To be (green), or not to be, that is the question. When it comes to traveling, the answer is usually "not." But website HootRoot, which has just won a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency award, aims to change all that.

Plug in your start and end points (say, Boston and New York City), and HootRoot cleverly scans Google Maps and HopStop for routes, travel times, and carbon dioxide emissions for various modes of transport. For the Boston-New York City trip, for example, flying takes only 29 minutes (minus airport time) but emits a whopping 428.9 pounds of CO2, while driving clocks in at four hours and 238.84 pounds. Transit, which takes just minutes longer than a car trip, whittles one's carbon footprint to just 18.07 pounds. Consider it ready ammo for making green decisions--and saving a bundle on offset credits.

Photo: Courtesy of HootRoot

You may have noticed that Australia is big. Really big. Only slightly smaller than the United States, in fact, with vast stretches of countryside separating its cosmopolitan cities. Flying around the country is expedient, but on Great Southern Rail's new routes aboard the Southern Spirit, you get to see all the gorgeous landscapes in between.

Passengers on Southern Spirit Whistle Stop Tours can hang ten in hip surfing town Byron Bay, quaff New World wines in the scenic Hunter Valley, pet koalas at Taronga Western Plains Zoo near Dubbo, and go walkabout in the beautiful forests of the Grampians. Now that's the spirit.

Southern Spirit six-day Whistle Stop Tours from $4,235

Photo: Courtesy of Southern Spirit Tours

Ever since Arnold Schwarzenegger had Total Recall and Princess Leia begged for Obi-Wan Kenobi, we've been waiting for our hologram fantasy to become a reality. Now, at Paris's Orly Airport, we're one step closer: holographic gate agents.

An image of an airport employee beamed onto an acrylic silhouette greets passengers and displays gate information. Orly's virtual assistants can be found in Hall 40 of Terminal Ouest, the airport's testing ground for emerging technologies. These agents always smile, never take a bathroom break, and don't go on strike (yet). It's a strange new world, indeed.

Photo: Courtesy Aéroports de Paris / Jean-Pierre Gaborit

In this era of austerity, nothing says excess like a private jet, right? California-based JetSuite, which runs a brand-new fleet of Phenom 100 planes, aims to change that perception by making the high life more accessible, even for those of us whose names don't start with Jay and end with Z.

Becoming a fan of the company's Facebook page gives you access to daily last-minute deals on flights such as San Francisco to Las Vegas and Austin to Houston. What kind of deals are we talking about? Try flights for as low as $499 one-way...for the entire four-passenger jet. SuiteDeals are released at the end of the business day Pacific time, typically for flights departing the next day. Spontaneous travel just got a whole lot more fabulous.

Photo: Courtesy of JetSuite

Wrangling your tech gear, reading material, snacks, earplugs, and assorted other ephemera onto a plane can make you feel a bit like a bag lady. But this smart new canvas bag from Travelteq ($740) can turn your carry-on into a lean, mean (and organized) flying machine.

Two easy-to-reach outer pockets are perfectly configured for holding your passport, iPhone, and wallet. The interior has a shock-resistant laptop sleeve, a section to keep magazines and newspapers crease-free, and a third area to zip away other flotsam and jetsam (hence the bag's name). So, you've got controlled chaos on the inside and a classic canvas-and-leather look on the outside. Everything in its place.

Photo: Courtesy of Travelteq

Planes, trains, and automobiles have practically become our religion--and now intrepid travelers have a cathedral to call home. Opening today, the Riverside Museum in Glasgow is a sweeping temple to transport that's ripe for a summer pilgrimage.

Designed by Zaha Hadid to mimic the undulation of the surrounding harbor, the Iraqi/British starchitect's first U.K. construction is a squiggly warehouse of zinc-paneled peaks and glassy prisms holding over 3,000 objects and 150 interactive displays. Our faves include a Wall of Cars stacked to the ceiling with classics like the Hillman Imp, and the three re-created streets circa 1895-1980, chockablock with vintage trolleys and trams. In a nod to the rich maritime era that put Glasgow on the map, the tall ship Glenlee is moored right out front.

Our only question: Just how do you want to travel there...

Photo: Courtesy of Riverside Museum