The European Commission and EACEA have opened the second DiscoverEU round of 2026, offering around 40,000 free train travel passes to 18-year-olds across Erasmus+ Programme Countries, with applications open now and closing on 15 October 2026. At Youth Works Hub, we read every official page on this one, because DiscoverEU is simple to describe and genuinely complicated to use well, and the details that trip people up are rarely the ones that get repeated in a two-line summary.
Applications opened today, 1 October 2026, at 12:00 Brussels time, and close on 15 October 2026, also at 12:00 Brussels time.
What DiscoverEU Actually Is
๐ DiscoverEU is an activity of the Erasmus+ programme (2021-2027) that gives young people the chance to travel across Europe's diversity, learn about its cultural heritage and history, and connect with people from all over the continent.
๐ซ Successful applicants receive a travel pass, mainly for the most environmentally friendly means of transport, trains. People living on islands or in remote regions will, in specific cases, be allowed other transport options.
๐ณ Winners also receive a DiscoverEU discount card, giving rich discounts on accommodation, culture, sport, local transport and other services.
๐ This round, the Commission and EACEA plan to award travel passes and discount cards to around 40,000 young people, with a budget of โฌ23,500,000.
Why Only 18-Year-Olds
๐ When the European Parliament set up this action, it chose to focus on young people turning 18, since that age marks a significant step into adulthood and into European citizenship.
Who Can Apply
๐ You must have celebrated or will celebrate your 18th birthday between 1 January 2026 and 31 December 2026, meaning you were born between 1 January 2008 and 31 December 2008, both dates included.
๐ You must be a citizen or resident of one of the eligible Erasmus+ countries, specifically one of the following:
๐ช๐บ The 27 Member States of the European Union, including its outermost regions: French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, La Rรฉunion, Mayotte and Saint-Martin (France), the Azores and Madeira (Portugal), and the Canary Islands (Spain).
๐๏ธ The Overseas Countries and Territories associated with the European Union: Aruba, Bonaire, Curaรงao, French Polynesia, the French Southern and Antarctic Territories, Greenland, New Caledonia, Saba, Saint Barthรฉlemy, Sint Eustatius, Sint Maarten, Saint Pierre et Miquelon, and Wallis et Futuna.
๐ค The third countries associated to the Erasmus+ Programme: Iceland, Liechtenstein, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia and Tรผrkiye.
๐ You also need to fill in your identity card, passport or residence permit number in the online application form, and agree to the Declaration on Honour.
๐ฌ๐ง UK citizens can only apply if they live in an EU Member State or in a third country associated to the Programme. UK citizens living in the UK itself cannot apply, since the UK left the EU on 31 January 2020.
โฟ Support and assistance are available for applicants with a disability or health condition that could make travel more difficult.
The Quota, Country by Country
Travel passes are allocated per country of residence, based on the Erasmus+ Programme's youth participation share. If a country receives fewer applications than its quota, the remaining passes are redistributed to countries with more applicants than available passes. Here is the full indicative breakdown for this round, out of a total of 40,898 passes:
๐ Austria: 816. Belgium: 1,056. Bulgaria: 634. Croatia: 370. Cyprus: 82. Czechia: 978. Denmark: 533. Estonia: 122. Finland: 505. France: 5,660. Germany: 6,986. Greece: 978. Hungary: 892. Iceland: 58. Ireland: 456. Italy: 4,994. Latvia: 174. Liechtenstein: 19. Lithuania: 255. Luxembourg: 58. Malta: 47. Netherlands: 1,465. North Macedonia: 18. Norway: 456. Poland: 3,184. Portugal: 942. Romania: 1,762. Serbia: 19. Slovakia: 499. Slovenia: 192. Spain: 3,979. Sweden: 947. Tรผrkiye: 1,762.
How the Travel Itself Works
๐๏ธ Winners travel during the authorised period of 1 March 2027 to 31 May 2028, included.
โณ Within that window, you choose up to 7 days of train travel, spread across a maximum period of 1 month. The 1-month trip and the 7 travel days do not have to be consecutive, you plan them yourself.
๐ You can visit as many eligible countries as you like during that time, as long as the total trip stays within the 1-month and 7-day limits.
๐ Travel is mainly by second class train. In exceptional cases, such as for people living in outermost or overseas regions, or those needing more than 18 hours of overland or sea travel to reach the nearest Interrail station, a plane, ferry or coach may be offered instead. Residents of Cyprus, Iceland, Ireland, Malta or an Overseas Country or Territory can fly to the European mainland, with the return leg arranged by the official contractor.
๐ The card can only be used twice in your own country of residence, once to leave and once to return, and these two outbound and inbound journeys use up two of your seven travel days. Once your card is activated, you have 24 hours to leave your country of residence. If you want to cross your home country more than that during your trip, you need to buy an extra point-to-point ticket yourself.
๐งพ Seat reservations are compulsory on some high-speed and all overnight trains. You can make up to 4 free seat reservations, and these are non-refundable and cannot be changed. First class and sleeper accommodation on overnight trains are not covered, and any reservation made outside the official booking system is not reimbursed. The RailPlanner app is recommended for planning, and choosing regional trains instead of high-speed ones can help you avoid reservation fees altogether on some routes.
๐๏ธ Local public transport and private transport are not included in the travel pass, though your separate DiscoverEU discount card can bring savings on local transport.
The Card Has No Published Euro Value
๐ถ The official rules describe the travel pass as covering second class, largely unlimited train travel within the limits above, without stating a monetary value. Accommodation, food, insurance and any extra travel costs are the participant's own responsibility.
๐ท๏ธ The separate DiscoverEU discount card runs on EYCA, the European Youth Card Association, infrastructure, and activating it is a different step from activating your travel pass, the two are not the same action.
Travelling Solo or in a Group
๐ค You can travel alone or in a group of up to 5 people.
๐งโ๐คโ๐ง If you apply as a group, one person must be designated as group leader before any application is submitted. The leader answers the quiz and the subsidiary question, and after submitting receives a code to share with up to 4 more members.
โ Every single group member has to register with that code and click submit themselves. If a member doesn't complete and submit their own registration in time, they are not considered, regardless of the leader's result, so chasing your group to actually finish the form matters as much as filling in your own.
๐ Plans change, and the system allows for that. If you applied solo, you can still invite friends to form a group, or join someone else's group, any time before the deadline. If you applied as part of a group, you can later decide to travel alone instead, simply by stating your own preferences on the booking form once you're awarded, no extra approval is needed and it doesn't affect the rest of the group.
๐ซ Only one application per person per round. If multiple applications from the same person are detected, only the first one registered is considered, and the others are rejected.
๐ If you already received a DiscoverEU travel pass in a previous round, you cannot win another one in this round.
How to Apply: the 7 Steps
1๏ธโฃ Pass an eligibility check, confirming your date of birth, residence and citizenship, and agree to the Declaration on Honour and to becoming a DiscoverEU Ambassador.
2๏ธโฃ Say whether you're applying solo or as part of a group of up to 5.
3๏ธโฃ Provide and verify a valid email address, since all award communication goes through it.
4๏ธโฃ Fill in your personal data: citizenship, date of birth, name, gender, email, phone number, country of residence, postal code, region, occupation, and your ID, passport or residence permit number.
5๏ธโฃ Answer a quiz of 5 multiple-choice questions on general knowledge about the EU and other EU youth initiatives, plus one subsidiary estimate question used only to rank applicants who tie on the quiz.
6๏ธโฃ Share optional, non-binding information about your travel plans, such as when you'd like to start, whether this would be your first trip without your parents, and how you'll cover accommodation and food.
7๏ธโฃ Review and confirm your completed form. Once submitted, your quiz and subsidiary answers can't be changed.
How Winners Are Actually Chosen
๐ง Applicants are ranked by their score on the 5-question quiz. Applicants who tie on the quiz are then ranked by how close their answer to the subsidiary question is to the correct answer. As a last resort, in case of an exact tie, the first application registered wins.
๐ฌ Results are communicated in January 2027, both as a status you check yourself on the European Youth Portal using your application code, and by email. You'll be told one of three things: that you're a main awardee, that you've been offered the reserve list, or that your application wasn't successful.
๐ญ Make sure your inbox isn't full. Communication after the award happens entirely by email.
๐๏ธ If you're placed on the reserve list, being there creates no entitlement and does not guarantee a pass later. You may be offered one if extra budget becomes available, if awarded applicants withdraw, or if winners fail to activate their pass by the deadline. Reserve list offers can come at any point, and if you do get offered a pass this way, costs for anything you already booked before the offer are not reimbursed.
After You Win: Activation and Booking
๐ Awarded participants must activate their travel pass by 15 March 2027, which means confirming the start date of your 1-month travel window. Miss this deadline, or don't respond, and your pass is cancelled and offered to someone on the reserve list instead.
๐ Once activated, you can still change your start date up until it has actually arrived, right up to the end of the travel period on 31 May 2028. Once your trip has started, the date can no longer be changed.
๐ง The booking process runs entirely through the official contractor, not through you buying anything yourself: an email from the Commission notifies you of the award, a second invite from the contractor's booking platform follows, you upload a scan of a valid ID document, provide a delivery address, get a confirmation once your identity is verified, and your physical card arrives by post. Only once you have it in hand should you book your accommodation and any train seat reservations.
โ ๏ธ You cannot buy your own pass or tickets and expect reimbursement. Only the official contractor purchases and delivers the travel pass and connecting tickets, anything bought independently is not refunded.
๐ The 250 applicants with the highest scores across all Programme Countries are also offered one free night of youth hostel accommodation, in participating hostels only, subject to availability and advance booking, shown with a valid DiscoverEU card at reception.
Declining, Withdrawing or Changing Plans
๐ Your travel pass is personal and cannot be transferred, lent or have its name changed, under any circumstance.
โฉ๏ธ If you can no longer take part, contact the contractor before your pass is booked, and it goes to the next person on the reserve list. There's a formal complaint form on the contractor's website too, you're told about it when you book, though there's no separate appeal process for the selection decision itself.
๐ฅ If one member of a group drops out, this doesn't affect the rest, they travel as planned, and the vacated spot can go to someone on the reserve list.
Insurance and Visas
๐ฉบ The travel pass does not cover insurance. Participants are responsible for arranging their own health and travel insurance for the whole trip. The European Health Insurance Card, EHIC, provides access to state healthcare in EU countries plus Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein, but it may not cover everything, particularly medical evacuation or private treatment, so supplementary private insurance is recommended.
๐ Depending on your citizenship and your planned route, especially outside the Schengen area, you may need one or more visas. Apply more than a month before you travel, since visa processing can take weeks. If a visa is delayed to within 4 weeks of departure, or within 8 weeks of your trip's end, your booking will not be renewed to accommodate it, so start early.
๐ถ One cost exception exists: if a visa requires proof of health insurance, the contractor arranges that specific insurance and DiscoverEU covers it. Visa preparation costs are also covered by DiscoverEU.
Staying Safe on the Road
๐งณ Book all your accommodation in advance and share your full itinerary with your family.
๐ง Travelling alone, consider registering with your destination's embassy, keep cash, cards and documents split across different bags or pockets, and don't let strangers into your room.
๐ Keep copies of your ID, passport and itinerary in a waterproof bag, send digital copies to your family, and store a backup on a small USB drive.
๐ณ Avoid carrying large amounts of cash, shield your PIN at ATMs, and keep a small emergency reserve of cash hidden separately in your luggage.
๐จ 112 reaches police, fire, ambulance and rescue services free, across every EU country, from any landline or mobile.
๐ฑ Free roaming applies across the EU, but public wi-fi can be risky, and you should never post your passport, ticket or other personal details on social media, blur them out in travel photos.
๐ Save an emergency contact as "ICE", In Case of Emergency, in your phone.
โ๏ธ EU Passenger Rights apply if your flight, train, bus or ferry is delayed or cancelled, covering your right to information and, depending on the delay, meals, accommodation or a free return to your starting point.
A Few Real DiscoverEU Trips
๐ Natรกlia, from Slovakia, spent a month in Norway, Sweden and Denmark. She described the trip as personally challenging in a good way, pushing her to talk to strangers, navigate unfamiliar places and solve problems alone, and said it left her more independent and more confident.
๐บ๏ธ Matyรกลก, from Czechia, covered 6 countries and over 1,000 km by train in 10 days, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark and Sweden, after starting out on the reserve list and later being offered a pass.
๐ Joseph, from Denmark, started in Greece and worked his way through Bulgaria, Romania, Hungary and Czechia to Germany, including a 17-hour train journey through Romania, with stops that ranged from Orthodox churches in Sofia and Bucharest to museums in Berlin.
๐ฎ๐น For a longer account from our own community, read Serena's Erasmus+ and DiscoverEU story, who visited around 30 countries by the age of 21.
Planning Your Route
๐บ๏ธ The European Youth Portal publishes five themed, interactive route maps you can use to plan your trip by interest: a Culture Route covering literature, fine arts, music, theatre, architecture, fashion and design destinations, including European Capitals of Culture and UNESCO World Heritage sites; a Green Route; a New European Bauhaus Route; a Feelgood Route; and a Digital Route. Each lets you toggle layers on and off and build your own itinerary city by city.
What Happens Between Winning and Travelling
๐ค Erasmus+ National Agencies, and sometimes local partner organisations, organise optional meet-ups before the travel season, where DiscoverEU winners can connect with each other. These aren't a mandatory step of the programme itself, each meet-up has its own dates, location, free places and its own registration process, usually covering food and accommodation. Past examples have run in Berlin, Venice and Warsaw, found through the European Youth Portal's own meet-up listings.
๐ฅ A separate Video Competition exists for people who already travelled on a past DiscoverEU round, inviting a short video on what it means to be young in Europe, with winners invited to a workshop trip to Brussels. It isn't connected to this new application round, and isn't something you can enter until after you've actually travelled.
What You Become: DiscoverEU Ambassador
๐ All participants automatically become DiscoverEU Ambassadors, expected to share their experience using #DiscoverEU on social media or through a talk at their school or in their local community.
๐ Completing the automatic post-trip survey earns you a certificate of participation, documenting the competences you built, communication, independence, adaptability, problem-solving, organisation and teamwork among them, inspired by the Youthpass model.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the application deadline?
15 October 2026, at 12:00 Brussels time. Applications opened on 1 October 2026, also at 12:00 Brussels time.
Who is eligible?
Anyone born between 1 January 2008 and 31 December 2008, who is a citizen or resident of an EU Member State, an EU outermost region, an associated Overseas Country or Territory, or one of the Erasmus+ third countries: Iceland, Liechtenstein, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia or Tรผrkiye.
How much does it cost?
The travel pass and selection process are free. You cover your own accommodation, food, local transport and insurance, though a separate discount card helps with some of these costs.
Can I travel with friends?
Yes, in a group of up to 5, including yourself. A group leader is designated before submission, and flexibility to join, leave or form a group continues right up to the deadline.
When will I find out if I won?
In January 2027, by email and by checking the European Youth Portal with your application code.
Can I book my own train tickets?
No. Only the official contractor books and delivers your travel pass and any connecting tickets. Anything you buy yourself is not reimbursed.
Do I need travel insurance?
Yes, it's your own responsibility, and it isn't included in the travel pass. The EHIC covers basic state healthcare in EU countries plus Norway, Switzerland, Iceland and Liechtenstein, but supplementary insurance is recommended for anything it doesn't cover.
What if I already used a DiscoverEU pass before?
You cannot win another one. This round is for young people who haven't yet received a pass and discount card in a previous round.
Project Snapshot
๐ Type: Erasmus+ Youth Participation Activity (individual travel pass, DiscoverEU, autumn/second round 2026)
๐ Location: Across Erasmus+ Programme Countries, no single venue, travel is self-planned by the participant
๐๏ธ Activity Dates: Travel period 1 March 2027 โ 31 May 2028 (up to 7 days within any 1-month window you choose)
๐ Countries: 27 EU Member States, their outermost regions, EU-associated Overseas Countries and Territories, and Iceland, Liechtenstein, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia, Tรผrkiye
๐ Age: Born 1 January 2008 โ 31 December 2008 (turning 18 in 2026)
Deadline
โณ 15 October 2026, 12:00 Brussels time
Applications opened on 1 October 2026 at noon and close on 15 October 2026, also at noon, Brussels time. Results follow in January 2027. Find more Erasmus+ opportunities on Youth Works Hub.
Link
๐ Apply now: https://youth.europa.eu/discovereu/apply_en
๐ Full rules: https://youth.europa.eu/discovereu/rules_en
๐ง Questions: eacea-discovereu@ec.europa.eu
