Fed up with endless check-in queues and expensive parking at the airport? Fear not, we’ve found the best app to help you on your way to the ultimate Traincation…

Eurostar Trains – Free

We already know how cool the Eurostar is with so many celebs jumping on board, from Jessica Simpson to Mr Hudson and Romelu Lukaku. We even managed to find this pic of P Diddy heading off on Traincation!

Now, finally the Eurostar app has arrived to make your Traincation as easy as possible…

Quickly and easily search and book journeys from London to Paris or any of the Eurostar destinations. The app even lets you load your ticket onto your mobile phone and then check-in with an easy scan of your screen. You don’t need to panic about internet access either, as once the ticket is downloaded you can still get it offline. The Eurostar app also lets you track the loyalty schemes and keeps you up to date with any disruptions or changes.

Check out all the gossip from behind the scenes when we took Mr Hudson on Traincation here…

Seen a better app? Tell us all about it in the comments box or on Twitter @global_cool…

Main Pic: PA Images

By Emily Rycroft

The Harry Potter premiere last week marked the end of an era for J.K Rowling. We’ve loved watching the stars grow up, with Emma Watson being a Global Cool favourite and Daniel Radcliffe choosing an eco-friendly car.

The books and movies have taught us not to drive our cars by hopping on a broomstick instead, to reuse and recycle by magically repairing everything and to always go organic, especially in Snape’s potions class.

Unfortunately it’s not that easy for us muggles to hop on a broomstick, so here are our tips on how to be like Harry for the greener good…

Do It In Public
Harry and co may have the floo network and disapparating, but we have public transport. We can help you with some amazing music playlists and lots of fantastic books so you can ditch those car keys and jump on the bus. Or if you’d rather immerse yourself in a spot of solitaire, we’ve found the best games and apps around. We’ve even found out from a whole bunch of celebrities why they like to Do It In Public and you can watch all the videos here.

Traincation
Who needs a port key when there are so many great destinations reachable by train. Who wants to waste time in long airport queues or spend hours stuck on a plane with  leg cramps and screaming children? We have taken some brilliant Traincations all over the globe from Amsterdam with Scott Mills to Munich with Mr Hudson. Wherever you fancy taking a trip to, check out our weekly Traincation ideas for some great inspiration.

Recycling
Recycling isn’t just putting glass jars into a different bin; you can have lots of fun with customising old clothes or even going Swishing to get a whole new outfit for free. Who said rubbish wasn’t glamorous?

Home energy
It’s super easy to save lots of money and energy by making a few small changes in your home. Simple actions like popping on a jumper and turning down your heating, or making sure not to leave your TV on standby can make a big difference. Why not enter our latest competition to see if you can win an Onzo Smart Energy Kit, the easiest to use energy monitor yet.

Cycling
The Global Cool office love to hop on a bike. And we have lots of useful tips from Going Going Bike on how to get the most out of your cycling adventures. If you don’t want to cycle every day, why not try cycling to or from work a couple of times each week to incorporate some easy exercise and save lots of pennies.

The movie came out on July 15! Are you going to see it? Tell us what you think about Harry Potter in the comments box below or on Twitter @global_cool…

Looking for some Traincation inspiration? Do you want to follow in the footsteps of our cool celebrity friends like Mr Hudson?

We have five copies of Time Out’s ‘Flight-Free Europe’ up for grabs to help you plan your perfect holiday. They are filled with all kinds of interesting tips and routes around Europe via train and ferry.

This competition has now closed, thanks to everyone who entered. Congratulations to the winners – Sharon Booth, Ryan Davis, Jodie Corrall, Rit Hutton and Ann Saunders.

By clicking submit you agree to our Terms & Conditions

ThePrizeFinder – UK Competitions

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This week we’ve been rummaging deep in to the recesses of our prize drawer and found these five CDs signed by Mr Hudson…

Space Oddity by David Bowie
The Blue Print 3 by Jay-Z
The Very Best Of The Ink Spots by The Ink Spots
So Far So Gone by Drake
Blue by Joni Mitchell

They were specially picked by the man we like to call “the artist formerly known as Master Hudson” when he came on Traincation with us to Munich last year. They’re the records he would most like to listen to while on a long train journey – and they could be yours if you enter this comp.

This competition has now closed. Thanks to all who entered and congratulations to Samantha Cockroft, whose name was drawn at random as the winner.

By clicking submit you agree to our Terms & Conditions

ThePrizeFinder – UK Competitions

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1.  Rick Edwards
The T4 presenter is well know for his support of green causes and he helped Global Cool promote Traincations earlier this year by making a video of his trip to Barcelona (sans plane) with his mate and fellow celeb George Lamb.

2. Keane
The indie four-piece helped us to Do It In Public in 2009 and this year they were showing off their green credentials again by shunning the normal rock star routine and travelling by train to promote their aptly titled album Night Train.

3. Jack Johnson
Another well-know supporter of all things green, the surfing tunesmith reduced the environmental impact of his tour by using a variety of schemes such as recycling, offsetting carbon emissions and eating organic food from local producers. He also recorded his latest album in a 100% solar powered studio in LA and printed the album cover on recycled paper.

4. Jarvis Cocker
A regular Eurostar user since moving to Paris a few years back, the Pulp frontman went public with his love for Traincations in 2010 by becoming Eurostar’s Ambassador for Culture Connect, helping to promote train travel as an alternative to flying.

5. Mr Hudson
As well as coming to the rescue when the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull brought Europe’s skies to a stand still, the man formerly (we presume) known as Master Hudson took a Traincation to Munich with Global Cool.

6. Grace Woodward
The X Factor stylist is rumoured to be dating winner (and annoying hat fan) Matt Cardle. But even bigger news than that, we’re sure you’ll agree, is that we managed to spend half a day with her customising this awesome winter jumper. Something to keep her and Matt warm while they’re snuggling up at home (with the heating turned down, of course!).

7. Linkin Park
Millions of records sold, billions of awards won, zillions in the bank (probably)… but that hasn’t stopped Linkin Park setting up Habitat for Humanity, a scheme that helps rebuild homes affected by natural disasters in a more environmentally-friendly way.

8. Gemma Cairney
Radio 1′s resident fashionista is not only a huge fan of customising winter jumpers so she can wrap up warm and turn down the heating, she even turned up to Britain’s Next Top Model with us to help promote Turn Up The Style, Turn Down The Heat to the masses.

9. Dermot O’Leary
Another X Factor entrant into the list, the former Big Brother man and long-time friend of Global Cool has been showing us how easy it is to get around by bike this year. We’re sure Simon Cowell will be taking note and ditching the stretched limo and flights to Barbados any day now.

10. Scott Mills
Another entrant from Radio 1, and another fan of Traincations too. Scott certainly kept us entertained when we went on Traincation (actually more of a Ferrycation) with him to Amsterdam earlier this year.

Check out 20-11 of the Cool List here

Who’s your hero of 2010? Tell us in the comments below…

We’ve been asking some of our celebrity friends who they’d most like to meet on a bus, and we’ll be showing this video on the big screens at various music festivals this summer, including the Isle of Wight festival this weekend and Beach Break Live next week.

So, who you like to meet on a bus? And what would you say to them?

As part of our upcoming Do It In Public campaign, Global Cool brings you our guide to the best summer festivals, including how to get there and back without having to dig your car out of a field that looks like northern France circa 1918. Today it’s the Isle of Wight…

Who
New festival favourite Jay Z, party starter Pink and forever young Mr Hudson will be entertaining the crowds over the weekend before the legend that is Paul McCartney headlines on Sunday night. Other acts include Vampire Weekend, Blondie, Biffy Clyro, Doves, Friendly Fires and The Courteeners.

What
For four days the usually quiet Isle of Wight erupts into a party zone. And what makes this festival even better is that it has won a Greener Festival Award for its work in making the Isle of Wight Festival more eco-friendly.

Where
Seaclose Park, Newport

When
11-13 June

Why
Check out one of the stars of this summer’s Isle of Wight Festival, Mr Hudson, talking exclusively to Global Cool last summer…

How
Southern Vectis will be running shuttles to connect people with ferries once the festival is over. Click here for more travel info or plan your journey using this planner…

And now, the results are in… you can listen to the Global Cool Traincation play list on Spotify here.

Thanks to everybody who contributed via Facebook, Twitter and our blog. And for those that won prizes for their nominations, we hope you enjoy.

It’s an eclectic mix of artists and tunes, with everyone from 50 Cent to, er, Westlife (don’t shoot the messengers!) making the cut.

The winners, if there actually is such a thing, were Queen, who have five different songs on the list. And with hair like this (pictured), is it any wonder?

In a close second was our very own Mr Hudson, demonstrating just how popular you can be if you take a Traincation (and if you give Global Cool lots of lovely signed memorabilia to give away)!

The losers are all the artists whose music was not on the list because they do not allow Spotify to use it – we’re looking at you Oasis, The Beatles and Led Zeppelin. Anyone would think you are rich enough and famous enough to not give a stuff about our Traincation play list?!

We’re sure that’s not the case though so we’ve allowed You Tube to rescue you over on our Behind the Scenes blog.

If you’d still like to add your favourite tune to the list, leave us a comment below or give us a shout over on Twitter or Facebook. As you will see from the inclusion of Bryan Adams, we really aren’t musical snobs… although if we could keep the Westlife to a minimum that would be much appreciated!

Of course, no train journey would be complete without an MP3 player full of tunes… and that’s where you come in.

We need you to help us put together our Traincation play list. Your reward is the chance to win either a Bayliss Wind Up Media Player worth £100 (first prize) or a Verio Wind Up MP3 Player worth £40 (second prize), both courtesy of Nigel’s Eco Store.

All you need to do is tell us your favourite song of all time in the comments below.

Everyone who leaves a comment will be entered in to the prize draw. Make sure you enter your email address so that we can contact you if you win.

N.B. THIS COMPETITION HAS NOW CLOSED

P.S. Thanks to everyone for their entries and congratulations to John Richardson, whose name came out of the hat for the first prize, and to Lucy Pugh, who came second. We’ll be in touch soon to arrange delivery of your prize.

Ash from a volcanic eruption in Iceland has grounded all UK flights today. So it’s a good job Mr Hudson took a Traincation to Munich with Global Cool (watch the video below) to show you just how easy it is to get around Europe without a volcano ruining your holiday.

And Mr Hudson isn’t the only one. We’ve also done Traincation travel diaries with Scott Mills, George Lamb and Rick Edwards… all of whom are now laughing in the face of the Icelandic volcano.

You can find out more about Traincations (and feel all smug about your volcano defiance powers) here.