DiscoverEU: Almost 61,000 Young Travelers to Explore Europe by Train

Photo source: EC – Audiovisual Service / Photographer: Lukasz Kobus

A total of 60,950 Europeans aged 18-20 will receive a free travel pass under the “DiscoverEU is back” round that took place in October, the European Commission announced last week.

According to the Commission, 333,728 young people applied for a travel pass. “This shows the great eagerness of the young generation to embark on a DiscoverEU journey across Europe,” the announcement said. The selection process was based on a multiple-choice quiz.

This application round was open to young Europeans born between 1 July 2001 and 31 December 2003. Exceptionally, 19 and 20 year-olds could also apply after their rounds were postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Successful applicants will travel alone or in a group of up to five people between March 2022 and February 2023 (subject to possible health restrictions due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic). To support the Green Deal, participants will travel mainly by rail, with some exceptions to allow those living on islands or in remote areas to take part.

“The announcement of the results for DiscoverEU is a good way to start the 2022 European Year of Youth,” Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth Mariya Gabriel, said.

“We want this year to be a celebration for all young people. We will multiply opportunities for them throughout the year, for example by increasing the number of tickets for DiscoverEU in the next round that will take place in spring 2022,” she said.

Since DiscoverEU is now part of the Erasmus+ program, more opportunities will be available to the young participants such as pre-departure information training or meet-ups throughout Europe.

A live Q&A session will take place in the #DiscoverEU official Facebook group on 17 January, where participants will ask questions related to their future trip.

The Commission launched DiscoverEU in June 2018. Since then, 685,000 candidates have applied for more than 130,000 travel passes. Sixty six percent of candidates traveled for the first time by train out of their country of residence.