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Tianjin → Europe, 18 days

Jul 8 – Jul 25, 2026 · 3 cities · 1 continent (revised 2026-07-08: Paris→Budapest via Ryanair FR4230 on Tue Jul 14, sleeper from Budapest to Warsaw Fri Jul 24 night, 5 nights Paris + 10 nights Budapest)

Start: Tianjin (TSN) or Beijing (PEK) End: Warsaw (WAW) on Sat Jul 25 Days: 18 Status: Outbound locked · Paris hotel booked (5 nights) · Paris→Budapest booked (Ryanair FR4230) · Sleeper to Warsaw option B Budapest, window opens ~25 May
What this is: a day-by-day itinerary, not a price list. Transport, Budapest hotel costs, and sleeper fares are tracked separately on the project status page and the sleeper options sub-page.

Itinerary

Leg 1 · Tianjin / Beijing → Paris

Wed Jul 8 → Thu Jul 9
Outbound flight, booked. Hainan PEK→CDG via XIY (Wed Jul 8 evening departure, 7h 30m overnight layover at XIY, Thu Jul 9 morning arrival in Paris). Research baseline: flight-research.html.

Leg 2 · Paris (mandatory stop)

Thu Jul 9 — Tue Jul 14 (5 nights)
5 nights in Paris. Arrive Thu Jul 9 morning, depart Tue Jul 14 afternoon for Budapest. Hotel booked: ibis Paris la Villette Cité des Sciences 19th (31-35 quai de l'Oise, 75019 Paris), 5 nights Jul 9-14. Research baseline: paris-hotels.html.

Leg 3 · Paris → Budapest

Tue Jul 14
Paris → Budapest, booked. Ryanair FR4230 BVA→BUD, Tue Jul 14 19:25 → 21:35 (2h 10m, 1,281 km). Beauvais (BVA) caveat: Ryanair uses Paris-Beauvais airport, ~80 km north of central Paris / ~1h 15m by direct shuttlebus from Porte Maillot. Plan to leave the ibis early afternoon (the 17:30-18:00 bus from Porte Maillot is the safe target). BVA terminal is small — 1h before departure is enough.

Leg 4 · Budapest (10 nights, base)

Tue Jul 14 — Fri Jul 24
10 nights in Budapest as a base. Tue Jul 14 late arrival (FR4230 lands 21:35 at BUD T2B — easy transfer to city). Optional day-trips from Budapest: Vienna (~2h 40m Railjet, €25-45 OW), Bratislava (~2h 25m, €15-25 OW), Lake Balaton, Eger, Pécs. The V/B/Br "distribution" question is now collapsed — Budapest is the only base, with Vienna/Bratislava available as day-trips or 1-2 night side-trips if you want.

Leg 5 · Overnight sleeper to Warsaw

Fri Jul 24 evening → Sat Jul 25 morning
Overnight sleeper to Warszawa Centralna, arrive Sat Jul 25 ~08:00. Default = Option B (Budapest Nyugati 19:30, EN Metropol) — board the same station you're 2 minutes from. 3 boarding options remain on the table if plans change:
• A · Wien Hbf 23:19 (NJ 471 Chopin) — only if you decide to spend the last 2 nights in Vienna
• B · Budapest Nyugati 19:30 (EN Metropol) — window opens ~25 May 2026 (default plan)
• C · Bratislava hl.st 21:58 (Metropol continuing) — only if you do a last 1-2 nights in Bratislava
Same physical train family (EuroNight Chopin/Metropol, Polish sleeping-car), just boarding at different stops. Full seat61-derived data, prices, and booking-now steps on warsaw-sleeper-options.html.

End · Warsaw

Sat Jul 25 morning
Arrive Warszawa Centralna Sat Jul 25 ~08:00. Target. Onward plans in Warsaw TBD.