janharders - 7:59 pm on May 25, 2009 (gmt 0)

with the usual maintainance work, a week off shouldn't be a problem, if you tell them beforehand. but just assume there's a bug in your code that prohibits the site from working, maybe prohibiting the client from making money. you cannot possibly leave the client at that. if you outsource support, you need a technician to take support calls - and he needs to make decisions in your name. if the bug is hidden and someone who is not involved in the project goes hunting for it ... who'll pay him? you certainly don't want to and you can't really bill the client.
In a team, and may it be just two people, you can always involve the other one so that he knows the basics of stuff you worked on, but as a single freelancer, you're the one and only.
If you can afford to tell clients that you're off for a week without contact possibilities, great. I can't. I'm on call during working hours and beyond, because you'll never know when things happen. granted, that's in theory, usually, clients don't discover problems while they're at home having dinner, but whenever I leave town, be it business or personal, I take my cell and laptop and make sure I have an internet connection whereever I'm going.