Best option for cash in Rome and Florence

Something is off in your explanation. Unless there has been a recent change, the cheapest and most convenient way to obtain local currency is via a bank owned ATM with a debit card. If you are seeing 12-1`5% fees then they must be privately owned ATMs and sometimes that is common in airports where all the ATMs are owned by a currency conversion company. I have never heard of a currency exchange booth being less than 10% for fees.

We always get about 200 euros from thru our local AAA to have on arrival and carry us thru the first few days

After that debit card at a bank ATM during bank hours
Never paid such high fees!
Never from an exchange counter!

If you are flying into FCO, there are both non-bank and Bank ATMs in the terminals. Only once, in Sardinia, was I confronted with a bank ATM that charged fees. Just make sure you use a bank, not private, ATM. Unicredit Bank and Bancoposta have branches in Terminal 1 if you can’t locate a bank ATM in Terminal 3. Use a bank debit card issued by a bank that doesn’t charge transaction or fx fees such as CapitalOne.

There was a post a month or 2 ago that seemed to suggest that there were some machines that did not have a screen allowing a choice to not accept Dynamic Conversion. I don't know if that is true. Perhaps somebody else has run into that?

LINK TO PREVIOUS THREAD
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/any-way-to-avoid-the-high-atm-fees-in-palermo

First, if you have time before you leave, try to get a debit card with checking account that does not charge international fees to use. I have a Capital One account. A lot depends on the bank you have your debit card with.
Make sure you go to a bank-owned ATM. In Rome a few months ago, I used Branco Popolare di Milano. I don’t think I was charged a fee at all, plus the USD to EU exchange rate was very favorable. I used the bank of Siena in Florence, little to no fees.

We always get local currency at ATM at airport. We have a B of A travel card that doesn't charge us conversion AND has some basic travel insurance as part of its benefits.

I have both bank of America and Capitol one accounts with atm/debit cards and have used both in Italy. Bank of America has an agreement with one bank (check before you go, but I think it's BNP Italia???). CapOne has no fees IF you have a 360 account (the kind of account you open online, NOT the one you open at a CapOne office, like in NYC). I always choose to not let the ATM do the conversion - it's worded differently on some machines and isn't always obvious, but should be an option. The difference is you get the exchange rate offered by your bank, which in my experience is the best at any given time, but it's not going to be a huge difference.

There are other banks that offer similar no foreign transaction fees for using ATMS but each US bank has it's own policy and restrictions so check before you go. I've heard TD bank has a good policy but I have no first hand knowledge.

You can get cash either at AAA or even through some banks but it might take a few days so plan ahead. I find those exchange rates aren't quite as good as ATMS in Italy when used as described above, but it's good to have some money with you. We always keep some euros from previous trips - if you have family/friends who have travelled recently they might have some spare you could 'borrow' and just bring back spare.

For Rome and Florence I would think you'll be good with some cash but will be able to use mostly credit cards, and should find a foreign ATM that matches your bank's requirements.

https://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/money

My friend brought American cash and got really low rates at exchange houses. What is the latest thinking and advice on this?

Sorry, but even if this is a true statement, your friend paid, somehow, for the profits of the store with the "LOW Rates" sign over the door. Usually, it's a percentage commission, or a fixed fee for a transaction. But you can be sure they could have done better at a real bank ATM.

It is true that banks like Bank Of America describe themselves as having, say, "International Partners", but that does not affect the fact that B of A charges 3% for any transactions outside the USA. And that's before the issue of "Dynamic Currency Conversion." I opened an account at a credit union to get 0% fees, but because they are a credit union, they get easily upset by large transactions or overseas transactions, and have a tendency to refuse exactly what I wanted to do! Credit Unions seem to be sort of, amateur banks (opinion.)

thanks all—i always use my debit carb (which waives all ATM fees) at banks, never private ATMs. appreciate your comments.

bank-owned ATM.

Aka a Bancomat: https://images.app.goo.gl/3pS7fuKmnueLdayn9

As you can see ATM is not written anywhere.

If an US company, called Euronet Worldwide, uses only the English acronym, I suspect they are trying to make money with English speaking tourists and not with locals

I was shocked at the fees to get cash from an ATM in Spain and Portugal. I checked with our bank here, Wells Fargo, and figured out with all the ATM fees on both ends and the exchange rate, it is cheaper to get Euro in the US before heading over seas. This is way different than it's been in years. I'm bringing a bit of cash with us for each trip and planning to use our credit cards for about everything. Cash is needed for smaller items, like gelato or a bottle of water or bus fare but other than that credit is king.