Outside of Africa, Portugal and France have the best air connections with Mozambique. Both Air France and Air Portugal have flights in and out of Maputo, though it's cheaper to fly to Johannesburg, South Africa, and travel by land to Mozambique. From within Africa, travellers can fly between Maputo and Lilongwe, Malawi, or Johannesburg. The airport departure tax for international flights is US$10.

The best land crossings are over the South African border. There are three trains a week between Johannesburg and Maputo, taking about 15 hours each way. There are also minibuses running between Maputo and various South African towns, and a daily direct luxury bus connecting Maputo and Johannesburg. Minibuses also run between Maputo and towns in Swaziland, crossing the border at Namaacha, Mozambique.

Other border crossings are less convenient and less reliable. You can cross between Palma (at the very north-eastern corner of Mozambique) and Mwambo, Tanzania, but there's very little transport south of Palma and the roads are terrible. Land mines and bandits make crossing between Mozambique and Zambia a very dicey proposition; most people go through Malawi and one of several border crossings. There are two main crossings between Mozambique and Zimbabwe: Nyamapanda on the Tete Corridor, and Machipanda on the Beira-Harare Road.

The bus is about the best means of getting around Mozambique. There are buses running between major towns usually once a day at least. There are three main private companies and each has express lines (which means less slow, not particularly quick). Where the roads are well maintained, this is a good way to go. Where the roads are in rough shape (and that includes nearly all rural areas), you'll probably have to use converted passenger trucks called chapa-cems (short for 'tin one-hundreds' and usually just called chapas) to get around.

LAM has flights inside Mozambique, connecting Maputo, Beira, Tete and other cities. Flights are frequently delayed or cancelled; baggage is frequently lost or tampered with. There are also twice-weekly flights between the capital and the Bazaruto Archipelago. Sabin Air, a private charter airline, can fly you just about anywhere you like, though it's more expensive than LAM.

If you're driving your own vehicle in Mozambique, the police have a reputation for finding problems trivial and imagined with vehicles for which large 'fines' are imposed. If you're polite, have your vehicle and papers in strict order and obey all the road rules, you stand less chance of being hassled. Cars can be hired in Maputo and Beira, where several major and a few local agencies have depots.

The airport is about 1km north-west of the city centre. Taxis and buses are available. The train station and minibus depot are at the southern edge of the city.