Vacationing

Vacationing is an activity for Sims in The Sims: Vacation, The Sims 2: Bon Voyage, The Sims 3: World Adventures, and (though it may not be considered a proper "vacation", as you cannot control the sims, or even see where they are) The Sims 3: Generations.

The Sims: Vacation
To go on vacation, click on the telephone and select "Call Cab...", then "Go On Vacation". If any family members are not at home, a notice will appear saying that the family cannot go on vacation unless all members are home. Otherwise, you will be prompted to confirm that you want the family to go. Click "Ok", and before long, the Vacation Island SUV will appear and the family will get in and be charged §500. The SUV will drive away and the Vacation Island screen will appear. Select a lot, and the family will be delivered to that lot, and will be dressed appropriately for that area of the island. There is no limit on how long the family can stay, but they will not be able to sleep unless an adult member checks in at a hotel desk, or rents igloos or tents.

The family will be able to travel to any lot on the island by using the phone to call for an island shuttle, but it will be up to the player to make sure they dress appropriately. When it's time to leave, have an adult family member check out, then call for a shuttle and select "Go Home".

The Sims 2: Bon Voyage
Here are a few things to do to have a vacation in Bon Voyage.

Booking a vacation
Use the telephone to book a vacation. Choose when the Sims will leave, who they are taking with them, how long they will stay, and where they are going. The further in advance the vacation is booked, the cheaper it will be. If Sims book the trip for that very moment, they will be charged §1,000.

If they book in advance, a shuttle will come to the Sims' house at 9 am on the appointed day, and take them to the airport.

Hotels
A Hotel is a hybrid of a community lot and residential lot. It gives controllable Sims a place to rest and rejuvenate before going off to explore. Hotel costs are separate from the original booking cost. Players can put hotels in the base neighborhood, and Sims can go to them by choosing to go to a community lot. When a Sim calls a cab or gets in a car, the hotel(s) will appear in the list of possible destinations. Sims can stay indefinitely, and the basics are the same as in the vacation hotels.

Vacation homes
Instead of staying at a hotel, Sims can stay at their own Vacation Home.

Buying a vacation home
Vacation homes can be bought via the phone. The deed is then placed in the buyer's inventory.

Exploring
Once the Sims have arrived, it's time to start exploring. Talk to the Tour Guide to take a tour, call a cab, or use the interaction "Walk to Lot" to explore the community lots. To go to a secret location, make sure the Sim with the map is the selected Sim.

Ending a vacation
The player can end the Sims' vacation early by using the telephone booth. If this is done a shuttle will come to take them to the airport.

The Sims 3: World Adventures
Like the previous two games mentioned, Sims once again have the choice of partaking in three different forms of vacations but in a first for the series, the new vacation destinations are based on real World locations. Sims are able to vacation in new locations: Shang Simla, Champs Les Sims and Al Simhara. These new locations are the same size as neighborhoods Sunset Valley and Riverview, and parody the cities of Beijieng, Paris and Cairo respectively

This expansion pack is more focused on adventuring, loot-gathering, and questing, as opposed to previous games where your Sims just relaxed in their hotel room doing mundane things. A Sim starts out with zero stars in their passports, and must fulfill quests for the locals to gain more. More stars grant your Sim the right to do more things in the town, such as staying for a longer period of time, or buying property. All Sims otherwise start out in a small hostel.

Sims can collect many different expensive artifacts which they can either sell or display in their homes for moodlet bonuses. Ancient Coins can be collected in tombs and used to buy useful items from the special merchant that resides in the town. There are no "rabbit holes" in vacation towns, but many unique shops that your Sim can enter and move about freely in. Items are bought through a menu brought up by interacting with a Sim manning the cash register.

Tomb exploration is the main focus of vacation towns in World Adventures. Tombs are special locations Sims can freely walk around in, fraught with dangerous traps and a few with deadly Mummies. Artifacts are found strewn about the rooms which your Sim can pick up and take for themselves. Many tombs have quests attached to them, which will give your Sim keys to proceed further or fulfill a short storyline.

The Sims 3: Generations
This form of vacationing is a lot different to the others. You cannot book a vacation, and th eonly way you can get one is by accepting an offer for a free one from a random phone call. You can only get this phone call if there is at least one teen and one young adult (or older) in the household. The offer will be for the adults to go away whilst the teens look after themselves. The adults return after around a week or possibly earlier if the police catch a teen sim throwing a party and call the teen's parents. The teens will be grounded if they trash the house or are caught throwing a party.