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Both of these spots are super easy drives from San Luis Potosi. Cerro De San Pedro is easier to access via taxi. ADLI is a bit further afield. Armadillo could also be an easy side trip on the way to the Huasteca.
Is not Armadillo De Los Infante the coolest name of a pueblito that you can come across? The drive from SLP is nothing short of bucolic once you get off of 70. It was hard to believe I was even in Mexico. Green, lush, rolling hills, cattle grazing that eventually turned into switchbacks that dropped us into the valley leading to Armadillo. I found this hidden gem while using Google maps to see if there was a hotel in San Pedro, as I wanted a change from SLP city, and had learned of it (San Pedro) from some tourist info for SLP state I’d had on hand. If I could find something. So, Google revealed no hotels (that I could see) in San Pedro, but as I drilled down, Armadillo came into view. Armadillo turned out to be an absolute hidden gem, if you’re looking for a town mostly untouched by touristy type stuff far off the gringo trail. We stayed at Armadillo Mágico, a hotel/complex of bungalows just outside of town. They seem to cater mostly to groups, like weddings, retreats, etc. We had a nice little bungalow. Kinda dark but super quiet. No restaurant service for dinner on our stay, but that was OK, as I’ll highlight later. But they do have 3 restaurant areas, open on weekends, plus an outdoor grilling area. Breakfast was included, but seating was outdoors and that morning brought clouds, cool and drizzle. They offered little tent type things to cover your table, but we opted for just coffee and some protein bars in our room. So we were fine.
The town itself is tiny and super quaint, and from most appearances looks untouched by time. Rustic and maintained, but not restored, if that makes sense. A little research showed that is was where the first printing shop in SLP state was located, in the early 1800’s. The town itself apparently was founded around 1600. We arrived late on a Friday afternoon, and I had thought there might be some weekend type stuff like some small artisans selling their goods the next day. But nothing, maybe because of the not so good weather on Saturday morning. Again, the restaurant(s) weren’t open at our hotel, but that was ok. I had seen from zooming in prior to our arrival that La Orega y La Cebada, our favorite pub in San Luis, to my pleasant surprise also had a location in Armadillo. So a no brainer where to eat. The only semi-disappointment was that there was no beer on tap, just bottled. Poor me. But plenty of bottled craft beer selections. So after dinner we walked around a bit. No one else around; super tranquilo, and our restaurant was about the only thing open. No doubt the majority of visitors come on Saturdays & Sundays. In sum, Armadillo isn’t a destination location to spend more than one night unless you wanted to do some horseback riding and the like. But for sure a great day trip from SLP city, or for a night on the way elsewhere, like us on to the border, or on the way to the Huasteca. I’m guessing there’d be more activity on the weekends, not unlike my next town, though probably not too busy. And the pics I’ve posted probably aren’t the best as I took some in the morning when it was kinda drizzly.
Another good day trip from SLP city is Cerro De San Pedro. It’s been referred to as a “poor man’s Real De Catorce.“ Which I suppose could be sort of accurate as it’s an almost-ghost mining town, but only about 30 minutes from SLP. There is still some mining activity present and reportedly you can still hear blasting. Very popular with day trippers from SLP on the weekends, particularly on Sundays, when we happened to go. Too much so for a relaxing visit. Cars lined up for a quarter mile just to park. Once in town, there were lots of vendors of jewelry, and other trinkets. The typical stuff. Lots of drinking too. Seemed like every other person had a michelada in their hand. We walked around a bit, trying to avoid the noisier places serving food and drink. Away from the busier part of town we found a quiet place and enjoyed some really good beef brisket. If I were to go again, I’d probably opt for a Friday. Now, if you just want to explore a bit and take some pictures, midweek would be fine. I didn’t take many good pics, in part because I only had a phone, plus there were too many cars and people for my picture-taking preferences as amateurish as that may be. Much better shots online.



San Pedro

A typical ruin in San Pedro. Lots of them.




Street scene, Armadillo


Another street in Armadillo

Cerro De San Pedro

Oruga y Cebada, Armadillo