The Invisible Itinerary: Women in Business Travel on Safety, Stress and Work-Life Balance

Business travel looks the same on a booking confirmation whether you're a man or a woman, but the preparation behind it rarely is. For many women, a trip starts days before the flight – with a mental checklist that never quite switches off.

Research presented by Professor Anneli Douglas (University of Pretoria) at the GBTA Southern Africa Conference 2025 found that “making home arrangements – family responsibilities” ranks as the single biggest stressor for South African business travellers, ahead of even personal safety concerns. Of course, “home arrangements” or “family responsibilities” go well beyond children – caregiving often includes parents, grandparents and extended family too. The mental load is real. And it sits at the heart of corporate travel management.

Corporate travel work-life balance

When asked what first goes through her mind when a work trip lands in the diary, Elize De Jager, Corporate Traveller Operations Team Leader, was brutally honest.

“The first thing is probably a quick mental calculation about whether it's actually worth it – not just professionally but personally. That's a legitimate response, and I think more people should admit they do it.”

For Christelle Louw, Corporate Traveller Operations Team Leader and mother of three, the calculations continue long after the flight is booked. “I have to work out the daily schedule for my kids, liaise with the lift clubs, and ensure my husband knows that things can change during the course of the day – requiring a level of flexibility. He is supportive, but I know that as a mom, the household's direction and mood revolve around me.”

For Dominique Du Plessis, EMEA Lifecycle Campaign Specialist at Corporate Traveller and mother of two toddlers, pre-trip planning is almost surgical in its precision. That means meal planning, stocking the house with pantry staples and ready-made meals, and making sure medication and anything else the kids could possibly need is on hand. “Without that prep, my kids would happily survive on chicken nuggets and KFC the entire time I'm away.”

Business travel tips for working parents

Planning tip	Why it matters
Build a cheat sheet for whoever holds the fort	Removes daily decision-making from your support system
Pre-cook and stock meals before departure	Keeps the household fed without remote management
Brief more than one backup person	Spreads the load; just in case
Use a shared calendar for school runs and activities	Keeps everyone coordinated without constant check-ins

Simple, right? It’s not. “The coordination is both complex and exhausting,” Elize adds. “And it doesn't disappear when you walk into the office – or get on a plane.”

When the plan breaks down

Sometimes, no amount of planning is enough. Christelle recalls a trip that nearly ended before it began: her ten-month-old son fell ill while her husband was away on business in China and she was en route to an overnight work trip in Limpopo. Her babysitter rushed him to hospital.

What followed was a scramble: a three-hour transfer, a pivot to the Gautrain after traffic derailed the plan, a flight that closed five minutes before she arrived, and a ticketing agent who took pity and found her a late seat. She reached the hospital at 1am; her son was discharged two days later.

“Having a leader who understood – and realised I can only perform if my home life is stable – was invaluable,” Christelle says. “I take this lesson with me daily in how I run my teams. Family first – the performance at the office will follow.”

Corporate travel safety: rules women travel by

“Travelling as a parent takes a lot of planning and preparation,” says Syntyche Durman, Travel Manager at Corporate Traveller. “Before every trip, I make sure everything is organised, from safe accommodation to transport. I always stay aware of my surroundings.”

“Travelling early morning to the airport, I often weigh up the risk of Uber versus the risk of driving myself,” says Karen Morton, Corporate Traveller Operations Team Leader. “Driving myself always wins.” When travelling with colleagues, she sticks to the group, watches her alcohol intake, and holds a standing team rule: “We all let each other know when we are home safe.”

For Dominique, safety means staying reachable. “The two non-negotiables for me are a fully charged power bank and a local SIM card. Knowing I have data and battery means I never feel stranded – even in a country where I don't speak the language.”

Safety tip	Why it matters
Arrange airport transfers instead of solo public transport at night	Removes the highest-risk part of the journey
Travel and move around in small groups where possible	Reduces vulnerability, especially after dark
Set a personal alcohol limit at work functions	Keeps judgement and awareness sharp
Carry a power bank and get a local SIM on arrival	Ensures you're never stranded without data or battery
Check in with a colleague or partner on arrival, and once home	Builds a simple, shared safety net

Of course, you need to choose your hotel – and hotel room – carefully. Established, well-reviewed hotel brands with 24-hour front-desk staff and key-card-restricted elevators generally offer more consistent security than informal accommodation. Ask your TMC about a hotel's safety standards and push back if you don't feel safe.

Once you've settled on a hotel, opt for a room between the third and sixth floors, where possible, high enough to deter break-ins but low enough for a quick evacuation, and avoid rooms near stairwells or emergency exits. At check-in, ask reception to write your room number down rather than say it aloud, and once inside, use the security chain or privacy latch, with a portable door stop as backup.

These are just a few of the safe business travel tips women pass on to each other to keep in mind – rarely written into formal policy but relied on every trip.

Why travel policy flexibility for working parents matters

None of this is solved by sheer will alone. Douglas's research confirms it: a fair, flexible travel policy directly buffers travel-related stress, while rigid, cost-only policies compound it.

This is where thoughtful corporate travel management – and the right travel management company (TMC) – make a real difference.

“Corporate companies need to shift from an 'always available, always mobile' mindset to one of intentional flexibility,” says Christelle. “Women bear a disproportionate share of caregiving, and it’s sad to think that a woman may opt out of a promotion or leave mid-career because the travel requirements feel at odds with family life. If HR policies reflect flexibility, it becomes a choice for everyone – not a special favour for a woman in a man's world.”

Elize sees the same gap: “Some workplaces are still structured around an imaginary worker who has no caregiving responsibilities and unlimited availability. That person is increasingly rare and was probably never the norm.”

What a good travel policy looks like

Douglas's research points to a clear conclusion: policy design shapes traveller wellbeing as much as any individual coping strategy does. Fair, traveller-friendly policies – as opposed to those focused purely on minimising cost – lead to greater job satisfaction.

A good travel policy...	Why it matters
Is fair, not just cost-driven	Traveller-friendly policies improve job satisfaction, wellness and wellbeing
Builds in recovery time	Time to recover from jet lag – and to catch up on things like laundry and shopping – helps prevent burnout
Is shaped across departments, not just one	Cross-functional input produces more realistic, workable policies
Ensures every trip has a clear purpose	Keeps ROI top of mind – for the business and the traveller
Is monitored and adjusted over time	New systems or policy changes shouldn't become yet another burden
Outlines practical support	Advice focusing on health and safety during travel is essential
Considers “bleisure requests”	Excursions, outings and leisure activities all play a role in employee satisfaction – including the option to extend a trip so family can join for part of it

This Women's Day, the business case is simple: sustainable corporate travel is fair, flexible and built around real life and real people. As Christelle puts it, “There is no such thing as a superwoman.”

About Flight Centre Travel Group
The Flight Centre Travel Group is one of the world’s largest travel retailers and corporate travel managers. The company, which is headquartered in Brisbane, Australia, has company-owned leisure and corporate travel business in dozens of countries, spanning Australia, New Zealand, the Americas, Europe, the United Kingdom, South Africa, the United Arab Emirates, and Asia. ASX listed Flight Centre Travel Group (FLT) also operates the global FCM corporate travel management network, which extends to more than 100 countries through company-owned businesses and independent licensees, along with Corporate Traveller, the flagship business specific to the small-to-medium-sized enterprise sector. For more information, visit fctgl.com.