The Tâmega bends through Amarante in a shallow loop, and the riverbank walks on either side are the best way to see the town. The north bank, under the wooden balconies of the old houses, has a few cafés that put tables out at the water; the south bank, opposite, gives the best photographs of the row.
Pedal boats and rowboats can be rented in summer from the small jetty just downstream of the bridge — a slow half-hour on the water is the most genuinely pleasant tourist activity in town.