This is a tier list of the best modes of travel in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom (TotK). Read on to learn the best ways to travel and explore Hyrule!

Best Modes of Travel

Tier	Mode of Transportation
	・Hover Bike
	・Paragliding ・Rocket Shield
	・Horses ・Shield Surfing ・Armor Sets and Elixirs
	・Zonai Wings ・Zonai Vehicle Builds

Hover Bike

The hover bike outclasses every mode of transportation in Tears of the Kingdom and is easily the best way to travel and explore as it allows you to reach the farthest or highest places with ease.

Furthermore, you just need two fans and a steering stick to build this contraption, which you can easily get from Zonai Dispensers.

How to Make a Hover Bike

Paragliding

Link's paraglider is your primary tool when exploring Hyrule, be it on the surface, at the sky, or in the Depths. Jumping and gliding in the air allow you to soar across the sky and reach certain areas.

How far you can go before landing on the ground will depend on Link's stamina gauge, or how many stamina-restoring dishes or elixirs you have in your inventory.

How to Get the Paraglider

Extend Airtime with Tulin's Ability

Tulin's ability, which lets him blow a gust of wind, will push Link forward while gliding, extending his airtime and giving him a short speed boost.

This ability will be unlocked after defeating Colgera and clearing the Wind Temple.

How to Use Vow of Tulin, Sage of Wind

Using a Rocket Shield

If you combine a shield with a Zonai rocket, you will be able to use it to launch Link up in the air and get some serious height.

Rocket shields are useful for scaling tall cliffs or other high walls where there are no ceilings to use Ascend. This combination is also useful if you want to escape a crowd of enemies.

How to Get Rocket Shield

Riding a Horse

Wild horses can be found across Hyrule's vast fields and can provide easy ground transportation if you are able to tame one.

Tamed horses can be saved at stables if you want to keep one permanently, and their speed and stamina, along with other stats, can be upgraded if you talk to Malanya and feed them cooked dishes.

Travelling via horseback on the surface map is faster than running on foot, which can be useful early in the game, but is outpaced by paragliding and riding a hover bike.

You also need to cook several meals just to max out a horse's stats which may prove pointless in some cases, considering that you cannot bring your horse underground or fly with it in the sky.

How to Tame Wild Horses

Shield Surfing

While running down a hill, you can whip out your shield, jump, and ride it to slide across the descent quickly.

You can also fuse a cart to your shield and make a Cart Shield to improve speed and mobility.

Do note, however, that shield surfing can easily eat away your shield's durability, except when sliding through snow or sand. Shield surfing is also ineffective on flat ground as you will not be able to gain any momentum.

How to Shield Surf

Armor Sets and Elixirs

Equipping armor sets and drinking elixirs that give Link effects can be helpful while exploring, but both aid Link passively compared to the more active roles of other, better modes of travel.

Armor Sets

Armor Sets that Improve Climbing
Climber's Bandanna	Climbing Gear	Climbing Boots
Froggy Hood	Froggy Sleeve	Froggy Leggings

The Climbing Set allows you to scale walls and cliffs quickly and more effectively by consuming less stamina. While wearing every armor piece, you will also get a set bonus that decreases the stamina used when you jump while climbing.

Meanwhile, the Froggy Set reduces Link's chances of slipping while climbing on wet surfaces. Equipping the full set completely removes chances of slipping, which can be useful when exploring while it is raining.

Both armor sets improve climbing, but the process of climbing itself can be skipped with a rocket shield.

Armor Sets List and All Set Bonuses

Elixirs

Elixirs are made from ingredients and monster parts. Drinking one gives Link temporary buffs like Slip Resistance or Speed Up which can be useful while exploring on foot.

Elixir effects can also be extended to a maximum of 30 minutes if you add Dragon Horns when making them.

One caveat when relying on elixirs is that you can only have one active effect at a time, which means that you cannot have both previously mentioned effects active when you are exploring while it is raining for example.

List of Elixirs and Recipes

Using Zonai Wings

Zonai Wings are devices which you can stand on and glide across the sky, albeit slowly. Zonai Wings also tend to disappear after a set amount of time, even while you're still standing on top of them.

You can improve the Zonai Wing's performance if you attach fans and a steering stick to control it, although building a hover bike is a much better option.

How to Use the Zonai Wing

Building Zonai Vehicles

Autobuild offers limitless creations limited only by your imagination via Zonai devices, ready-made builds from Yiga Schematics and Schema Stones, or builds saved in Autobuild.

These are great if you want to have a unique experience when exploring, but your mileage may vary as they tend to burn through energy cells. You also need a couple of Zonai devices to build something functional, especially if you are making something with wheels.

Some builds may also not be as useful depending on the location you're in, like traveling through steep terrain that wheeled vehicles cannot surmount.

All Yiga Schematics and Schema Stones Locations

Zonai Devices for Vehicles

Zonai Devices for Vehicles
Steering Stick	Fan	Rocket
Balloon	Small Wheel	Battery

List of All Zonai Devices

The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Related Guides

Tips and Tricks
A Beginner's Guide to Tears of the Kingdom

All Tips and Tricks Guides

New Features
How to Confuse Enemies	How to Cure Gloom
How to Blind Enemies	-
Combat Guides
Flurry Rush, Sneakstrike, and Deal Critical Damage	Weapon Modifiers Explained
How to Raise Defense	Passive Abilities for Weapons Explained
How to Upgrade Armor	How to Defeat Shielded Enemies
How to Throw Items and Materials	How to Repair Weapons
How to Get Earthwake Technique	How to Increase Weapon Durability
How to Parry	How to Sneakstrike
How to Perfect Dodge and Flurry Rush	Stealth Mechanics Explained
Exploration Guides
How to Dive	How to Shield Surf
How to Break Cracked Rocks	How to Use Minecarts
How to Cross the Freezing Water	Fast Travel Guide
How to Change the Weather	How to Get Heat Resistance
How to Make an Axe	How to Tame Wild Horses
How to Chop Down and Use Fallen Trees	How to Pass Time
How to Light Up Dark Areas	How to Get Epona
What to Do During a Thunderstorm	How to Get Cold Resistance
How to Check Coordinates	How to Climb Efficiently
How to Break Wooden Boxes	How to Make a Fire
How to Make a Raft	How to Make a Hover Bike
How to Use Rocket Shields	-
General Tips and Tricks
Zonai Dispenser Guide	How to Expand Inventory
Best Settings to Use	Pony Points Guide
How to Increase Health and Stamina	How to Swap Hearts for Stamina
How to Get the Paraglider and All Paraglider Designs	amiibo Unlocks and List of Compatible amiibo
Blood Moon Explained	Missables and One-Time Events Guide
Whistle Effects and How to Use	How to Farm Crops
How to Heal	Post Game Content Guide: Is There a New Game Plus?
Kochi Dye Shop Guide: How to Recolor Armor	Ending Explained: How to Watch the True Ending
List of Unlockables	How to Get Ganon's Horse
Farming Guides
How to Farm Arrows	Bubbul Gem Guide
How to Get More Energy Cells and Increase Energy	Early Game Rupee Farming
How to Farm Weapons	Dragon Part Farming Guide
How to Get Pristine Weapons	-
Notable Item Location Guides
How to Get the Travel Medallion	How to Get the Champion's Leathers Early
How to Get the Hylian Shield Early	How to Get the Master Sword
How to Get the Classic Green Tunic	Where to Find Wild Greens
How to Get Ring Garland	Misko's Treasure Locations
How to Get Monster Medals	How to Get All Champion Weapons
Puzzle Solution Guides
How to Solve the Water Temple Spinning Tower	Where to Find King Dorephan
How to Solve the Gerudo Light Puzzle	Voe and You Class Solutions
Map Location Guides
All Stable Locations	All Sage's Will Locations
How to Get to Hyrule Castle	How to Get to Lost Woods and Enter Korok Forest
Great Fairy Locations and How to Unlock	How to Find the Light Dragon: Location and Drops
How to Find Farosh: Location and Drops	How to Find Naydra: Location and Drops
How to Find Dinraal: Location and Drops	How to Reach Abandoned Hebra Mine
Satori Cherry Blossom Tree Locations and Guide	How to Unlock Royal Hidden Passage
All Addison Sign Locations	All Forge Construct Locations
How to Get into Gerudo Secret Club	All Coliseum Locations and Rewards
Koltin Locations and List of Rewards	Satori (King of the Mountain) Locations
Where to Find Dondons	How to Get to Toto Lake
All Goddess Statue Locations	-
Tier List Guides
Best Early Game Armor	Best Armor Sets (Equipment)
Best Weapons and Shields	Best Horses
Best Equipment for Exploration	Best Fuse Materials and Weapon Combinations
Best Modes of Travel	-
Glitches and Exploits
List of Glitches and Exploits	How to Duplicate Weapons, Bows, and Shields
How to Duplicate Materials	-
FAQs
Can You Pet the Dogs?	Does Saved Data Carry Over?
Should You Play BotW First?	What Happens When You Die?
How Does Autosave Work?	What Happened to Link's House?
Do Materials Respawn?	How to Lower and Raise Hylian Hood
How to Change the Difficulty	When Do Shops Restock?
Is There a Master Mode?	-