Newcastle Airport (Williamtown) is the gateway to the Hunter Valley. It is located in Port Stephens and receives domestic flights from Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Canberra, the Gold Coast, Port Macquarie and Norfolk Island. Regular services also come in from Auckland, New Zealand.

The airport is mostly served by popular airlines including: Jetstar, QantasLink, and Virgin Blue, as well as smaller regional carriers such as Aeropelican, Brindabella Airlines, Tiger Airways Australia and Norfolk Air.

The terminal at Newcastle Airport has recently been revamped and has good passenger facilities which include an ATM, Wi-fi Internet, a lost property desk, and shops, cafés and restaurants.

Shuttles and taxis run to various towns in the region from the airport, while the Pacific Highway, F3 Freeway, and the New England Highway provide road links to the north, south and west respectively for those driving hire cars.

Other air hubs which can be used to access the Hunter Valley include the small airport at Belmont, Lake Macquarie, which is served by Aeropelican flights from Sydney. Seaplane flights link Newcastle Harbour, Sydney Harbour and Wollongong with Coastal Air Services, while helicopter companies offer transfers to most places within Hunter Valley.

Those who are not in Australia yet and plan on visiting Hunter Valley will invariably fly to Sydney Kingsford Smith International Airport. More commonly known as Sydney Airport, it is the main gateway to Australia and a major hub for Qantas. Transfer options from Sydney Kingsford Smith International Airport are excellent, with public buses, shuttles and taxis all running to Hunter Valley.

Public buses run regularly between the main towns of Newcastle, Cessnock, Pokolbin, Maitland, and Port Stephens. Bus services also run within the larger towns throughout the day, although most people visiting this region will have a hire car. The smaller villages in the valley can traversed on foot.

Several tour companies provide transport within the Hunter Valley region. Grayline is one such company providing coach trips to the wineries from Sydney on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays. This service takes in three wineries and includes lunch.

Perhaps the most interesting way to get about is by horse-drawn cart. Several companies offer horse cart tours of various wineries, particularly in Pokolbin.

Hiring a car is the easiest and most convenient option for getting about the Hunter Valley as there are simply too many towns and villages to rely on the scant public transport. Newcastle Airport and Sydney Kingsford Smith International Airport both have major car hire company representatives and cars can be pre-booked online.