With WhatsApp becoming an increasingly popular method of communication for clients, does this make it harder for agents to really switch off?

Travel advisors offering a 24/7 WhatsApp service was a recurring theme among the agent finalists at this year's TTG Luxury Travel Awards. “It’s definitely a growing expectation at the top end of the market,” says Wanderluxe chief executive Rebecca Puttock.

But promising clients you're always "available" has the potential to erode work-life balance, particularly for agents who run their own businesses with no additional staff.

So how can you offer a round-the-clock personalised service without it impacting your wellbeing when your phone could be lighting up at any hour of the night?  


How does 24/7 WhatsApp service work in practice?  

Telina Lawrence, travel lounge manager at The Travel Professionals in Cobham, offers a 24/7 WhatsApp service to all her clients. “In practical terms, I personally manage the WhatsApp line," she says."I simply keep my phone with me at all times, including overnight. There isn’t a large team rota behind it – it’s a very personal service, which I believe is why it works so well for our business.

“It provides clients immense peace of mind. I would far rather be called at 2am to resolve an issue than wake up to distressed messages because a client couldn’t reach anyone.”

Puttock explains that at Wanderluxe, they position 24/7 WhatsApp as in-travel support rather than 24/7 general access. “Clients have a dedicated WhatsApp line while they are travelling, and we are on hand for anything time-sensitive – missed transfers, room issues, weather disruptions, last-minute experience tweaks,” she says.

Olivia Ponniah, managing director of Liv& Travel, says – as a one-woman band – WhatsApp has been a blessing for her. “The app allows me to offer a level of responsiveness that would have been much harder to manage through phone calls and emails.”

She uses automated messages to connect with new enquiries, assuring them of a response within 24 hours, and she also uses automation to notify clients who enquire at the weekend that she’ll be back at her desk on Monday.

© Olivia Ponniah

“You can ‘exclude’ contacts from receiving this message so I’m still able to provide that 24/7 support for clients while in destination," Ponniah says. "I simply exclude them from the list every weekend when the out-of-office notice goes live on WhatsApp.

“This has allowed me to set better boundaries which I’ve found, at times, to be a struggle as a service-driven business owner."

WhatsApp also serves as an easy communication tool for The Travel Snob’s David Walker, who operates independently without a physical shop or a team. He gives all departing clients his number, as well as the supplier’s out-of-office-contact.

“At night, when sleeping, I set my phone to silent, but I mark all clients that are away as emergency contacts, ensuring I still receive urgent alerts [with sound on] if they happen to reach out.”

However, Walker chooses not to set up automated AI responses. “I don't believe this suits my approach because I aim to provide a personal, hands-on service,” he explains.

How to set boundaries  

Travel Counsellor Thea Gillingham has always treated WhatsApp as a practical communication tool. “Maybe that's the millennial in me not liking phone calls! That said, boundaries are absolutely key,” she warns.

Thea has an automated message in place, which prompts new clients to complete her enquiry form, and directs clients with urgent travel emergencies to call the landline or the 24/7 duty number.

“That automation does two things,” she says. “Firstly, it funnels enquiries into the correct place without me manually redirecting them. Secondly, it sets the tone. WhatsApp is a communication tool, not a replacement for the emergency line.”

(Credit: Thea Gillingham, Travel Counsellors)

Thea adds that over the years, she has trained her clients to understand emergencies require a call, not a message. “My clients know that if I am asleep, I am not responding, and that is where our 24/7 emergency team step in overnight or me during the day.”

Not all agents have access to in-house out-of-hours cover, David Walker being one of them. However, he says he rarely encounters issues, thanks to thorough pre-departure planning.

“This includes confirming hotel bookings and verifying seat assignments," he explains. "I use tools like Flight Status to check on-time departures and arrivals, and I contact transfer companies to confirm pickup times. I inform clients that if they experience any issues with transfers, they should call the contact number on the voucher or simply take a taxi and keep the receipt.”

He adds: “This not only helps avoid out-of-hours disruptions but also ensures a smoother experience for my clients.”  

© David Walker, The Travel Snob

Joan Jones, creative travel director at Once in a Lifetime Holidays, echoes Walker's view that taking proactive steps can avoid a lot of out-of-hours contact.

The agency doesn’t advertise its WhatsApp number with clients as a 24/7 service. “Much of the checking of problems that could occur is done before the clients depart," she says.

"We then WhatsApp clients the day after their arrival to check that everything is to their satisfaction, which allows us to manage problems in advance of very dissatisfied clients reaching out to us.”  

Janey Berry, director of Berry Travel, restricts her 24/7 WhatsApp service to her touring clients, who have more complicated itineraries. “My clients find it reassuring especially if it’s a first time visit to Africa where they may be concerned about perceived safety.”

She also pins the tour operator’s emergency out-of-hours number at the top of a WhatsApp group with the clients, making it clear they should use that number during UK night hours.

How regularly are agents woken in the night?

Olivia Ponniah says her sleep has been disrupted no more than 10 times in six years, mainly for reasons like transfers not turning up or hotels not having the reservation. “Things that do need urgent assistance as it’s 10am wherever the client is and they’ve just arrived to their destination after a long journey.”

She advises keeping the conversation on message rather than a phone call. “It’s just not professional for the client to hear me half asleep," she adds. "Plus that way I have everything in writing, so it’s easily traceable.”

Rebecca Puttock says she can count on one hand the number of times she’s been woken up to resolve something urgent, such as weather diversions, medical issues and significant operational disruptions.

“In most cases, strong DMCs and hotel teams solve the issue locally before escalation is needed," she stresses. "This is why our strong, reliable supplier partnerships are integral to being able to offer this extended service."

Telina Lawrence says she has dealt with three instances in the past year of genuine overnight emergencies. “One occasion involved clients travelling through Japan during severe weather," she tells TTG.

"It was important I reassured them their complex itinerary was being adjusted. This meant a bunch of calls between 2am and 4am UK time. I won’t pretend it wasn’t exhausting – I had a full day of client appointments ahead and couldn’t start late.”  

Advice for handling trivial middle-of-the-night requests

Could an agent’s phone be buzzing away in the middle of the night for a more trivial reason? It’s happened to me, says Janey Berry. “I once woke up to 21 missed calls between 1am and 1.20am from a client checking into Antigua’s Jumby Bay. She had constantly pressed redial. She thought she’d been given the wrong room category, which she hadn’t. I did ring the general manager at 1.30am and he had sent her to the spa to calm down!”

If a WhatsApp message wakes you up in the night, Berry suggests tapping on the message to read it without opening it. If it’s not an emergency, she replies in office hours the next day, and includes a reminder of the out-of-hours number in her response.

There’s general agreement here that it’s best not to react. Olivia Ponniah points out that when a client messages at midnight to check whether their room has a sea view, they’re usually just excited about their trip and thinking out loud.

“As a one-woman business, if I start answering every minor query at 2am, I’m essentially training clients to expect that – and my future self will absolutely not thank me for it."

Does always being available impact your wellbeing?

Ponniah says the midnight calls are not the issue. “It’s the silent thought of knowing my phone could go off at any time. It can be a buzzkill when you wake up in the morning and see messages from clients detailing issues like flight cancellations or seat downgrades – these are beyond my control, but it makes you feel like you can’t even sleep without something going wrong.”

She says her brain stays on a kind of low-level standby even on quiet nights, which takes some getting used to. “I’ve had to be deliberate about switching off, making sure the automation is doing its job so I’m not getting pinged unnecessarily and giving myself permission to let non-urgent messages wait until morning. It’s definitely a work in progress,” she reveals.

On the flip side, Ponniah’s career as an independent luxury travel designer has enabled her to be a digital nomad. “I am waking up in another country most months so it’s a compromise I’ve made my peace with,” she says.

Nocturnal wake-up calls have caused Telina Lawrence to have a few days when she’s felt wiped out, but they’ve been rare and for the client’s benefit, genuinely necessary. “If a message can wait, then it waits until a reasonable hour,” she says. “Part of preserving sanity is not conditioning clients to expect an instantaneous response to non-urgent matters at any time of day.”

© Telina Lawrence

And when her phone pings in the night, she’s often happy to see the messages. “Interestingly, the majority of messages we receive while clients are travelling are not crisis-led. Clients love sharing photographs, restaurant discoveries and special moments with us in real time. It’s become a lovely extension of the relationship – we are part of the journey, not just the booking.”

“Structured properly, 24/7 access doesn’t need to erode wellbeing," says Rebecca Puttock. "But boundaries and delegation are crucial. For me, 24/7 support is less about constant availability and more about confidence – the client knowing that if something genuinely goes wrong, they are not alone.”

Boundaries are essential, agrees Janey Berry. “WhatsApp 24/7 can be a reassuring and positive service but make it clear what your rules are, its purpose and your availability. Otherwise, you have no boundaries and you will be working seven days a week, 24 hours a day.”

Ponniah adds: “Most importantly, protect yourself. Burnout is real, and when you’re a one-person show, there’s no one to pick up the slack if you run yourself into the ground. But get the boundaries right from the start and WhatsApp 24/7 can be a brilliant differentiator.”