At the beginning of the movie it's stated that this is about the very first couple that was murdered at the Meadow View Motel. There's a newly married Asian couple who leave right after they have sex and this introduces the shady owners of the place, who are videotaping them having sex. Then a guy, "Mr Smith", checks in with a woman. And while they are watching them through the hidden camera witness the guy brutally stabbing her to death. They manage to knock him out and tie him up in a room, not quite sure what to do with him. Around this time their sex video distributor shows up and sees the murder footage. It's then that "Mr Smith" proposes a working arrangement--he'll do the killings, they videotape and sell the videos and they split the profits. They agree.
Then young couple Caleb and Jessica (Agnes Bruckner of BLOOD AND CHOCOLATE) show up and it looks as if they'll have their first snuff film stars. But they don't realize that their friend, Tanner, is also with them and he's snuck into a vacant room. There he sees that the room is wired with cameras. They decide to sneak out and are stopped.
The serial killer wants them.
This is a good prequel because it gets from A to B in an unexpected way. Also, the action isn't restricted solely to the motel room. Some of the characters manage to escape through the woods to a nearby house. I also didn't expect that ending. VACANCY 2 is a lot like Tobe Hooper's EATEN ALIVE, only without the man-eating alligator.