Owner and publican Tony Espinosa said he was going to "stand my ground" on the issue as he did not want to offend his regular patrons.

"I'm a small operator, if I get five or six people a night it's not bad. Friday nights can be bigger but if I have to start knocking people back it's not worth opening the doors," he said.

Mr Espinosa, aged 67, said he had no plans to get vaccinated against COVID-19 and did not want to be part of efforts to force others to do so.

"I'm not anti-vaccination but I believe in having the freedom of choice and I have to stay true to my beliefs," he said.

While the NSW COVID-19 roadmap restored a lot of freedoms in Sydney and regional areas under lockdown, it caused some freedoms to go backwards in the Riverina.

One of the biggest impacts is that people who have not had both vaccine shots will not be able to enter pubs, cafes, restaurants and non-essential retail until December 1.

Mr Espinosa said it made no sense he could have unvaccinated people at his post office and general store within the same building as the Illabo Hotel, and they could even stay in his motel rooms, but not enter the bar.

In other news

Business NSW Murray-Riverina regional manager Anthony McFarlane said there had been concerns about public health orders instructing businesses to take "reasonable" steps to prevent non-vaccinated people from entering their premises.

"There has certainly been some confusion and uncertainty as to what to expect in this first phase of the roadmap to reopening," Mr McFarlane said.

"Now that we have confirmation of the COVID-19 safety plans it has put that anxiety to rest a bit; some businesses have made the decision not to reopen during this period but they are probably in the minority.

"Each business needs to make a choice for what is right for them ... depending on the size and type of business, some might only need signage while others will need additional steps."

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