Movies like Summer Vacation (1977)
The best movies like Summer Vacation (1977) are The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 (2008), Summer Rental (1985) and The Last Song (2010). If Summer Vacation hooked you, these 20 similar films are what to watch next, and every pick says why it matches.
Quick picks
- Highest ratedBefore Midnight (2013)7.5/10 from 2,844 votes
- NewestPeople We Meet on Vacation (2026)Released 2026
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 (2008)
Four young women continue the journey toward adulthood that began with "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants." Now three years later, these lifelong friends embark on separate paths for their first year of college and the summer beyond, but remain in touch by sharing their experiences with each other.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisSummer Rental (1985)
Jack Chester, an overworked air traffic controller, takes his family on vacation to the beach. Things immediately start to go wrong for the Chesters, and steadily get worse. Jack ends up in a feud with a local yachtsman, and has to race him to regain his pride and family's respect.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Last Song (2010)
A drama centered on a rebellious girl who is sent to a Southern beach town for the summer to stay with her father. Through their mutual love of music, the estranged duo learn to reconnect.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisBefore Midnight (2013)
It has been nine years since we last met Jesse and Celine, the French-American couple who once met on a train in Vienna. They now live in Paris with twin daughters but have spent a summer in Greece at the invitation of an author colleague of Jesse's. When the vacation is over and Jesse must send his teenage son off to the States, he begins to question his life decisions, and his relationship with Celine is at risk.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisPeople We Meet on Vacation (2026)
Poppy's a free spirit. Alex loves a plan. After years of summer vacations, these polar-opposite pals wonder if they could be a perfect romantic match.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDecember Boys (2007)
For many years, four teenage orphans at an Australian outback convent have watched their younger comrades find new parents, and realize that they may never be adopted. The Reverend Mother sends the four boys away on a seaside vacation, where they meet Teresa and Fearless, a couple who would make perfect parents. The youths compete with one another to be the one Teresa and Fearless decide to adopt.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisCall of the Wild (2009)
Self-centered and status-conscious, ten year old Ryann Hale journeys to Montana to visit her down-to-earth grandpa, Bill Hale. Ryann bonds with a wolf-dog, Buck, and schemes to save him from a cruel dogsledder.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisJudy Moody and the Not Bummer Summer (2011)
Third-grader Judy Moody sets out to have the most thrilling summer of her life.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
SnoozefestMovies like thisParadise (1991)
A 10-year-old boy spends a summer in the country with a childless couple and a precocious girl.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (2005)
Four best friends (Tibby, Lena, Carmen & Bridget) who buy a mysterious pair of pants that fits each of them, despite their differing sizes, and makes whoever wears them feel fabulous. When faced with the prospect of spending their first summer apart, the pals decide they'll swap the pants so that each girl in turn can enjoy the magic.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Beach House (2018)
Cara Rudland thought she’d left her Southern roots and troubled family far behind, but returns to the scenic Lowcountry of her childhood summers after losing her job in Chicago. There, she reconnects with her mother Lovie, who has been caring for her young, pregnant friend Toy in her charming beach house.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisAlong for the Ride (2022)
The summer before college, Auden meets the mysterious Eli, a fellow insomniac. While the seaside town of Colby sleeps, the two embark on nightly quests to help Auden experience the fun, carefree teen life she never knew she wanted.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisOn Golden Pond (1981)
For Norman and Ethel Thayer, this summer on golden pond is filled with conflict and resolution. When their daughter Chelsea arrives, the family is forced to renew the bonds of love and overcome the generational friction that has existed for years.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSaved by the Bell: Hawaiian Style (1992)
Kelly's grandpa invites the whole gang to his little hotel "The Hideaway" in Hawaii for summer vacation. They expect a marvelous time at the beach - without Belding. Upon arriving, they quickly learn that not only is Belding there, but they also have to help Kelly's grandpa from losing his hotel. Meanwhile Zack meets (again) the love of his life, Jessie and Slater bet with Lisa that they won't fight, and Screech gets kidnapped by the Pupuku clan.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisThe Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012)
British retirees travel to India to take up residence in what they believe is a newly restored hotel. Less luxurious than its advertisements, the Marigold Hotel nevertheless slowly begins to charm in unexpected ways as the residents find new purpose in their old age.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisFunny Games (2008)
When Ann, husband George, and son Georgie arrive at their holiday home they are visited by a pair of polite and seemingly pleasant young men. Armed with deceptively sweet smiles and some golf clubs, they proceed to terrorize and torture the tight-knit clan, giving them until the next day to survive.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisDon't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead (1991)
Sue Ellen Crandell is a teenager eagerly awaiting her mother's summer-long absence. While the babysitter looks after her rambunctious younger siblings, Sue Ellen can party and have fun. But then the babysitter abruptly dies, leaving the Crandells short on cash. Sue Ellen finds a sweet job in fashion by lying about her age and experience on her résumé. But, while her siblings run wild, she discovers the downside of adulthood
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisBrokedown Palace (1999)
Best friends Alice and Darlene take a trip to Thailand after graduating high school. In Thailand, they meet a captivating Australian man, who calls himself Nick Parks. Darlene is particularly smitten with Nick and convinces Alice to take Nick up on his offer to treat the two of them to what amounts to a day trip to Hong Kong. In the airport, the girls are seized by the police and shocked to discover that one of their bags contains heroin.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Popcorn FlickMovies like thisNational Lampoon's Vacation (1983)
Clark Griswold is on a quest to take his family to the Walley World theme park for a vacation, but things don't go exactly as planned.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
Worth the HypeMovies like thisSwallows and Amazons (2016)
Four children dream of escaping the tedium of a summer holiday with their mother. When finally given permission to camp on their own on an island in the middle of a vast lake, they are overjoyed. But when they get there they discover they may not be alone… The battle for ownership of a lonely island teaches them the skills of survival, the value of friendship and the importance of holding your nerve.
Why it matches: Recommended by TMDB viewers
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Frequently asked questions
What are the best movies like Summer Vacation?
The closest matches to Summer Vacation are The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 (2008), Summer Rental (1985) and The Last Song (2010). Below are 17 more, each with the reason it matches.
What should I watch after Summer Vacation?
Start with The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 (2008), the closest match to Summer Vacation.
What is the highest-rated movie like Summer Vacation?
Before Midnight (2013), rated 7.5/10 by 2,844 TMDB users.
What is the newest movie like Summer Vacation?
People We Meet on Vacation (2026) is the most recent release on this list.
How are movies similar to Summer Vacation chosen?
First come films that Trakt’s viewers watch alongside Summer Vacation, then TMDB’s recommendations and films it rates as similar in story and genre. Each pick says which signal put it there.