Cat Ba Town is small enough to walk in 20 minutes. For the rest of the island, the standard transport is a hired motorbike — 100,000–150,000 dong a day from any guesthouse, often with no licence asked for. The main road across the island to the national park headquarters is paved and quiet; the smaller roads to Frog Lake and the eastern hamlets are rougher.
Taxis and motorbike taxis (xe om) hang around the seafront and the ferry pier. To reach the islands and beaches of Lan Ha Bay you need a boat, all readily booked through guesthouses and agencies. A bicycle is just enough for the seafront and the Cat Co beaches but underpowered for the climbs across the interior.