Armadillo Boulders - San Marcos

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Elli Sweet

via Google

UPD: Disappointed by Unprofessional Staff and Poor Cleanliness I had an unfortunate experience during my visit to Armadillo Boulders today. From the moment I walked in, the front desk staff came across as rude, unhelpful, and surprisingly disrespectful. Instead of providing a welcoming environment, their behavior felt intrusive and unprofessional — asking personal questions that were unnecessary and made me uncomfortable. The facility itself was also poorly maintained. The seating areas and tables were dirty, with visible food crumbs left behind, and the restrooms were in a shockingly unsanitary state. For a place that was nearly empty at the time, there seemed to be little effort from staff to maintain even basic cleanliness. It’s frustrating to see a facility with so much potential be overshadowed by inattentive service and poor hygiene standards. I hope management takes steps to better train their team and prioritize the customer experience — starting with respect and cleanliness. Armadillo Boulders – San Marcos is my least favorite of the three Armadillo locations. While it has its charm, especially the kids’ play area which is fun and nicely tucked away, the overall setup left me a bit underwhelmed. Everything is located on the first floor, with the second floor being just a seating/lounge area, which feels like a missed opportunity for more climbing space or engaging features. On my visit, the gym was pretty quiet, which made it more noticeable that some areas weren’t as clean as they could be: tables and seating surfaces had a visible layer of chalk dust, which should’ve been easy to take care of during a slower time. Music-wise, while I do enjoy reggae in general, it didn’t quite match the vibe for a climbing environment. I found it a little too laid-back and not particularly motivating when you're trying to get into an active, focused headspace. That said, I appreciated the presence of a piano (it adds a unique, personal touch, but I do wonder how well it holds up in a chalky, high-traffic setting like this). All in all, it's not a bad gym, but compared to the other two locations, it didn’t feel quite as polished or energetic.

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Lauren Lamm Sorell

via Google

Went on a rainy day and we stayed for two hours. Ryan helped check us in and was very friendly and knowledgeable. He was excellent with my 5 year old grandson. Loved the small upstairs private room where grand gained some confidence and this 58 year old granny loved the big walls. So fun. We will be back.

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Chantelle

via Google

Nice layout to accommodate the whole family. It also had a clean and bright ambiance. Our 3-year old, 5-year, and 7 year-old did not want to stop climbing, and we would not describe ourselves as an ultra athletic family. There are two kid rooms, one downstairs and one upstairs, that are suited for kids up to 7 years. You can even shut the door on the upstairs room if you have littles. The bottom kid room has a door you may be able to close (was propped open) and small play gym surrounded by climbing walls. The kids are allowed to climb in the main area as well and mine enjoyed areas marked “B” for Beginner. The female staff that checked us in was extremely friendly and gave us a safety orientation on falling correctly. The kids caught on quickly. Also, we did NOT notice any odor or strange smell when we were there. Just want to mention this, because I am sensitive to smells and we almost changed plans because of the other review mentioning it.

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Jasmine Rodriguez

via Google

I didn’t know we had something like this in San Mo, but to find it and go here was awesome! I had so much fun and was super impressed by all the features of this gym! They had the climbing area, a gym, and some upstairs area that kind of looked like a lounge. My safety trainer (Jasmine) was really nice! I think she did a great job on training me how to properly land and how things in the gym worked! The vibes here were immaculate and the people were very friendly but also chill. I would totally get a membership here! I just wanted to reiterate the small gym they had here- I was so surprised to see this! And it looked effective enough- free weights, dumbbells, places to hang and practice banded exercises! They even had a mirror wall- that’s always necessary! We stayed there to close and I loved to see how they cleaned the mats- we love a good, clean place! Additionally, they had chalk dispensers which was super cool to see (even though one of them was empty). This was such a fun workout that left me HELLA sore the next day! Definitely recommend and I definitely want to come back!

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Eliot Rocks

via Google

This is simply one of the best gyms in America! My first visit blew me away, Armadillo Boulders impressed at every step. I arrived to friendly staff at 6, there were some youth and after work folks finishing up, then there was a little lul and then the evening crushers arrived. Climbers at this gym climb hard, they try hard, they project stuff at or above their level, they are kind and friendly. This is one of the most friendly gyms I've ever been to. Everyone said hello to me, everyone wanted to climb with me and project stuff with me and discuss beta. The gym culture here is superb, the gold standard, the friendliest and most welcoming crowd. I was so impressed that the girl from the front desk got off and started projecting some hard boulders and trying ready hard. It's so great to see the staff involved with the members and guests, interested in climbing. Everyone was super info climbing. Many people asked for beta and were excited to share theirs. The walls are by Vertical Solutions, wood grain and classic colors, the angles of the walls are exactly what you would want on a good training wall. With that said, there is a cave but not tons of steep overhang. There is decent slab here. The holds were super high quality. A variety of top brands, plastic and fiberglass. Great quality volumes, but not very many. The routesetting is phenomenal here. The setters obviously love what they do. There was a really good V7 crack climb, no hand jams, but some really neat layback moves. The grading felt a little soft, and while I was there I did not see anyone climb V8. However, the setting between V5-V7 was top notch. Every style was represented. after I was there a while, they lowered the lighting, and switched to spotlights. I was initially a bit upset, but then I realized how carefully they had placed the lights. The cave was very dark though. The mats are perfect. They had a dynamic comp set on one wall from a citizens comp. I wish this was my home gym and could learn all the moves. There is ample seating, I felt like they wanted the climbers to stay for a long time. For a small gym, it really packs a punch. Absolutely the highest quality indoor climbing experience I've had in years. I bought a tee shirt, and I never buy tee shirts, and it was only 20 bucks and is nice quality and a sick design. Will return next time I'm in Austin, A+++ 10/10