47,700 young Europeans to be granted free travel tickets

Source: Schengen Visa Info

DiscoverEU, which is an action of the Erasmus+ program that gives youngsters a chance to travel throughout Europe for free, has announced that a total of 47,700 tickets will be given to European youngsters at the end of this winter.

In a statement released on Tuesday, January 10, the European Commission said that successful applicants will travel alone or in groups of up to five people between March this year and February 2024, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.

The Commission also added that they would travel mainly by train, with some exceptions, to allow the participation of those living on islands or in remote areas.

“Thanks to DiscoverEU, 47,700 young people will soon start planning their journey across Europe and join a growing community of mobile Europeans,” Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth Mariya Gabriel pointed out in this regard.

According to Gabriel, taking into account that young people want to make cultural discoveries during their visits, a discount card for cultural activities has been added, and at the same time, a thematic cultural route has been published on the European Youth Portal. She also wished all the winners an unforgettable experience.

The Erasmus+ program opens this application round for young citizens, who were born between January 1, 2004, and December 31, 2004, of the EU Member States as well as those of countries associated with Erasmus+ such as Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, North Macedonia, Serbia, and Turkey.

The selected participants will be able to benefit from pre-departure information sessions or meetings across Europe to reinforce the educational dimension of the trip. In June last year, nearly 754,000 people applied to travel and visit Europe through DiscoverEU.

This EU-enabled initiative makes it possible for 18-year-olds from the EU and some third countries to travel across the bloc, meet new people and get to know European cultures. According to DicoverEU, in the last round, which was in October, 35,000 tickets were available for applicants.

In order for an applicant to obtain a travel permit of this nature, young people have to apply at the European Youth Portal website and answer five quiz questions and one additional question.

The same noted that for applicants born between January 1 and December 31, 2024, who have completed the selection quiz, their trip to Europe will last 30 days during the travel period between March 1, 2023, and February 29, 2024.

Furthermore, DiscoverEU also revealed that 165,000 travel permits were available during the six application rounds from 2018 to 2022 and were mainly issued to German nationals.