Hi yes so I did this a month ago and I did check in online and got a BP in Rome actually but it was totally irrelevent....

So when you are deplaning and heading into the airport you will come to a point where baggage claim is slightly right & transfer desk is slightly left. Finding that and entering the transfer desk is where everything simple stopped and it was just a total mess.

Tbh in retrospect I wonder if I should have just gone down to baggage and just tried to enter that way with my BP and onward flight. You may want to consider this option.

The transfer desk guy is the same dude who was there 2 years ago when I was coming in on Emirates and headed out on QR and recall it being a mess then too. He doesnt really speak to you and tells you to sit. I fortunately did find an airline employee who spoke some English and was in the transit area. 15 min after speaking to him he got the desk guy to call me up and they found me an escort who then takes me down an elevator, pass a guard who was sleeping and then we are in the check in area. The same area I could have, I think, got to myself within 2 minutes. I only say I think b/c I recall 2 years ago having to buy a $25 visa to enter Cairo to then only make my way back up to QR but I think that was b/c the terminals were different.

So I am brought to the front of the line and an Italian guy with ITA was impressed i had my own BP and he stamped it and we left. Now we go past the sleeping guard guy (he was snoring away at this point) and then back to the Transfer desk where the man who doesnt speak just nods and stamps my BP also. At this point I thought I was good but we went all the way back to the elevator and past the guard guy and down to level 1 again at which point someone other person gave the OK or something and then my escort took me to security. So now i was left there and went through security and then if you go to the right immediately the lounges will be there.

I thought I was all good but an hour later at the gate I was told my BP was wrong as it was not printed here in Cairo. They held me up from boarding for 15 minutes while calling my escort guy and in the end he must have veriified me and all was ok and i was let in. I thought they were going to make me go get a new BP and go through the whole process again.

I really have no desire to ever transit this airport again.

I also suggest you do what I did and tell the lead FA that you are on the return flight and dont leave with out you, so at least they know to expect you and if you arent there they can look into it.

Enjoy, not really.. But I did save 4K flying to Cairo first instead of flying home from FCO