By Train
Payyanur has a railway station on the Shoranur–Mangalore section of Indian Railways — a category A station with three platforms and good connections to both Kerala and Karnataka. Express trains connect to Thiruvananthapuram (12 hours), Kozhikode (3 hours), Mangaluru (2 hours), and Kannur (45 minutes). The station is well-served and train is the most practical way to arrive.
By Road
National Highway 66 passes through Payyanur, connecting it to Kannur (36 km south) and Kasaragod (56 km north). KSRTC buses run frequently between major towns in northern Kerala. Taxis and auto-rickshaws are available for shorter trips.
By Air
The nearest airports are Kannur International Airport (57 km) and Mangalore International Airport (115 km). Both have connections to major Indian cities; Kannur also has direct flights to several Gulf destinations (important for the large Kerala expatriate community in the Gulf states).