International travellers arriving to New Zealand will need to fly into Wellington or Christchurch international airport before catching a connecting flight to one of the three airports in the West Coast.

Both Air New Zealand and Air West Coast offer frequent daily flights to Greymouth, Westport and Hokitika. From any of these small airports, travellers can rent a car, or catch a taxi or shuttle bus into town. Greymouth Airport is located just one mile south of the town. Westport Airport is served by Air New Zealand and Eagle Airways from Wellington. Hokitika Airport is situated one mile northeast of Hokitika and has 12 flights a day to Christchurch, operated by Air New Zealand. Facilities here include a small café.

The coast drive that runs the length of the West Coast region is one of the most scenically diverse drives on the planet. If possible, visitors should rent a car and do the driving themselves. This is the only real way to see the myriad sights of the West Coast in detail and at your leisure. Car rental firms can be found at the airports and in the larger towns like Greymouth.

Even if you plan to rent a car, there is an amazing train journey that runs from Christchurch to Greymouth each day. The TranzAlpine takes under five hours and passes through some truly lovely backcountry. Alternatively, there are several private coach companies which operate from Christchurch, Wellington, Nelson and other major towns to destinations all along the West Coast. Atomic Shuttles, InterCity, Newmans, and West Coast Shuttle all do a good job of getting travellers up and down the West Coast.

Once you reach your destination, if it is a large enough town like Greymouth, there are taxis available to move you about. But in reality, nearly all the small towns in the West Coast have no public transportation which is why it makes sense to rent your own car to explore this remote region.