Do you have to attend the hotel's mandatory welcome/guide meeting in Egypt, and is it safe to skip it or book excursions on your own?

If something serious happens during the trip (like a tourist being detained), the hotel or tour operator may simply refuse to inform relatives what happened or where to go for help — don't assume automatic support in emergencies.

During the welcome meeting, hotel reps use intimidation: warning "you're strangers in a foreign country", showing graphic photos of people supposedly injured after booking street safaris, and playing recordings meant to portray outside excursion sellers as scammers.

Attendance is enforced for the whole family — if only one person shows up, the guide may send them away and demand the whole group return together, then require the paperwork be submitted within 40 minutes as a penalty.

Guides call directly to hotel rooms asking when guests plan to book excursions — some travelers eventually stop attending these meetings entirely, viewing them as a waste of time and a source of unnecessary stress.