Tartu is 186 kilometers southeast of Tallinn, connected by a good highway. By bus, Lux Express and FlixBus run regular services that take about 2.5 hours; buses are comfortable and frequent. Driving from Tallinn takes about 2 hours.
There is no direct train service from Tallinn to Tartu at present, though the route exists and is periodically discussed for high-speed rail development. Trains do run from Tartu to Valga and across the Latvian border.
Tartu Airport has limited scheduled service — mainly seasonal routes to Helsinki and a few European cities. Most visitors arrive overland from Tallinn.