That's life for Fiona and Barry Clark over the next 14 days as they spend their mandatory self-isolation in Sydney's Swissotel.

The Woonona couple had spent more than 19 days on the Norwegian Jewel, before finally being able to get off the ship at Hawaii and being flown home.

Thinking they were going to be able to self-isolate at home it wasn't until they landed in the early hours of Thursday that they were told they'd been spending the next two weeks in a hotel room where the windows don't open and there are security guards in the hallways.

"We're not allowed to go outside our door," Ms Clark said.

"We can only open our door if someone knocks to deliver a meal or if it's the nurse."

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Meals are left at their doors three times a day, and Ms Clark said the food has improved from the first few days.

"The food was dreadful," she said. "They were giving vegetarians and vegans meat, they were giving coeliacs bread rolls."

She also said the rooms seemed to be allocated at random; she and her husband have a suite to themselves but another family with two small children have just a bedroom and toilet to call home for the next two weeks.

It is believed that same family has two teenaged daughters staying in a separate room on their own - one of whom just celebrated their 18^th birthday.

There's also no delivery of outside food and drink - either from a business or from family - as it is deemed a health risk.

Ms Clark said the hotel can purchase items on their behalf - but with a 25 per cent surcharge.

Also, there are restrictions on alcohol - no more than one bottle of wine or two beers can be purchased each day.

With no books, magazines or games allowed to be brought in, it means the only entertainment comes via the television, which Ms Clark said didn't include Foxtel or Netflix.

Ms Clark said she had already heard of other 'guests' in the hotel having anxiety attacks and she felt for those on their own.

"We've got each other," she said, "but if I was in this room by myself I think I'd go crazy."

Another forced resident, Tom Huntley, felt he and the others were being used to road-test the government's forced isolation policy.

"I think we're guinea pigs to trial this, because we're the first people to be self-isolated in a hotel," he said.

Mr Huntley, who could face another two weeks in isolation when he returns home to South Australia, said the passengers on the ship had been concerned about where they would end up.

"We were pretty stressed as to where we were going to end up," he said.

"We were afraid that we were going to be dumped in America, with all the problems they have there, and we'd have to fend for ourselves."

He said the lack of fresh air has been "a major issue for everyone".

"My wife had a panic attack because she was struggling to breathe and feeling claustrophobic," he said.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian admitted the system would not be "perfect and foolproof."

"We understand some people have had a very stressful time trying to get back home and we want to consider their position, but we also need to consider the health and safety of eight million residents in NSW and also more broadly, 25 million people in Australia," Ms Berejiklian said.

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