The European Commission today launched a new DiscoverEU competition.
They will provide free travel rail passes to 60,000 Europeans aged from 18 to 20 years, thanks to the DiscoverEU initiative. Irish people can apply for a number of tickets from today.
Applications open today, 12th October at noon and close on 26th October, at noon, for a travel period in 2022, which will be the European Year of Youth.
Ireland South MEP, Deirdre Clune said:
“I am delighted that tickets are once again being made available so that young Irish people can discover Europe. The Commission is designating 2022 the European Year of Youth and this is a fantastic opportunity to celebrate this year by travelling and discovering Europe. It has been a very challenging 18 months for everyone and this scheme was a huge success previously with thousands of Irish people applying for tickets. The scheme is a great way to help young Irish people learn about and see other EU countries. There is so much to learn across Europe and a scheme such as this is very welcome in helping young people as they learn and develop.”
Successful applicants can travel between March 2022 and February 2023 for up to 30 days. All travellers will be offered flexible bookings through a new mobile travel pass. The departure date can be changed right up until the time of departure. The mobile travel passes have a one-year validity.
In 2018-2019, 350,000 candidates applied for a total of 70,000 travel passes available: 66% of candidates travelled for the first time by train out of their country of residence.
