips should also come with a health warning attached: on a group tour you'll only see the property and places the developer wants you to, and there will inevitably be pressure to sign on the dotted line before you jump on the plane home. So can they prove useful or is this one temptation you should resist?
Paul Owen, chief executive of trade body the Association of International Property Professionals (AIPP) says: "It is important to see what you are buying, and inspection trips can offer an opportunity to do so at a reduced cost, but you must prepare first: are you sure that this is really the place you want to buy, as the trip will usually focus on one small area? And you must also do research on your legal position so you know what you're signing up to." He adds that you should "never sign a contract you are not happy with", and also advises people to remember that those hosting the trip are there to sell, not to provide impartial advice.
You should also do some research on what other properties are available in the area before you go, and at what prices, to establish whether you are being offered good value. And look on property investor and expat forums to find out the latest buzz about the developments on offer. Best of all, see if you can extend your visit, which usually means paying for the extra nights' accommodation, so you can break away and look around the area unaccompanied for a couple of days. That way you stand a better chance of getting the whole picture.
Alexander Garrett is a freelance property writer who contributes regularly to The Observer and British Airways' Business Life.