More than 2,500 people applied for free Inter Rail - nearly twenty times the number of tickets available.
140 Irish 18-year-olds will receive free rail tickets as part of a new scheme to promote Europe to young people, with applications having closed earlier this month.
A total of 15,000 tickets are being offered across the EU in this summer's pilot scheme.
Another 10,000 tickets are to be made available in the autumn in a second application round, including a fresh allowance for Ireland.
Those who have successfully bid for a ticket in the first round will receive confirmation 'very shortly'.
Irish MEP Deirdre Clune said: "It is great to see so much interest from young people in the scheme and I would encourage the creation of more schemes like this.
"All the quotas of travel passes in each Member State was reached which shows how popular a scheme like this is."
EU Commissioner for Education, Culture, Youth and Sport Tibor Navracsics added: "The interest in this initiative from young people across Europe has been enormous, and I hope many more of them will make use of this travel opportunity later this year and beyond.”
The budget for this year's pilot scheme is €12 million, with EU politicians hoping to expand the programme in the future.
Those who receive a ticket will be able to travel to up to four foreign country destinations within the EU.
