The romantic comedy filmed in Barcelona that is an international hit

BarcelonaWhile we're still recovering from the Christmas holidays and the cold weather, Netflix is releasing a film that takes us on a summer getaway. It's one of their aces up their sleeve for 2026: the film adaptation of People we meet on vacationA true success in recent years of romantic literature. For Catalan viewers, it also has an added appeal: part of the plot takes place in Barcelona, ​​a change from the original book. The film will be available on Netflix this Friday.

People we meet on vacationWritten by American author Emily Henry, the novel is based on the romantic trope of lifelong friends who haven't realized they've been in love for years. In this case, the protagonists are Poppy (Emily Bader), a free-spirited journalist, and Alex (Tom Blyth), who is much more structured. They've been friends for over a decade and, although they live in different cities, they spend their summers together, often in destinations chosen by Poppy, who works as a travel and lifestyle journalist.

Emily Henry is one of the leading names in contemporary American romance literature. She began her career focusing on young adult fiction, but it is her books for adult readers that have brought her fame. She has published a total of six romance novels and People we meet on vacationThe novel, which sold two million copies in the United States, is the second of these. The Netflix film is the first adaptation of a novel, but more will arrive in the coming years: four other books are already in the process of being adapted for the screen (The summer novel, Book lovers, A happy place and A funny story).

Change Palm Springs to Barcelona

One of the key elements of the film is the locations where Poppy and Alex go on vacation. The main difference between the book and the film is precisely one of the couple's vacation destinations: in the novel, the two friends travel to Palm Springs, California, for a wedding, but in the Netflix version, they go to Barcelona. "It turns out that Palm Springs is a very difficult place to film. Who could have imagined it? But we knew we wanted a place that could look big, beautiful, and romantic, and also infernally hot if the air conditioning broke down, for example. So all this is to say, get ready for a very hot summer," through their newsletterAs he later explained, making this change of location also involved writing new scenes and dialogue.

The filming in Barcelona could be followed through the social media accounts of the film's stars, especially actress Emily Bader, known for My Lady JaneThe American actress has shared several pictures showing her enjoying Catalonia. Besides filming in Barcelona, People we know on vacation Filming has also taken place on the Costa Brava. Specifically, some scenes were shot in Cala Boadella and the Santa Clotilde Gardens, as announced by the Lloret Film Office. In fact, the Santa Clotilde Gardens are a frequent location for international productions, such as The House of the Dragon, which filmed scenes from its first season in this location.