By plane
Carlsbad's local Palomar Airport IATA: CLD has commercial commuter flights to Los Angeles on United Express and to North Las Vegas on Vision Airlines, as well as general aviation.
San Diego International Airport IATA: SAN (http://san.org) is the closest major airport to Carlsbad. From SAN, you may take San Diego Transit's Route 992 bus to the Santa Fe Depot, connect to the COASTER, and get off at the COASTER stations at either Carlsbad Poinsettia or Carlsbad Village.
John Wayne Airport IATA: SNA (http://ocair.com) in Orange County is the next closest major airport; the nearest Amtrak/Metrolink stations are in Santa Ana, Tustin, and Irvine.
By Rail
Carlsbad has two train stations: Carlsbad Village on State Street just north of Grand Avenue on the north side and Carlsbad Poinsettia on Avenida Encinas between Palomar Airport Road and Poinsettia Lane on the south side. Both can be reached via the COASTER (http://www.gonctd.com/coa...) regional rail line, which runs between Oceanside northern neighbor of Carlsbad and the Santa Fe Depot in downtown San Diego.
If you are traveling from Los Angeles or Orange County, take Amtrak's Pacific Surfliner (http://www.amtrak.com/ser...) or Metrolink's (http://www.metrolinktrain...) Orange County Line to Oceanside. From the Oceanside Transit Center, take the COASTER, a bus, or a taxi to Carlsbad.
By car
Carlsbad is located about 30 miles north of San Diego on Interstate 5. The Pacific Coast Highway California State Route 1 passes through Carlsbad as well.