Using an ESN Card: Discounts, Events, and Where It's Accepted

What ESN is

The Erasmus Student Network (ESN) is a student organization with local sections at universities across Europe, running welcome events, city trips, and a partner discount network. The ESNcard is the organization's membership card, and it works even if your exchange has nothing to do with the Erasmus+ program by name, since most sections accept any incoming exchange or international student. ESN runs as a volunteer network of current and former students, so the people staffing the info desk during orientation week are usually students at your same host university rather than paid staff.

Who actually qualifies

Exchange students on Erasmus+ or a bilateral agreement qualify at almost every section without question. Many sections also issue cards to full-degree international students, even outside any exchange program, since ESN's mission covers international student integration generally rather than only Erasmus+ mobility. Ask your local section directly if you fall outside the standard exchange category, since rules differ section by section.

Physical or digital

Some ESN sections still issue a plain plastic card, while others have moved to a digital version shown through an app, and some sections combine the ESNcard with ISIC into one digital credential. Check which format your section uses before orientation week, since digital cards sometimes need an account setup step that takes a day or two to activate.

How to get one

1. Find your host university's ESN section, usually through your international office or ESN's own section directory.

2. Attend a welcome event or visit the section's info desk during orientation week, when most cards get issued.

3. Bring proof of enrollment and photo ID, and pay the local fee, which each section sets on its own.

4. Receive a physical card, or in sections offering the co-branded version, a digital ISIC-ESN card.

What it covers

The ESNcard partner network spans several categories. Travel discounts include around 10 percent off Ryanair, 15 percent off FlixTrain, and 10 percent off FlixBus. Accommodation partners include roughly 25 percent off Spotahome bookings and 10 percent off MEININGER hostel stays. Shopping partners include Zalando gift cards, and service discounts cover tools like NordVPN and Perlego at around 15 percent off. Local sections add city-specific deals on top of this international list, from restaurants to language courses.

Events and trips

Beyond discounts, the card gets you into ESN's own program: city trips to nearby countries, welcome weeks, cultural nights, language cafes, and buddy programs that pair you with a local student. These events are where most exchange students meet people outside their own nationality group, and they run all semester rather than only during orientation week.

Where redemption goes wrong

Show the card before you pay, not after, since staff at partner businesses generally will not apply a discount retroactively to a completed purchase. Not every advertised partner honors the deal at every location, especially with hostel chains and local shops, so confirm current terms on the partner page before you rely on a specific discount for a trip. Booking through the partner's own app or website sometimes triggers the discount automatically, while showing the card in person at a physical counter works better for smaller local partners. Partner lists change during the year, so check ESN's site again if a listed deal turns out to be outdated at the point of sale.

If your card gets lost or stolen

Report a lost or stolen ESNcard to your local section rather than trying to fix it yourself, since replacement rules and any reissue fee depend on that section's own process. A digital card tied to an app account is easier to recover than a lost physical card, another reason to check which format your section issues before you rely on it for a big trip.

Is it worth the price

A single discounted flight or train ticket through the ESN partner network often covers the entire card fee on its own, before counting accommodation or shopping discounts. Students who travel during their exchange get the most value, while a student staying in one city for a short course gets less from the travel discounts but still benefits from the local events and buddy program.

Using the card outside your host city

The ESNcard works with any partner in the wider ESN network, not only the businesses your local section signed up. When you travel to another European city during a break, check that city's ESN section page for its own local partner list, since discounts differ from what you get at home and some deals apply only within a specific section's territory.

Renewal and validity

An ESNcard typically covers one exchange period, often a semester or an academic year, matching how long most mobility students stay. If your exchange runs longer than the card's stated validity, ask your section about renewal before the original card expires, so your discounts do not lapse mid-year.