But the Coronavirus pandemic quickly turned Genevieve Malone's gap-year plans upside down and left her with a tough decision- should she stay in London and wait it out, or return home to Australia?

The Hunter woman's decision came as UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson started locking down the country and the vibrant London she had come to love was dramatically transforming.

In hindsight her decision to leave in March - nine months into her adventure - could not have come at a better time.

She arrived in Dubai to learn her connecting flight to Australia had been delayed by nine hours and it would be the final home-bound plane to leave the airport.

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The major travel hub shut its doors a few hours after her plane left.

"I knew things were getting serious and I would have to make a decision to stay or leave," she said.

"There weren't a lot of flights available. I had three days to pack all my stuff up and get ready to go.

"All the other flights from Dubai after mine were completely cancelled, except for a few to other countries. I think they wanted to get everyone from Australia onto that flight because it was a completely full flight.

"There was chaotic energy at the airport, people were sleeping on the ground, everyone was in limbo - a lot of flights had been delayed. I was so glad to be on that flight home.

The 19-year-old had been working as a nanny in West London and in hospitality at a local cafe.

"Things started changing very quickly in March. The cafe I was working at couldn't afford to keep me on anymore so I was just nannying up until three days before I left," she said.

"I couldn't financially survive on nannying alone, that's why I got the job in the cafe - which was great because it was in my local area and I met a lot of people."

Her sudden departure meant she wasn't able to say goodbye to a lot of her new friends, but she'll keep in touch with them online.

So what does the future hold now? That's something she is still working out.

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