A Flexible Option for the Chunnel

For young travelers who are planning to use London as their gateway to Europe this year, two affordable opportunities--apart from swimming--are available for crossing the English Channel.

Rail Europe (which markets the popular Eurail Pass in North America) is offering Eurostar Youth Open Vouchers. The high-speed Eurostar whisks you from London to Paris in three hours. London to Brussels is two hours and 40 minutes. About 27 miles of the journey is under the sea through the Channel Tunnel.

Youth Eurostar Open Vouchers are for travelers under 26 who want to keep their travel dates flexible. Normally you must have an advance reservation for the Eurostar; but you can exchange a Eurostar Youth Open Voucher for a ticket any time from two months to 45 minutes before your departure (subject to availability).

Valid until Dec. 31, the vouchers cost $79 for one-way standard-class travel between London/Ashford and Paris/Brussels.

For more details or to purchase, contact a travel agent or Rail Europe at (800) 387-6782, Internet https://www.raileurope.com.

The Eurostar Youth Open Voucher must be purchased before you leave North America. Other youth fares for Eurostar services are sold abroad. For information, visit https://www.eurostar.com.

British Midland, Britain’s second largest scheduled airline, is offering travelers age 12 to 26 a 25% discount on air travel from London Heathrow and East Midlands airports to the Continent with its Discover Europe Airpass.

There are two types of passes. The Tier 1 Route (destinations include Paris; Dublin, Ireland; Glasgow, Scotland; Hanover, Germany; Amsterdam; Brussels; and Belfast, Northern Ireland) costs $82. The Tier 2 Route (cities more than 500 miles from London--Rome; Madrid; Budapest, Hungary; Nice, France; or Milan, Italy) costs $119.

The passes must be purchased in conjunction with transatlantic travel (any carrier). You may change the time or date up to 24 hours before departure; a change within 24 hours of departure incurs a $40 fee.

You would also be eligible for air miles with the frequent-flier programs operated by United, Virgin Atlantic, Air New Zealand, Continental, Lufthansa, South African Airways and Air Canada.

For complete details or to purchase a Discover Europe Youth Airpass, call British Midland at (800) 788-0555, Internet https://www.iflybritishmidland.com.

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Keep these tips in mind if you’re tackling Europe on a tight budget:

* Try to arrive in each new city early in the day so you can have the best choice of budget accommodations. You can book youth-hostel beds in many gateway cities for a small fee through a reservation system available at Hostelling International locations (Internet https://www.iyhf.org).

* Take a padlock. Many hostels have lockers available for your use.

* Keep your valuables in a money pouch under your clothing, not in a day pack slung over your shoulder. It’s easy for a skilled thief to bump you in a crowded bus or train station and take your things without your noticing.

* Be careful when you board a train or store luggage in a locker. You may set a valuable bag down while you organize your other belongings--a perfect opportunity for a grab-and-run thief.

* Make sure you leave a copy of valuable documents at home, and if you have a travel companion, trade a copy with him or her.

* Take advantage of tourist information offices for free maps, and ask about reduced or free-entry hours at museums and low-cost local transportation passes. For example, in London you can purchase a One-Day Travelcard for unlimited use on the Underground and buses after 9:30 a.m. Available Monday through Friday, it is priced from $5.60.

Lucy Izon is a Toronto-based freelance writer. Internet https://www.izon.com.