Tips?

[CandyHeartedSim]

Well, I'm a relatively new Simmer, and I have ordered WA. I have read on a few blogs, ECT, That it is quite hard to take a family on holiday as you really want to stay with one member, searching tombs etc. I was just wandering what you think would be best, Take a Family, Or Just one sim. Also, I Have a Few other questions:
1) If you take just one member on holiday,What do the others do when your away?
2) How  can you learn the skills when you are at home?
3) Can you take Toddlers on holiday?
4) How do you invite people you meet abroad to your "Country"?

Thanks In advance  

[Alexandria_]

Welcome to the forum
I personally take my whole family. I can line things up for them to do - fishing, chess, dancing, etc - if I want to concentrate on one particular sim.
However, I'd suggest taking one sim for the first time you go. There's a lot you can learn when you're just concentrating on one sim for the first time. Adventures are great - they require you to use strategy, which is a completely different thing for the Sims 3.

1) If you take just one member on holiday,What do the others do when your away?

While you're away in another country, your game is essentially on pause. They won't do anything, and when you return, it will start from the moment you left.

2) How  can you learn the skills when you are at home?

Do you mean the skills that are from WA?
Nectar making has books from level 1 to 10. You can also buy nectar making machines as well as nectar racks at the Nectary in France.
Photography is not something I've played a lot, but I know there is a book for skill level 1-3. You can also buy cameras at each WA location. However, you can only purchase the most expensive camera in Egypt. If you have Ambitions, all three cameras show up there from time to time.
Martial Arts has a book for skill level 1-3. At the general store in China, you can buy a Training Dummy and Block Breaker to train on at home. Also, when you get to level 5, your sim can meditate (click on your sim and the option will come up) to gain Martial Arts skill levels.

3) Can you take Toddlers on holiday?

I'm not completely sure - I've never tried.

4) How do you invite people you meet abroad to your "Country"?

Almost in the same way you'd invite anyone else over - except the option is "Invite Foreign Friends". They arrive the day after you invite them over. Once they return home, your relationship with their entire family goes up.

[Saltypaws]

Unfortunately, you cannot take toddlers on vacation with you.  Not sure why the game is set up like that, but if you get a foreign sim pregnant and then leave, it will show up as a youth a few days later in your friendship panel.  Have fun with WA.

[malteser60]

Also you are not allowed to travel whilst actually pregnant - i.e. your sim has changed into maternity clothes. You can however travel before that and after you have heard the chimes after woohoo. Your sim will not announce the pregnancy until they are back from their travels.

For a long time i just took one sim travelling - my Lara Croft sim as i love, absolutely love, the tomb aspect of it. So I just wanted to concentrate on her. Since then I have taken the family and do as Alexandria says and line stuff up for them to do. I don't always manage to keep track of them so the way I play it is I have one sim with a purpose in the location and focus on him/her. At the same time I will also queue up actions for my other sims, but if I get distracted by my main sim then I'm not so worried about the other sims and I'll let them go about on freewill until I can get back to them.

[TheChronicR]

I too like to travel solo. My traveling Sims are usually adventurers, but, France can be the perfect place for a sweet honeymoon for newlyweds. I've not tried family travels, but I think that if I do one day, I'll eventually end up sending most of the members of the household back home.

[Seabody]

1) If you take just one member on holiday,What do the others do when your away?

Think of it like this: When your Sim is on holiday, the other members of your family are in limbo. They do nothing, and when you return, everything is the same.

2) How  can you learn the skills when you are at home?

In China, Sims can buy martial arts equipment. In France, Nectar making equipment and in Egypt, good cameras. You take these home and use them like any other skilling equipment.

3) Can you take Toddlers on holiday?

No.

4) How do you invite people you meet abroad to your "Country"?

Through the phone interaction: Invite Foreign Friends.

Hope you have fun with WA.
P.S. I find it easiest to travel with one sim.

[Yarakisagoa]

When your sim travel overseas, the whole sim's town 'pause'.
And to learn skill like martial arts, with some luck, you can find the skill book at the consigment store, some mr.gnome, and the best camera there too. Good luck.

[Hosfac]

For a long time i just took one sim travelling - my Lara Croft sim as i love, absolutely love, the tomb aspect of it.

Lol!  I thought I was the only one who did that.  Only my sim was named Laurel Craft. 

Since everyone else has answered your 4 questions, I'll just offer my personal opinion on traveling with/without a group:  It depends on what I intend on doing there. 

A lot of the time, I just hop over to the other countries to grab the skill goodies and harvestables.  In this case, I travel with one sim, buy/gather everything I went there for and leave as soon as I can.  I start in China first so I can train Martial Arts while I'm at home, and save France for last so I can make sure that my sim can meditate and zeneport.

If I'm going with the intent of tomb raiding, I only travel with the sims that will be doing the tomb raiding.  Typically, I use a single sim whose entire life's purpose is to open every tomb and grab every artifact they can get their hands on.  But there are times where it's advantageous to do tomb raiding with a pair of sims.  It can take less time when they're able to tag-team traps, and it's very helpful for getting a photo of a sim who is under the influence of a mummy's curse.  Doing this is part of an adventure opportunity, and taking a photo of them getting cured of it (at least) is part of a photo collection.

But other than that, I don't take extra sims when I travel.  Tomb raiding requires a vast amount of your attention, and it's way too much trouble to keep switching back and forth between the two groups of sims in order to keep both groups busy.  The non-plundering group really just wastes simoleans in travel expenses.

Here's a few more general tips in regards to bugs that are related to travel:

1)  Excavation:  (You won't understand what I'm talking about just yet, but you'll quickly figure it out)  One of the most long standing travel bugs is the inability to excavate on uneven ground.  Around the world, there are numerous small sites that you can (or could if it wasn't bugged) root through in order to get many different kinds of artifacts.  However, this isn't really a big deal, since most of the things you find in them can be found randomly in the tombs themselves.

2)  Family Tree Issues:  It's not a game breaker, but it's annoying none the less.  Your family tree can get "broken" sometimes when you travel.  You can also end up married to a sim you've never met.  It's even quite possible for you to end up with children living with this mystery partner...even if your sim is female.  As if such a thing wouldn't be entirely shocking to a male sim.    It's unknown exactly what causes it, but the easiest ways to reduce your chances of getting this bug are to not travel with unmarried sims and to minimize contact with the locals as much as possible.  But even then, it's always wise to save just before you travel.

3)  Adventure Boards:  Sometimes the notice boards that you get adventures from don't work.  This is one that affects everyone's game differently.  Some players will have trouble in different countries, and it doesn't happen all the time, but your likely to see it at some point.  Again, not a game breaker.  The trick is to just keep clicking "Check for Adventure" and you'll eventually get one.  Sometimes traveling home will fix this, however sometimes it won't.

4)  Vanishing Sims:  This one is a game breaker.  On very rare occasions, sims will vanish the moment they arrive at the vacation destination.  They won't be selectable, and their portraits won't show up on the left side of the screen.  If this happens, it is extremely important that you do not save the game.  Just exit and try again.  This is another reason why it's always wise to save the game before you travel.

And since you're a relatively new simmer, I'm going to offer you a bit of advice that I wish someone had given me when I first started playing.  If you're not already doing so, get in the habit of keeping 2-3 copies of any save that is important to you, made at different points in time, and keep back ups of them on a flash drive.  Save files get easily corrupted and sometimes bugs start before they manifest.  Back tracking a few sim days is much more desirable than starting over from the beginning.  I have a flash drive that I use exclusively for the sims, and I back up all of my save files before I start playing.

Sorry for the wall of text lol. 

[CandyHeartedSim]

Thanks for the great advice  I don't mind with the wall of text, lol.

P.S: I Made an Indiana Jones Guy 

[Pam]

In my multi-generational families, I often take several members of the family on vacation.  By that time, most of the adventures have been completed, most of the relics have been obtained, and there's a nice vacation home.  I've been known to take 20 or more days of vacation with four family members.  I play it much like I play when they are home.  They work on their skills, meet new people, enjoy their time together, etc.  It's a nice break from the home town and it's great to be able to increase skills without it counting on the official game clock.

[Catarra Nightshade]

I have a few smaller tips that make tomb exploration sooo much easier, and less time consuming. I have started using the lifetime reward points to pick up the "Hardly Hungry" and "Dirt Defiant" rewards. My sims eat ONCE a day (and the low quality dry food at that!), and shower much less frequently. You'll save money on dry food, and only need to stop for your sim to sleep. They remain happier, as well, when they don't get stinky after a day of tomb raiding.

The Hardly Hungry is available for 25,000 reward points, and I believe the "Dirt Defiant" is available at 15,000.

On a side note, Steel Bladder is also great with long winded professions, like Ghost Hunter. You sim won't have to borrow a client's bathroom, or rush home to use their own.

[MoMoll]

Steel bladder is essential in some tombs where there's no bathroom.

I usually start with one sim on vacation that gets up to Visa 3 by using the Opportunistic Reward (you get to Visa 3 faster that way). Then I buy a home and leave the family at home (or invite the locals to party). When I played with a band, I had them all go and play for the locals in outdoor concerts.

[Sophie98]

Alternatively, you could cheat like I do. No need to shower, eat, sleep, or anything.

[TheChronicR]

Alternatively, you could cheat like I do. No need to shower, eat, sleep, or anything.

Same here! Make Needs Static and everyone is happy (and ready to explore).

[VampirePlasma]

I suggest you go with one Sim first. Just to get use to the new feel, to which country first? I don't know, in my opinion Egypt is easier if you can think things through and outsmart those super slow mummies. I find all the other *****ries a maze, then again that just my pea brain. Just have fun with it  I do not regret buying WA one bit.

[Catarra Nightshade]

Steel bladder is essential in some tombs where there's no bathroom.

I've never had a problem with my sim needing to use the bathroom while exploring tombs. I assumed the need was muted since so many of the tombs don't have a bathroom. I have had a problem where there are too many bathrooms, like in the Landgraab chateaux. LoL.

I recently purchased the steel bladder reward for my ghosthunter...and she hasn't used the toilet since, and I've been playing for several sim days, if not weeks.

[Schipperke]

I recently purchased the steel bladder reward for my ghosthunter...and she hasn't used the toilet since, and I've been playing for several sim days, if not weeks.

The steel bladder makes it so your Sim never has to go again.  That's why most of my Sim houses don't even have toilets (and it may be part of the reason their guests never stay very long).

[MoMoll]

The steel bladder makes it so your Sim never has to go again.  That's why most of my Sim houses don't even have toilets (and it may be part of the reason their guests never stay very long).

Be sure you don't serve drinks at your parties then!

@Candy: I wish you luck! I love WA and still send my sim on adventures, leaving Daddy at home with the kids (what are husbands for? Lol).

[Schipperke]

Be sure you don't serve drinks at your parties then!

Exactly.  That's why the first thing on my list when preparing for a party is 1. Buy a toilet.   

[MoonsAreBlue]

For me , the absolutely best thing you could do for yourself while traveling is take the Motive Mobile. I'm not sure if it came with Generations or the 1.22 patch (as I got them at the same time) but you can play your adventuring sim continuously. During the longer tombs, however, you may have to emerge and take a 5 foot trip and then return back to the tomb. But this, in my opinion, is the best way to get to a level 3 Visa in a short amount of time.

[MoMoll]

For me , the absolutely best thing you could do for yourself while traveling is take the Motive Mobile. I'm not sure if it came with Generations or the 1.22 patch (as I got them at the same time) but you can play your adventuring sim continuously. During the longer tombs, however, you may have to emerge and take a 5 foot trip and then return back to the tomb. But this, in my opinion, is the best way to get to a level 3 Visa in a short amount of time.

Sorry to say; but, on that part I cheat with teletransport. Sometimes the distances wear out your sim.
Best way to get to Visa 3 fast is buy the opportunistic reward. It doubles your chances for the opportujnity a,d after 2 or 3 tombs (depending on the interactions), your Visa 3.

[MoonsAreBlue]

Sorry to say; but, on that part I cheat with teletransport. Sometimes the distances wear out your sim.
Best way to get to Visa 3 fast is buy the opportunistic reward. It doubles your chances for the opportujnity a,d after 2 or 3 tombs (depending on the interactions), your Visa 3.

Well, it's best to use if you don't cheat.

I like it because you have to run around everywhere and you may as well max your needs while you're at it. And driving is frequent enough that I never have to make my sim do anything other than strictly adventuring.

And wow, I must be playing wrong or something. I always get the opportunistic reward, especially in the dynasties, and I don't get travel opportunities very often. In my most recent game, when I traveled with the opportunistic reward, I still had to check the sign all the time and it took me 7 days and lots and lots of opportunities to get to level 3 Visa. Then again, my sim wasn't adventurous, so that may be why it took so long. Adventurous is always a good trait to give sims who do the adventuring though. Does anybody know just what the difference is? How much quicker is it for an adventurous sim to get to Visa 3 than a non-adventurous sim?

[MoMoll]

I don't get trips from the opportunistic award; but, when you complete an adventure with the award you get increased Visa points and hit Visa 3 faster.

[BlazeGirl12]

I also have a question related to the original question #3: If you have two adults and two toddlers in a family, and the adults go on a vacation, will the toddlers be taken by the social worker?
Sorry if I shouldn't be asking a question in someone else's thread.

[MarianT]

You need to get a babysitter. It'll cost $75. Basically, you won't be gone any time at all as far as the toddlers are concerned, but you'll still need a sitter. I think the game only gives you two choices:  stay home or get a sitter.