The pay-off comes when the OPC offers their new amigos a hot tip about buying into a timeshare or condo project. That is, you'll almost always be given whatever you're promised for attending a presentation. In fact, free booze plays an important role in loosening your grip on your wallet. Tourists with nothing better to do often attend a presentation out of curiosity or to collect a free meal. Be warned, however, that a typical 'brief' presentation is actually an intense and highly polished sales pitch up to three or four hours long.
Some tourists go mad with boredom but others find the pitch amazingly tempting.
To get the insider scoop on timeshare tactics, Lorena and I recently attended a presentation by one of Mexico's largest companies. To impersonate real tourists, I brushed the worst knots out of my beard and wore black nylon socks with my sandals. After listening to a long, hypnotic sales pitch that would make an Edsel dealer weep with envy, my cynicism was gradually replaced by a warm glow in the vicinity of my credit card. Lorena mutilated my Visa card on the spot. I'll leave the question of whether or not to invest in Mexican real estate up to you and your bank balance.