People We Meet on Vacation Review: A Charming, if Safe, Flight to Rom-Com Nirvana
Release Date: January 9, 2026
Platform: Netflix
Director: Brett Haley
Cast: Emily Bader, Tom Blyth, Jameela Jamil, Lukas Gage
Runtime: 1h 49m
After the massive success of Red, White & Royal Blue and the cultural dominance of “BookTok,” it was only a matter of time before Emily Henry’s bibliography began its migration to the screen. Netflix’s People We Meet on Vacation, directed by Brett Haley (All the Bright Places), lands as the first major romantic comedy of 2026. Anchored by the magnetic chemistry of its leads, this friends-to-lovers adaptation is a vibrant, comforting, and mostly faithful journey that will delight genre purists, even if it smooths over the novel’s rougher emotional edges.
The Plot: When Harry Met Sally on a Budget Airline
The film follows Poppy Wright (Emily Bader), a chaotic, neon-clad travel writer for a prestigious magazine, and Alex Nilsen (Tom Blyth), a khaki-wearing, routine-obsessed high school teacher. Despite being polar opposites, the two have been best friends since a fateful car share from college (Boston College in this iteration, shifting from the book’s University of Chicago).
Their friendship is defined by a decade of “Summer Trips”—annual, budget-conscious vacations where they can be entirely themselves. But the tradition—and their communication—came to a screeching halt two years ago following a disastrous trip to Tuscany (a departure from the book’s Croatia).
Present-day Poppy is successful but stuck in a rut of ennui. Realizing the last time she was truly happy was with Alex, she takes a leap of faith and text him. To her surprise, he answers. The two agree to one final trip: his brother’s wedding in Palm Springs. What follows is a dual-timeline narrative, oscillating between the “present” awkwardness and the “past” vacations, slowly revealing the deep love that grew between them and the specific incident that tore them apart.
Critique: Chemistry is King
Performances
A romantic comedy lives and dies on the spark between its leads, and People We Meet on Vacation survives largely because Emily Bader and Tom Blyth are electric.
Emily Bader is a revelation as Poppy. The character can easily veer into “Manic Pixie Dream Girl” territory, but Bader grounds Poppy’s wanderlust in genuine insecurity. She is funny, physical, and authentically messy. Tom Blyth, shedding the villainous skin of his Hunger Games breakout, plays the “straight man” with a quiet, simmering longing that feels earned. His micro-expressions—the way he looks at Poppy when she isn’t looking—do more heavy lifting than the dialogue.
The supporting cast, including Jameela Jamil as Poppy’s demanding editor and Lukas Gage in a scene-stealing role, adds necessary flavor without distracting from the central pair.
Direction and Visuals
Brett Haley understands the assignment. The film is shot with a saturated, candy-colored palette that mimics the heightened reality of a travel Instagram feed. From the humid nights of New Orleans to the sun-drenched Italian countryside, the locations are treated as characters themselves.
However, the glossy “Netflix sheen” is present. The lighting is sometimes too flat, and the “poverty” of their early budget trips looks suspiciously clean and well-styled. While visually pleasing, it lacks the tactile grit that made the book’s early chapters feel so grounded.
Screenplay and Adaptation
Screenwriter Yulin Kuang (along with Amos Vernon and Nunzio Randazzo) faces the difficult task of adapting a non-linear book. The flashback structure works well here, providing rhythm to the pacing. Every time the present-day tension peaks, the film cuts to a past vacation that contextualizes their bond.
Die-hard fans of the novel will notice changes. The shift from Croatia to Tuscany is cosmetic, but the softening of Poppy’s backstory—specifically the trauma regarding her bullying and her family’s hoarding—feels like a missed opportunity. The film opts for a lighter, breezier tone, sacrificing some of the psychological depth that makes Henry’s writing stand out in the romance genre.
Strengths & Weaknesses
Strengths:
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Lead Chemistry: Bader and Blyth have a natural, effortless rapport that sells the “10 years of history” premise.
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Pacing: The interweaving of past and present prevents the narrative from dragging.
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Faithfulness to Spirit: Despite plot tweaks, it captures the “homesick for a person” theme of the book perfectly.
Weaknesses:
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Predictability: It adheres strictly to the rom-com formula; you know exactly when the third-act breakup and the airport chase (or equivalent) will happen.
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Sanitized Edges: The film removes the grittier, sadder elements of the characters’ backgrounds, making them feel slightly less three-dimensional than their literary counterparts.
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Music Cues: The soundtrack is occasionally on-the-nose, telling the audience exactly how to feel rather than letting the scene breathe.
Verdict
People We Meet on Vacation is a successful takeoff. While it doesn’t reinvent the wheel, it polishes it to a blinding shine. It is a cozy, swoon-worthy watch that proves Netflix is finally getting a handle on high-quality book adaptations. It may not convert cynics, but for anyone looking to escape January with a dose of sunshine and yearning, this is a first-class ticket.
Rating: 3.5/5 Stars
Review Schema
| Category | Details |
| Movie Title | People We Meet on Vacation |
| Director | Brett Haley |
| Release Date | January 9, 2026 |
| Cast | Emily Bader, Tom Blyth, Jameela Jamil, Lukas Gage |
| Genre | Romance, Comedy |
| Rating | 3.5 / 5 |
| Reviewer | [Your Name/Publication] |