Coldplay Cardiff concert: Chris Martin casually arrives by train

Coldplay's last world tour played to 5.4 million people

Coldplay's Chris Martin arrived in Cardiff by train ahead of the band's two nights of gigs.

He jumped the gun, and listened to travel warnings before more than 100,000 fans descended on the city to see the band perform.

Martin got off the train at Cardiff Central wearing joggers, a grey top and baseball cap on Tuesday morning.

The band also made sure their gig is bilingual by kicking it off with a Welsh translation.

Martin's arrival strikes a hard contrast to superstar Beyoncé's arrival to Cardiff for her Renaissance World Tour about three weeks ago.

The star faced criticism from some for bringing her 60-production truck and 18-coach strong entourage.

The singer herself arrived by private jet at Cardiff Airport just after 15:00 and was then flown back to London at 23:00 the same day.

One onlooker tweeted: "I worry about my recycling and here are all of #Beyoncé set trucks parked up in Cardiff... For one night! #ClimateEmergency #Carbon."

• The rise and rise of Welsh pop music

• Coldplay announce new 'eco-friendly' tour

About 60 production trucks were outside Cardiff City Stadium ahead of Beyoncé's concert

Coldplay, who boast hits such as Paradise and Yellow, pledged to cut their carbon footprint after stopping touring in 2019.

Their "eco-friendly" tour is partially powered by a dancefloor that generates electricity when fans jump up and down, and pedal power at the venues.

Their opener on Tuesday and Wednesday night will also play a bilingual video educating fans on the sustainability elements of the tour.

"This will be truly appreciated by the people of Wales and will add to the enjoyment of their World of Spheres shows in the capital," said Gwyn Derfel, Welsh language manager of the Welsh Rugby Union.

"I'm truly grateful for the respect that Coldplay are showing to the Welsh language."

The video educates fans on the sustainability elements of the tour

The green movement continued with the band bringing support act Hana Lili just 8 miles (12.8km) from Sully, Vale of Glamorgan to Cardiff.

It took the singer by surprise who believed the email inviting her from Coldplay's team was spam.

"I sent the email to my dad and he was like 'ignore it, that's a fake email'," the folk artist, from Sully, Vale of Glamorgan said.

"It was a massive surprise, I'm really looking forward to it."

The band, pictured here in Vancouver, last performed in Cardiff in 2017

As with Beyoncé's concert, commuters were urged to plan ahead, with the M4 and surrounding roads expected to be very busy.

Coldplay were originally set to play a single night at the Principality Stadium, but a second night was added after overwhelming demand.

The gates opened at 17:00 and Cardiff council has urged passengers to plan their journey in advance to avoid disappointment.

For Ed Sheeran's tour in May 2022, queues were so long on the M4 that some fans arrived hours late and even missed it entirely.

There will be a full city centre road closure from 16:00 BST to midnight on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Cardiff council said congested roads can be avoided by using its Park & Ride facility at Leckwith Stadium or the Park & Walk facility at County Hall, in Cardiff Bay.

Rail operators have urged travellers to plan ahead

Trains

Transport for Wales was carrying out work for the South Wales Metro, so buses will be replacing rail on services north of Pontypridd (Treherbert and Merthyr Tydfil Lines) and Mountain Ash (Aberdare Line).

It provided additional services, but no post-event services to Birmingham or Holyhead.

Great Western Railway however did run extra services after the concerts.

They will operate from Cardiff Central to Swansea, Newport, Bristol and Swindon.

Both operators said it expected trains to be very busy and advised users to plan in advance.

You can visit the Cardiff council website for travel information around the city.