The couple in their 60s, who asked not to be named, spent the majority of their holiday in Austria, but had to fly out from Milan, in northern Italy, where almost 150 people have died from the virus, and through Singapore.
They stayed as far away from the airport in Milan as possible, wore gloves and masks, and "washed and washed, so we were pretty pedantic about what we were doing".
It was almost an identical flight path to that followed by an Auckland couple, both now confirmed to have Covid-19, three days earlier.
The Queenstown woman told the Otago Daily Times while overseas she had already contemplated going into voluntary isolation after returning to New Zealand on Sunday morning, and when the first Auckland case was confirmed, she and her partner decided to err on the side of caution.
While she said neither felt unwell or was showing any symptoms, she had been "a bit nervy" and quite stressed.
"You’re very nervous if you’ve got a sore throat or something, so you’re kind of on the edge of your seat with your health."
The couple live out of town, so before they decided to go into isolation, they had stocked up on groceries and had a fully-stocked freezer.
Because she and her partner were not showing any symptoms, their isolation was slightly different — she was able to go for runs, for example. However, she was limiting contact with others as much as possible.
They stuck to the "golden rule" to stay at least a metre away from anyone else and talked to them for no longer than 15 minutes.
"If I have had anything to do with people this week or next, that’s exactly what my rule is: talk fast, be far apart and then see you later, alligator.
"I’m definitely not having meetings, we’re not shopping, all of those things — 85% of the time, we’re at home."
The woman said she would probably follow that rule for another week after her quarantine ended on March 16 and intended to avoid any elderly people for at least a month.
"We will only be a success with this virus if we all take responsibility. If you’re feeling sick, don’t go out in public ... wash your hands, don’t cough over people."
The couple had provided their contact details to Healthline and she got a follow-up phone call yesterday afternoon to provide numbers to call if they felt unwell, and also a number to provide advice on income.
"I’m self-employed, so I can’t take it as a holiday or sick leave.
"I’ve got my own bills to pay ... it’s actually very stressful."
As of yesterday afternoon, New Zealand had four confirmed cases of coronavirus.
