Nantong is accessible from Shanghai in around 1.5 hours by high-speed rail and from Nanjing in about 2.5 hours. The city has two high-speed train stations — Nantong Station and Nantong West Station — and a metro system (Line 1 opened in 2022) connecting the main districts.
Most travellers come as a day trip from Shanghai, but an overnight stay allows access to the Haohe River evening atmosphere that day-trippers miss. Nantong Xingdong Airport has domestic routes. A bridge connection to Shanghai across the Yangtze (the Tonghai Expressway and its extensions) has significantly improved road travel times.