Portugalete's riverside promenade follows the left bank of the Nervión estuary from the Vizcaya Bridge down toward Santurtzi. It is the town's social spine — locals promenade here in the evenings, benches face the water, and the working character of the estuary is visible in the form of tugboats, container terminals, and the occasional ocean-going vessel passing under the bridge.
The promenade connects the bridge plaza to the old town's lower streets and provides the best ground-level view of the Vizcaya Bridge's iron framework. On the far bank, the beaches and residential blocks of Getxo give a sense of how different the two sides of the estuary feel despite being only minutes apart by gondola.