Abbottabad is on the Karakoram Highway (N-35), the main route from Islamabad into the northern mountains. The drive from Islamabad takes about three hours on a paved but winding road through the foothills; from Lahore, allow seven hours via the Motorway and Hazara Expressway.
By bus, regular services from Islamabad's Pir Wadhai terminal run throughout the day. The journey is around three to four hours depending on traffic. From Rawalpindi, the alternative is a Daewoo coach, which is the most comfortable of the bus options. Onward services from Abbottabad run to Mansehra, Naran, Gilgit, and Skardu through the summer.
No train service reaches Abbottabad. The nearest railhead is Havelian, about 25 km south, with trains to Rawalpindi.
Nearest airport: Islamabad International. There is a small private airstrip at Mansehra to the north but no scheduled passenger service.