People We Meet on Vacation. (L-R) Emily Bader as Poppy and Tom Blyth as Alex in People We Meet on Vacation. Cr. Daniel Escale/Netflix © 2026
From 3000 Pictures & Temple Hill Entertainment, People We Meet On Vacation is the much-anticipated adaptation of the New York Times best-selling romance novel of the same name from author Emily Henry (Beach Read), the first adaptation of one of her novels to be made into a feature film, with several other books optioned for future productions.
Adapted for the screen by Yulin Kuang, Amos Vernon, & Nunzio Randazzo, the story follows an unlikely pair of friends, Poppy & Alex, as they navigate their contrasting personalities to become as close as friends can get; in fact, following a road trip back to their Ohio hometown and a successful Canadian camping trip, the two become vacation pals for life as they make a pact to meet up every summer for a one week vacation to some new destination around the globe. No matter where they are in life or who they’re with, Poppy & Alex always make time for their special time away … that is until around 2 years ago.
But when Alex’s brother invites them both to his destination wedding in Barcelona, Poppy decides to cancel her latest travel writing assignment and attempt to reconcile from the fallout of their last trip together. After almost a decade of friendship & jet setting together, can the free-spirited Poppy and routine-loving Alex mend their relationship and potentially take it to a new level they haven’t yet explored?
Well, as we all know and Emily Henry knows, When Harry Met Sally taught us that “men and women can’t be friends because no man can be friends with a woman that he finds attractive”, but the structure of People We Meet on Vacation at least lets us forget about that until we need to or don’t care if we do.
Directed by the emotionally in-tune & often sentimental Brett Haley (All The Bright Places, Hearts Beat Loud), the film gives us an updated, sun-soaked, & cozy look at what home looks like in a modern relationship, especially when you don’t often feel at home with yourself.
We see the film largely through the eyes of Poppy, played with an endearing level of bounce & beauty by “My Lady Jane” star Emily Bader, as she slowly unravels her true identity that hides behind her unquenchable need for the new: a vulnerable woman who lives in the fear of overstaying her welcome.
At her most relatable, Poppy embodies the out-loud version of what a lot of us felt like or feel like in our late 20s/early 30s – like your running out of gas, like you need to shift into true adulthood or a better, more settled version of yourself but you have only a slight grasp on what that looks like or how to achieve it. But maybe, for the lucky ones, you have a place to touch grass when you fly too close to the sun. For Poppy, that’s not a place like her hometown in Ohio or her NY apartment, subconsciously & sometimes actively it’s Alex. While Alex gets the more pragmatic end of the late 20s responsibly bug with a house and a HVAC system that needs fixing, he also yearns to make a house a real home with the right person, which he also knows is Poppy.
Cr. Daniel Escale/Netflix © 2025
On its surface and in its structure, People We Meet On Vacation gives us a mystery to solve, an autopsy to discover cause of death. How could these two people with so much chemistry and having so much fun be so at odds right now? We probably know the answer pretty quickly, but Bader & Tom Blyth (Hunger Games franchise) as Alex let their charms mask our need for quick answers; making up dance routines in New Orleans or losing clothes to the sea while skinny-dipping in Canada. That works out great for us because those answers are the best thing about the story. Home, as a person; Home, as a place to come back to after work or a vacation; Home, as the only place you feel your true self. It may be corny or cynical for some, but it sure feels more true than other romantic notions.
Ironically, or potentially by design, the film feels like all the elements of an actual vacation: the warm inviting locales, the highest of highs, the excitement of new, the joy of spending time with the ones you want to be with, the cold breeze of reality upon return, & the excitement of anticipation knowing you get to do it all again soon.
People You Meet On Vacation may not be as consciously insightful as all this sounds, but its messaging is clear & engaging when it needs it the most.
Watch People We Meet on Vacation If You Like
- When Harry Met Sally
- Up In The Air
- “I Ship It”
- All The Bright Places
- Hearts Beat Loud
MVP of People We Meet on Vacation
Emily Bader as Poppy
Much like Shaquille O’Neal to Christian Wood, I was not familiar with Emily Bader’s game.
“My Lady Jane” & Paranormal Activity: Next of Kin may have been off my radar, but I absolutely see what Director Brett Haley and his team saw in Emily Bader as a perfect casting for Poppy in this film. Her boundless energy, girl-next-door beauty, & sheer magnetism engulf the movie with a presence you want to put in your carry-on and take with you wherever you go.
One of the better “beach read” romances that should satisfy fans of the genre. Bader & Blyth make a convincing “opposites attract” duo having the time of their lives. Almost too good for January.
Rating: PG-13
