The programme provides 18-year-olds with free Interrail passes in the hopes cross-border travel will foster greater intercultural unity across the bloc.
Tickets are allocated to member states based on population-size and can be applied for by those who recently turned 18.
The figure of 60,000 tickets is double the usual amount, as EU citizens who had their 18th birthday in 2020 are eligible to apply in addition to those coming of age in 2021.The programme is expected to open for applications in October, with selected participants able to travel between March 2022 and March 2023 for a period of 30 days. As the trajectory of the pandemic remains unknown, all travellers will be exceptionally offered flexible bookings and interruption insurance.
From 2022, DiscoverEU will be funded under Erasmus+, an educational programme that enables young people to study abroad, meaning non-EU citizens will be eligible take advantage of the travel passes scheme.The integration into Erasmus+ also means that DiscoverEU is required to adopt a more structured learning approach.
