Navegantes International Airport (NVT), just north across the river, is the closest air gateway, with flights from São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Brasília, Belo Horizonte, Curitiba, and Porto Alegre. A short bridge or ferry connects the airport to Itajaí city.
By road, the BR-101 federal highway runs along the coast through the city; Florianópolis is about 90 km south and Curitiba some 230 km north. Long-distance buses use the Rodoviária downtown. By sea, Itajaí is a regular cruise-ship stop between October and April and is occasionally the South American base for the Ocean Race fleet.