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I came across the following conversation:

A: I'll let you know where I am planning to go on vacation.

B: It wouldn't be vacation if you did.

I am a little confused about the use of did here. Shouldn't it be do instead?

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I would see him if I went.

It would be a vacation if you went.

In this type of conditional sentence, the main clause is would + the verb, and the IF clause is in the simple past. Should is also often used here.

It wouldn't be vacation if you did.

Did here here is a substitute for not repeating a verb that was mentioned earlier in a conversation.

For example: John: "I want to work during my vacation".

Mary: It wouldn't be a vacation if you did. [did substitutes for worked]. It wouldn't be a vacation if you worked.

In English, we often use an auxilary to avoid repeating the main verb again.

Another example:

John: They see the car in the street every night. Mary: If they do [see the car], they should call the cops.

[Please note, I am only giving simple examples here to make my point.]

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It s a question of tense agreement:

It is not a vacation if you do

It wouldn't be a vacation if you did

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    Potentially also, "It won't be a vacation if you do"
    – LMS
    Commented Nov 25, 2016 at 22:08
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In your example, "did" is not in the past indicative like "I did it yesterday"; it's in the past subjunctive like "It wouldn't be a vacation if you did."

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