A cinematic journey through Spain, New Orleans, and imagined summers

There is a particular feeling that often appears when watching a travel-centered film late at night.

The story may focus on two people, but your attention drifts elsewhere. To the streets behind them. To the café table by the window. To a coastline that appears only for a few quiet seconds.

People We Meet on Vacation invites exactly that kind of watching.

Released on Netflix on January 9, 2026, the film is directed by Brett Haley and adapted from Emily Henry’s bestselling 2021 novel. It follows Poppy Wright and Alex Nilsen, longtime friends bound by a simple tradition: once a year, they travel together.

Over time, those trips begin to carry more meaning than either of them is willing to admit.

What makes the film memorable is not only its romance, but the way travel quietly shapes every stage of the relationship. Each place becomes tied to a specific emotional moment. Some feel full of possibility. Others feel distant, temporary, or just slightly out of reach.

Because of this, the filming locations of People We Meet on Vacation are more than visual decoration. They guide the emotional rhythm of the story.

Although the narrative moves across multiple countries and many years, People We Meet on Vacation was filmed primarily in Spain and the United States, using a small number of carefully chosen real-world locations to stand in for many destinations.

Below, we look at where People We Meet on Vacation was actually filmed, how each location appears on screen, and why these places matter to the story being told.

TL;DR: People We Meet on Vacation Filming Locations

• People We Meet on Vacation was filmed primarily in Spain and the United States.
• Barcelona and Costa Brava represent the present-day timeline and several European settings.
• New Orleans, Louisiana was used for early summer scenes and parts of the story set in the U.S.
• Rural Louisiana stands in for small-town Ohio in the film.
• Scenes presented as Squamish, Canada were actually filmed in rural Catalonia, Spain.
• Some Mediterranean sequences evoke Croatia, though they were likely filmed in Spain.
• The filming locations were chosen for emotional tone and atmosphere, not strict geographic accuracy.

Costa Brava, Spain: Where People We Meet on Vacation Was Filmed

The film opens quietly.

Before we know much about Poppy or Alex, before the years and trips begin to layer into a story, we are shown a beach. Warm sand. The steady movement of the sea. A woman reading under a faded striped umbrella.

It is a small moment, but a deliberate one.

This opening scene was filmed along the Costa Brava coastline in Catalonia, Spain, making Costa Brava one of the earliest and most memorable People We Meet on Vacation filming locations. The setting closely resembles Playa de sa Boadella, one of the region’s more secluded beaches.

Unlike the wide, polished beaches often associated with Mediterranean travel, this coast feels enclosed and personal. Rocky outcrops frame the shoreline. The beach is narrow, almost temporary, as if it exists only for those who happen to find it.

That choice matters.

Costa Brava does not announce itself. The water is deep blue rather than turquoise. The atmosphere is calm, not performative. This mirrors the emotional space of the film’s opening, where the characters are paused, reflective, and not yet in motion.

By beginning in a place like this, the film establishes its visual language early. Travel will be central, but not in a glossy, postcard-driven way. The Costa Brava scenes in People We Meet on Vacation are chosen for mood as much as beauty.

This beach is never named on screen. It stands in for the idea of escape rather than a specific destination. Yet its physical qualities give the scene a grounded realism, the kind of place someone might remember years later with surprising clarity.

Louisiana, USA: Standing in for Small-Town Ohio in People We Meet on Vacation

Nine summers ago

After the openness of the coastline, the film moves inland.

The setting shifts to what the story presents as small-town Ohio. In reality, People We Meet on Vacation was filmed in Louisiana, primarily in rural areas outside New Orleans, which stand in for the Midwest.

The scene unfolds slowly. A grassy clearing. A stone well. A modest country store in the background. Nothing feels rushed or dramatic, and that restraint is intentional.

Louisiana works as a stand-in for Ohio not because it looks identical, but because it can be shaped. With careful framing and set dressing, the Southern landscape becomes a believable version of small-town Ohio.

This location establishes contrast.

Unlike the later travel-heavy chapters, this place does not invite movement. It encourages staying. The well at the center of the frame feels rooted and permanent, mirroring Alex’s emotional position early in the story.

By choosing Louisiana as a filming location for People We Meet on Vacation, the film creates a version of home that feels believable without being overly specific. It becomes the emotional baseline against which every future journey is measured.

Squamish, Canada Filming Locations, Recreated in Catalonia, Spain

Eight summers ago

In People We Meet on Vacation, Squamish appears as a quiet escape. Dense forests. Winding roads. Long stretches of green.

On screen, it feels unmistakably Canadian.

Behind the camera, however, the Squamish scenes in People We Meet on Vacation were filmed in Catalonia, Spain. Rural areas of northeastern Spain were used to recreate the look and atmosphere of British Columbia.

Instead of filming in Canada, the production chose Catalonia for its pine forests, rocky slopes, and wide valleys. With careful lighting and framing, Catalonia convincingly stands in for Squamish.

What matters here is not geographic accuracy, but emotional truth.

These forest sequences represent a pause in the story. A place where conversations stretch longer and silence feels comfortable. The Squamish filming locations in People We Meet on Vacation are about feeling, not maps.

For attentive viewers, this reveal adds another layer. What looks like Canada is also an invitation to explore a quieter side of Spain.

New Orleans, Louisiana: A Key Filming Location in People We Meet on Vacation

Six summers ago

The film’s first true summer unfolds in New Orleans.

Crowds drift through narrow streets. Music spills out from everywhere at once. Poppy and Alex move side by side, still unsure of what they mean to each other.

These scenes were filmed in New Orleans, Louisiana, making the city one of the most recognizable People We Meet on Vacation filming locations in the United States.

Where these New Orleans scenes were filmed

• Jackson Square
• Café du Monde
• Bourbon Street and nearby French Quarter streets

The film leans into the city’s familiarity. Viewers recognize New Orleans immediately, and that recognition matters.

At this point in the story, the relationship is undefined. New Orleans mirrors that emotional state. It is loud, imperfect, alive, and temporary.

For travelers inspired by People We Meet on Vacation, New Orleans is one of the easiest filming locations to revisit, with many locations remaining unchanged.

A Mediterranean Summer That Feels Like Croatia

Two summers ago

In one brief sequence, the film shifts into a slower, warmer rhythm.

Stone walls glow in evening light. A long outdoor dinner unfolds in a vine-covered courtyard. The setting feels unmistakably Mediterranean.

Although never confirmed on screen, these scenes in People We Meet on Vacation were filmed in Spain, likely in Catalonia, while visually evoking Croatia and other parts of Southern Europe.

Rather than anchoring the moment to a specific country, the film borrows a shared Mediterranean visual language. Stone villas, courtyard dining, and soft summer light act as emotional shorthand.

The scene is not about geography. It is about intimacy.

Barcelona Filming Locations: Where People We Meet on Vacation Catches Up With Itself

The present-day timeline unfolds in Barcelona, Spain, one of the most important People We Meet on Vacation filming locations.

Much of the film was shot in Barcelona and the surrounding Costa Brava region, with the city acting as both itself and a stand-in for other international destinations.

Rather than leaning into postcard imagery, the film uses Barcelona in fragments. Hotel terraces. Coastal light. Quiet streets between conversations.

Key Barcelona filming locations

• ME Barcelona Hotel
• Playa de sa Boadella (Costa Brava)
• Casa de Santa Clotilde
• Masjoan Arboretum
• Can Llambí (Penedès)

Barcelona works for the present timeline because it feels resolved without feeling final. In People We Meet on Vacation, it is not about escape, but arrival.

People We Meet on Vacation Filming Locations: Summary

People We Meet on Vacation was filmed across Spain and the United States, with several locations standing in for other destinations.

Key filming locations include:

• Barcelona and Costa Brava, Spain
• New Orleans and rural Louisiana, USA
• Catalonia, Spain, standing in for Squamish, Canada

Rather than strict geographic accuracy, the film’s locations are chosen for emotional resonance. Together, they create the sense of movement, memory, and return that defines People We Meet on Vacation.

Planning a trip to Spain inspired by the film?
Staying connected while moving between Barcelona, Costa Brava, and smaller towns can make the journey smoother.
→ Explore travel eSIM options for Spain before you go.

FAQ

Where was People We Meet on Vacation filmed?

People We Meet on Vacation was filmed primarily in Spain and the United States. Key filming locations include Barcelona, Costa Brava, New Orleans, rural Louisiana, and parts of Catalonia used to stand in for other destinations.

Was People We Meet on Vacation filmed in Spain?

Yes. A significant portion of People We Meet on Vacation was filmed in Spain, including Barcelona and the Costa Brava region. Rural Catalonia was also used to recreate other international locations.

Which scenes were filmed in Barcelona?

The present-day timeline of People We Meet on Vacation was filmed in and around Barcelona. Scenes include hotel terraces, city streets, and nearby coastal locations that reflect the story’s emotional resolution.

Was Costa Brava used as a filming location?

Yes. Costa Brava appears in the opening and later scenes of People We Meet on Vacation, representing moments of pause and reflection rather than a specific named destination.

Were the Ohio scenes actually filmed in Ohio?

No. Scenes set in small-town Ohio were filmed in Louisiana, primarily in rural areas outside New Orleans, which were used to recreate a quieter Midwestern atmosphere.

Was People We Meet on Vacation filmed in New Orleans?

Yes. Several early summer scenes were filmed in New Orleans, especially in the French Quarter, including locations such as Jackson Square and Café du Monde.

Were the Squamish scenes filmed in Canada?

No. Although the film presents these scenes as Squamish, Canada, they were actually filmed in rural Catalonia, Spain, which was used to replicate the look and feel of British Columbia.

Does the film include filming locations in Croatia?

The film does not officially confirm Croatia as a filming location. However, certain Mediterranean scenes evoke a Croatian aesthetic and were likely filmed in Spain using similar architectural and landscape elements.

Can fans visit the filming locations today?

Yes. Many filming locations, including Barcelona, Costa Brava beaches, and New Orleans’ French Quarter, remain accessible and largely unchanged, making them easy to visit.

Why were so many locations filmed in Spain?

Spain offers diverse landscapes, reliable production infrastructure, and visual flexibility. This allowed People We Meet on Vacation to recreate multiple international settings while maintaining a cohesive visual tone.