People We Meet on Vacation (2026) Review: Charming but Safe

Is People We Meet on Vacation worth watching?

It depends on your appetite for comfort viewing. People We Meet on Vacation is a likeable, good-looking friends-to-lovers romance with two appealing leads, but it rarely rises above the familiar beats of the genre. Emily Bader and Tom Blyth have genuine chemistry, and the travel-postcard structure keeps things moving. The reservation is that the screenplay smooths away much of the friction and specificity that make a great romantic comedy, leaving a film that is easy to watch and just as easy to forget.

What is People We Meet on Vacation about?

Poppy (Emily Bader) and Alex (Tom Blyth) could hardly be more different: she is impulsive, chatty and restless, while he is careful, reserved and rooted. Yet they have been best friends for years, bound by a tradition of taking one vacation together every summer. Both insist the friendship is strictly platonic. But something has strained their bond, and as the film moves between their past trips and a present-day reunion, the question of what they really mean to each other becomes impossible to avoid.

People We Meet on Vacation was directed by Brett Haley, adapted from Emily Henry’s best-selling novel. It is an American film in English, runs 116 minutes, and features Sarah Catherine Hook, Jameela Jamil and Miles Heizer in the supporting cast.

Two leads who make it work

The film’s greatest asset is its central pairing. Emily Bader gives Poppy a lively, scatterbrained charm without letting her become a caricature of the free-spirited heroine, and her comic timing lifts many scenes. Tom Blyth is well cast as Alex, conveying the character’s buttoned-up warmth and quiet longing through small gestures. Together they have a relaxed, teasing rapport that makes their long friendship credible, and the film is at its best when it simply lets them talk.

The supporting cast is solid, though underused, and the film’s attention is firmly on the central couple.

Postcards from a decade of summers

Brett Haley structures the film around a series of trips, cutting between past and present to show how the friendship has evolved. The approach works well as a romantic device, letting the audience see years of shared history and missed opportunities, and the sunny locations give the film a glossy travel-brochure appeal. The flashbacks are clearly signposted and the storytelling is easy to follow.

However, the structure also exposes the film’s caution. Each trip tends to deliver a single emotional beat, and the script relies on familiar romantic-comedy devices, from misunderstandings to near-miss moments, rather than finding fresh observations about friendship and love. Readers of the novel may miss some of the book’s inner voice, which is difficult to translate to the screen.

Where the script plays it safe

The film’s biggest weakness is its reluctance to take risks. The obstacles keeping Poppy and Alex apart feel more like plot requirements than genuine conflicts, and the resolution follows the expected path. The humour is gentle rather than sharp, and at nearly two hours, the film could have been tighter. Fans of the genre will find it comforting; viewers looking for the wit of the great romantic comedies will find it thin.

Who should watch People We Meet on Vacation?

It suits Emily Henry readers, fans of friends-to-lovers romance and anyone looking for a light, comfortable date-night film. It is not demanding, and it works well as easy viewing. The content is mild: some sexual references and strong language, but nothing explicit. For more romantic comedy, try:

• When Harry Met Sally…, the definitive friends-to-lovers comedy, with sharper dialogue and deeper insight.
• One Day, another story of a friendship tracked across many years, with more bittersweet stakes.
• The Apartment, Billy Wilder’s classic, for a romantic comedy about two people slow to recognise what is in front of them.

The verdict

People We Meet on Vacation is a pleasant, attractive romcom that coasts on the chemistry of Emily Bader and Tom Blyth. Its safe script and familiar beats keep it from standing out, but for fans of the novel and the genre, it offers two agreeable hours of escapism.