“Starting next spring, thousands of 18-year-olds will have the opportunity to explore Europe at no cost”. The European Commission has today opened the applications for the latest round of the DiscoverEU initiative. A total of 35,500 travel passes are available, a note from Brussels informs. To qualify, young people born between 1 January and 31 December 2006 must first answer a quiz consisting of five questions about the EU, along with an additional question on the European Youth Portal. “Candidates will be ranked based on their responses and travel passes will be distributed based on this ranking”. The call is open to young people from the European Union and countries associated to the Erasmus+ programme, including Iceland, Liechtenstein, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia and Türkiye. The call is open until 16 October. “Successful applicants will have the opportunity to travel across Europe for up to 30 days between 1 March 2025 and 31 May 2026”. They can either plan their own routes, or be inspired by existing ones such as the “Feel Good Route” which focuses on physical and mental health while travelling. Participants can also get inspiration from the DiscoverEU Culture Route, an initiative of the 2022 European Year of Youth that connects various cultural destinations with a focus on architecture, music, fine art, theatre, fashion and design. They can visit the European Capitals of Culture, sites on the UNESCO World Heritage List, European Heritage Label sites. Special support is available for participants with disabilities or health conditions.