Fongafale is twelve kilometres long and has one paved road running the length of it. Most people walk or use a small motorbike, and motorbike taxis can usually be arranged on demand — ask at your guesthouse. There are no rental cars and no scheduled bus service.
Crossing the lagoon to one of the uninhabited islets requires a boat, hired through the conservation office or a guesthouse. Visiting any of the outer atolls (Nanumea, Niutao, Vaitupu, and the others) means waiting for the inter-island vessel, which sails from Funafuti's lagoon-side wharf on an irregular schedule, sometimes only once a month, with trips that can last weeks. There is no internal air service.